Page 11 of My Best Friend's Brother
“Black hair?” Keke asked.
“And long enough that it curled over his forehead and at his neck,” he said dryly.
Keke fingered Pete’s dark brown curls that had fallen over his forehead. “I like this, by the way. And with the scruff—which we’ll talk about later.”
“Nothing’s wrong with my beard,” he challenged.
“If you want to kiss a girl, you can’t be eating your hair.”
Pete grimaced. “I’ll let you have that one.”
“You let me? Ha! I won that one hands down.”
Pete grinned again. An easy smile that relaxed Keke. “And smile—like that. Say your name and smile. Master those two things first, and you’ll be well on your way.”
“Thanks.”
“That’s only lesson one. There’s more to come.”
“I have a feeling they’ll get harder.”
Keke laughed. “Depends on the work you put into it. You need to work to win a girl. A lot of it is effort. Put in the right amount, and she’s yours.”
“What’s the right amount?”
“Varies, but if you get encouragement from her, you’ll have a pretty good idea. Give me one week, and you’ll have Lea begging you to stay here and not go to Cornell.”
Pete frowned. “How long are you staying? You have a job lined up here?”
Keke returned to the shelf and her pile of toiletries. “Just the week, as a favor to Bertie. After that, I’m out.”
“Out where?”
She finished placing the toiletries on the shelf and glided across the room to where he sat on one of the beds. “L.A. I’ve got an audition.”
His gaze shifted to her legs. “To dance?”
“Acting. There’ll be some dancing as well.”
He studied her face for a moment. Keke rubbed her arms, wondering what he thought, even though she shouldn’t care. Goosebumps formed the longer the appraisal lasted.
“You didn’t come back for his funeral.”
Keke moved to the last untouched bed. Pete joined her, and they worked the sheet together. “Didn’t feel like I needed to. He’s dead. Great.”
“You really feel that way? About your own father?”
Keke bristled at Pete’s accusatory tone. “How I feel about it is none of your business.” She slammed the pillow at the head of the bed. “I never wanted to come back, period. I did it for Bertie. And like I said, at the end of this camp session, I’m out for good.”
Keke marched across the cabin toward the door.
“Wait, Keighly!”
She shoved the door open and left.
