Page 61 of The Agreement

“This isn’t about him.” My conversations with Brooke and Deacon echoed in my mind. I was giving her advice I’d practiced, but I was also doubting my decision to push Deacon away the way I had. “So go find her and kiss her back and see what happens.”

“But what about—”

“It doesn’t matter,” I said.

Paige scowled. “You don’t know what I was going to say.”

No, but I had a pretty good idea it was a protest having to do with her brother’s feelings. “It doesn’t matter,” I repeated. “If you like the kiss, you can keep doing it. If you don’t, you owe it to her to let her know. If Bryan doesn’t like it, he needs to learn to deal because life isn’t always what we want it to be. And if the uptight fucks at your school don’t like it, fuck ‘em. You’re graduating in four months, make a memory or two thatyouwant before then.”

“Harsh.”

Not really. “Honest.”

“A lot of people don’t like that kind of honesty,” Paige said.

“Nope. Promise me you won’t beat up the motorcycle anymore?”

Paige’s smile was back, and some of her tension was gone. “I promise. Thank you.”

Now if only it were so easy to figure out my own confusion and take my own advice. I should forget about Deacon as anything more than a friend, and focus on Brooke.

But my mind rebelled at the thought.

TWENTY-THREE

DEACON

With most ofthe work done in the basement that required a crew, the next week was spent making sure the space was usable as an expansion to the showroom. The only big job left was reinforcing the stairs. Tuesday night, Evie helped Adam and I get those in place.

The rest of the week, he and I spent evenings fixing the place up. It was fun. A lot more fun than work should be, but that was one reason I enjoyed my shop—it wasn’t a slog. But during the day when Adam went to visit Brooke, there was a smoldering ember inside me that burned for me to yank him back. To growlmine.

Except I didn’t know if it was Adam or Brooke it wanted to yank away, and I wanted this feeling gone. It wouldn’t serve anyone.

When he came back Friday night, he told me Brooke was cleared to walk around again, as long as she took it easy, and that she wanted to come see the work we’d done. That possessive spark roared to a flame with the reminder that a month ago, Brooke would have told me that directly and never given a second thought to if Adam knew. I smothered the feeling.

Saturday, mid-afternoon after most of the DIY-ers had finished their shopping, Adam headed to Evie’s. His videos of Sebastian’s had done so well that he was working his way through other shops on the street.

He’d wanted to do Aubrey’s place next, and tie it into mine, but she wasn’t answering texts or calls, and she managed to make herself busy anytime one of us stopped by.

I was trying to give her space to cool down, but I didn’t want to be waiting. I wanted to make things right with her. I wanted Brooke back. I didn’t want Adam going to visit…

Was I asking too much?

Absolutely. I needed to get my shit together.

Adam called a little before eleven.

“Yeah,” I answered.

“Hey. Dylan is there, right?”

“Yes.”

“This is running long,” Adam said. “Will you go pick up Brooke?”

She can drive herself, can’t she?I loathed the thought and that I’d had it the moment it entered my mind. Besides, I was more desperate to see her again than I wanted to admit. Which, of course I was. I missed a friend. “Yeah. No problem.”

For some reason,Brooke’s just a friend, the same way Adam isrepeated in my head the entire drive to her house.

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