Page 28 of Rookie Mistake

Two things happen at once.

All in slow motion, or at least that’s what it feels like.

1. Zara loses her shit.

And… 2. I realize that her brother?

Oliver fucking Andrews, enemy number one and the guy vying for my spot as starting pitcher.

Wehateeach other, and I just had sex with his sister. In his house.

Mother. Fucker.

chapter nine

Zara

“Dangerously”— Charlie Puth

If you thought there wasanythingworse than your older brother walking in on you and the guy you just had sex with who turns out has the biggest dick you’veeverseen and fucks like a god but coincidentally is said brother’s number one rival… you’d be wrong.

Trust me, I’d know.

And just when I thought the situation couldn’t have gone from bad to worse, itabsolutelydid.

It went from being incredible to being a total shitshow.

I had to physically push Oliver out of my bedroom when he started acting like a complete and utter overbearing asshole. But that wasn’t the surprising part.

Obviously, I knew that Davis was a baseball player, but what Ididn’tknow is that he and Oliverhateeach other, and their rivalry is a huge issue for the baseball team, causing tensions to run extremely high.

“You’renotseeing him again, Zara. I… I forbid it,” Oliver barks, rubbing his palm over his jaw at the kitchen island the following morning. “That guy is a fucking asshole and a total womanizer, and I don’t want you around him.”

I’m running on very little sleep, and honestly, even if I’d had a full eight hours, I still wouldn’t want to be dealing with yet another conversation with my brother, who clearly is delusional.

God, is this what my entire four years of college is going to be like? Oliver acting like I’m a petulant child and not respecting any of the boundaries I’ve set?

“Funny thathe’sthe asshole when you’re the one who acted like a complete dick, yet he was perfectly polite to you despite that. And I’m just going to pretend you didn’t just say that ‘forbid’ comment because you’ve clearly lost your mind. I’m a grown-ass woman, Oliver. You aren’t protecting me—you’re smothering me. You’re not respecting my boundaries, which I am clearly laying down for you. You’re trying to control every aspect of my life, and it’s not happening.”

His mouth parts in surprise and then snaps shut.

My brow arches.

I never lie down and take his bullshit, but this… this is different. Last night was the last straw.

“You’re going to stop dictating my life. Who I’m with, where I’m going. What I wear. It’s completely unacceptable and disrespectful that you know I feel this way and you continue todo these things, and then you report back to Dad like you’re my handler.”

“Look, sure, I might have been a dick last night, but I just walked in on my little sister… doing things I don’t even want to think about with a guy I can’t fucking stand,” he spits, face full of fury, blazing in his eyes.

Hopping down from the barstool, I shake my head, stopping him. “Oliver, I love you. You’re my big brother. But stop. Seriously. I don’t want to fight with you, but I’m an adult, and I’m going to make my own choices, my own decisions, and my own opinions. I understand that you and Davis have… issues. But that’s between you. If I decide to stop seeing him, it’s going to be because I wanted to, not because it had anything to do with you. Got it?”

For the first time in his life, my brother’s speechless, and I’m feeling much, much better now that I’ve gotten that off my chest.

Growing up, we were always close. Oliver’s only one year older than me, and I was always his little shadow. Wherever he went, I went, and people often mistook us as twins because of our dark hair and matching green eyes. Our parents were always busy with my father’s business, and he was always my big brother who took care of me.

But as much as I love him and as close as we’ve always been, it doesn’t give him the right to dictate my life or be an asshole to those I care about.

Does Davis fall under that category?

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