Page 93 of Puck My Stepbrother
“And there’s plenty more where that came from. I love you, Quinn.”
Saying that exhilarated me and sapped all my strength at the same time. Saying those words freely topped the hottest sex I could have with him.
Quinn looked up at me again, and I stared into those eyes once more. Then I leaned in and kissed his lips. This time, my tongue did slip into Quinn’s mouth, lapping over his. My hands migrated lower, cupping his ass and squeezing. But I wouldn’t push for sex. Sure, the thought of an outdoor romp where we could be caught excited me, but this moment contented me too much.
That kiss felt more magical than any we’d shared before. It was a kiss that I hoped would never end. As we swayed back and forth to the music, the entire world fell away, leaving only Quinn and me.
When the song ended, our lips broke apart. We stared at one another and smiled. The satisfied glow in Quinn’s eyes warmed my heart. I released him from my grip and threw an arm over his shoulders as we headed back inside.
As amazing as the moment had felt, one glaring thing stood out: he hadn’t told me he loved me back.
37
QUINN
Ididn’t mean to be so difficult with Levi. I really didn’t. It was just that so much had happened in under twenty-four hours that I couldn’t process it all. One minute, I was waiting for Jeff, and then we broke up. And when Levi and I started screwing around in the church basement, I knew I couldn’t be with anyone else. But that dance outside the reception hall struck me harder than anything, bringing everything home.
Levi loved me. Like, hefor realloved me. Before, I’d thought he was infatuated at best. No, worse, I thought he was the horniest person on Earth, and masquerading as someone capable of being in love with another human being. When he told me he loved me the first time, I didn’t believe him, for good reason.
Guys like Levi will do and say anything to get in your pants. Love is just another four-letter word. Given everything I’d been through with Levi in school, caution seemed like the safest bet. No, wait, that’s not right.Avoidanceseemed like the safest bet, only Levi had worn me down to the point where I could no longer avoid him. He’d hooked me. And then I gave away parts of myself, piece by piece, until my willpower hung by a thread.
I’d been hurt once and couldn’t risk facing another round of pain. But something about what’d happened between Levi and me felt so right. I couldn’t deny that, even if the risk felt huge.
Dad and my new stepmom took Levi and me out to breakfast at a local place called Sophia’s the next morning. Obviously, Levi and I said nothing at the table about what’d gone down between us the day before, but we couldn’t keep our eyes off one another. By now, I could practically read Levi’s thoughts, and understood he could do likewise. Dad and my stepmom did all the talking at breakfast, and I barely heard a word they said. I lost myself in Levi’s eyes, knowing that I couldn’t avoid talking to him about us much longer. I tossed various ideas about how to make things work back and forth in my mind, insisting that I hadn’t latched onto a pipe dream.
After a few days, the wedding excitement finally died down, but that didn’t signal a return to normal life. That wouldn’t come for a while, I understood. Dad announced that he and my stepmom would be going to Boston for a honeymoon, since he and my mom had never had one. Levi told them to go to a Bruins game. I told them to visit Cheers, the Public Garden, and the Museum of Fine Arts.
Their honeymoon would leave Levi and me alone in the house for five whole days. What could possibly go wrong?
But I didn’t dread the idea. Not at all. I didn’t want my stepbrother to disappear from my life. Part of me genuinely wanted to be with him and do anything necessary to make that happen. Another part of me threw up roadblocks, and I didn’t know what to do about it.
On our first morning alone, I was sitting in the kitchen and eating a bowl of Cheerio’s, when Levi strolled into the room. He greeted me with that magical Levi Dunn smile that could melt my heart. Yes, it’s true, even assholes could light up anyroom they entered. Then he cooked up some eggs with toast and orange juice before joining me at the table.
We ate in silence until we finished. Neither of us wanted to leave the table, opting to lounge in our seats and enjoy one another’s company.
Finally, I broke the silence by saying, “I’m sorry about the other night.”
“Which night?”
“The wedding night, Levi. Don’t you remember?”
He pushed his knife and fork to the middle of his empty plate and then swished around the dregs of juice at the bottom of his glass. Then he leaned back like the subject didn’t stress him out at all. Of course, he knew what I meant. It was all part of the game guys like him loved playing.
“It was a good time, wasn’t it?” he asked.
“Uh, yeah, it definitely was. I liked the part where we danced outside all by ourselves the most.”
When he smiled, I knew I’d found my opening.
“I really appreciated what you said,” I told him.
“I meant it.”
“I know you did. And I just wish I could say it back.”
“Of course you can say it. There’s nothing stopping you. All you have to do is say three little words.”
“But it’s not as easy as just saying the words, don’t you get it? I know what I feel, but something’s stopping me from actuallysayingit.”
