Page 21 of My Brother's Alien Match
“You’ll still take him to the ball, right?”
Luno blinked, not seeming to follow for a moment.
“Oh. Your brother?” he asked.
I nodded eagerly.
“Please. You have to.”
For a long moment, he stared at me.
“No offence to your brother Robin, but he is not the one I want at my side.”
“But you have to go.”
“I will,” he agreed. “Withyou.”
My heart did a hopeful flip.
Why was it still such a surprise that he wanted to take me to a fancy event after everything? I couldseethe love in his eyes … or at least, I thought I could, but it was too sudden. Too surreal.
I swallowed.
“The whole reason we even met was that I wanted to find someone for Taylor to go to the ball with. There’s not enough time to find someone else.”
“Then he will have to go alone.”
I could just imagine Taylor’s face if he saw Neil there with someone else and had to pretend he was fine. He would spend the night crying at the very least and I would be serving drinks, unable to comfort him. At least with Luno at his side, he could maintain some degree of pride.
A tentacle touched my chin, tilting my face up to meet Luno's gaze.
“If it means that much to you, I will go with him,” he promised.
I nodded, even as disappointment warred with my gratitude.
“Thank you,” I said. “I’ll be working anyway.”
Whatwouldit be like to go to a ball with Luno? To hold his hand and dance with him. I would have to ask Taylor when it was all over.
Chapter Ten
LUNO
Robin was overly concerned for his brother, a character trait that I appreciated in him. He had a big heart and was more loving than I could have hoped for.
The fact that he was putting his brother first, shouldn’t have hurt, but when he started to usher me out the door in the late afternoon, I couldn’t deny how much it stung.
After a day spent in each other's arms, moving from the bed to the shower, then having lunch together before inevitably ending up tangled together again on the couch, I wasn’t looking forward to returning to my lonely home. In fact, I had no desire to be apart from Robin foranylength of time.
“Quick,” he said at the door, peppering me with kisses as he gently pushed me through it. “Before Taylor sees you here and figures it out.”
“Why do you want to hide this from him?” I asked, confused.
“You’re going on adatewith him on Friday,” he said, as though that clarified everything. It didn’t come close. Taylor was only in need of me to trick his ex-boyfriend into thinking he had moved on.
“He’s not interested in me,” I said, in case that was the issue. Indeed, it would have complicated things for Robin. Not for me though, I knew where my heart was.
“That’s not the point,” Robin said.
