Page 78 of Overeager
Eli startled, breaking the kiss only to realize that, in his excitement, he’d missed the other figure hiding in the shadows of his driveway wall.
Ash.
That made sense, actually. Noah’s car was in the drive, meaning Ash must have come to return it. He seemed to have come alone, the alpha Ryder nowhere to be seen.
Eli coughed, slapping at Noah’s arms discreetly so he would put Eli down.
Noah only tightened his hold. “You remember my brother?” he asked.
As if the last interaction they’d had with Ash was something Eli was likely to forget.
“Vaguely,” Eli croaked. God, was Ash going to yell at them both again? If so, he really wished he was doing something more dignified than clinging onto Noah like a frazzled koala.
“He’s come to apologize.”
“Oh.” Eli nodded frantically, still slapping at Noah’s arms. “Um …”
Ash rolled his eyes. “Dude. Noah. Put the poor guy down. You’re acting like a caveman.”
Noah grunted at his brother in annoyance, but he finally loosened his hold, allowing Eli to climb down his tall frame witha bashful smile, straightening his clothes as best he could as he greeted Ash properly. “Hello.”
“Hey.” Ash wasn’t exactly opening his arms wide for a hug, but he wasn’t glaring at Eli like he was the devil either. Instead, he poked Noah in the shoulder. “Give us a minute.”
Noah cocked a brow. “Ask nicely.”
“No.”
Noah let out another put-upon sigh, ducked down to give Eli a swift kiss, and then turned to head into the house.
Which, more than anything else, was enough to convince Eli that Ash was here with good intentions. Noah would never have left them alone otherwise.
To his credit, Ash didn’t beat around the bush. “I’m sorry,” he told Eli as soon as Noah had turned away. “I was out of line the other day.”
“I get it.” Eli resisted the urge to fidget in place. “He’s your brother. Of course you’d be … concerned.”
“I could have handled it better,” Ash admitted, sounding frustrated with himself. “Sometimes my mouth works faster than my brain, you know?”
He ran a hand through his curls, ducking his head down away from Eli’s gaze. Objectively, he was just as handsome as Noah, but he lacked the innate warmth of his brother. He was a little cooler, a little harsher.Youngwas all Eli could think. Never mind that he was only a couple years younger than Noah.
Eli cleared his throat, trying to throw Ash as much of a bone as he could. “Thank you for apologizing. It’s gracious of you.”
Ash’s head stayed tilted toward the ground, but he peered up at Eli from behind his lashes. “He’s not just my brother, you know. He’s a good person. Genuinely. All the siblings, like, worship him. I just didn’t want anyone taking advantage.”
“I don’t think I’m doing that,” Eli told him slowly, exchanging honesty for honesty. “Heisgood to me. The best. But I also really like him.”
Ash smirked. “You love him ‘so fucking much,’ actually, if I heard correctly.”
Eli coughed. “Yes, well … Yes.”
Ash’s gaze quickly turned sharp. Assessing. “He’s crazy about you, you know. It’s kind of wild. He’s always been content, but it’s been this, like, inward thing. It’s never been about anyone or anything outside of him. But ‘content’ doesn’t cover what he’s been lately. His happiness is so … intense.”
Eli couldn’t help his proud grin.
Ash grimaced. “Fuc—I mean,god, you guys are mushy.”
Eli didn’t dignify that with a response. They’d earned the right to be mushy, hadn’t they? He tilted his head toward his house. “You wanna come in?”
“No.” Ash held up his phone, where a little decal of a car was moving closer to his location. “I’ve got a car coming. Ryder’s waiting for me.”
