Page 22 of Naive in Love

He releases me, demanding, “Go put on clothes, now. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Bye.”

As he turns to leave, I notice Preston walking up with a huge smile. Caleb stalls.

Preston extends his hand out to Caleb. “Good to see you again.”

Caleb just nods his head, refusing to take his hand.

Preston turns his focus to me. “Happy early birthday, baby girl!” He opens his arms to me. I wrap my arms around his neck as he picks me up in a friendly bear hug. I look at Caleb standing behind him glaring.

He puts me down, saying, “I should have known y’all wouldn’t be ready. I’m always having to wait for y’all. I’m going to rush the girls.” He heads into the apartment and straight into Lena’s bedroom, I’m assuming because he can hear the chatter.

“I’ll go put on clothes,” I say to Caleb because I can tell he is barely containing his temper. I place my hands on his chest and lift up on my toes to give him a kiss. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Fine.” He walks away.

I close the door behind me and walk toward my room as Preston comes out of Lena’s looking concerned. I continue to my room with Preston behind me. He closes my bedroom door and sits on the bed, motioning for me to sit with him. I am torn between wanting to sit with him for comfort and getting dressed to please Caleb. I can’t pass up the safety and familiarity I have always felt with Preston. I sit next to him, and he wraps his arms around me, pulling me close as he kisses my temple.

“Still with the asshole, huh?”

“I’m sure you know the answer to that question.”

“Sorry. It’s just every time I see him, he’s being a dick. You deserve better.”

“Thanks.” I force a smile and kiss his cheek. “But you don’t have to worry about him tonight. He won’t be going out with us.”

Preston’s lips spread into a shit-eating grin. “Amen!” he exclaims laughing. “Now get your lazy ass up and get dressed. Ethan and the guys are waiting on us.”

I get up to search my closet. “You’ve never really talked about him. Ethan, I mean.”

“He didn’t go to school with us, I guess that’s part of the reason. He’s a couple of years older and went to public school. He likes to rile the family like that. Doing shit that they don’t approve of like going to public school, playing in a band, not picking an Ivy League or a family-approved university… I could go on, but I think you get the picture.”

“Are you close?”

“Getting there. I’ll admit, I’m jealous he has the balls to buck family tradition.”

“Why don’t you rebel a little then?”

“Won’t happen, I want my trust fund. My dad holds the money over my head. My sister is perfect and always does what my dad wants, and I am expected to follow in her footsteps.”

“Ethan doesn’t care about his trust fund? Brave!”

“Nah, my uncle lets him do all this shit, even if the rest of the family disapproves. Only child syndrome, I guess. Or guilt from divorcing his mom.”

“Oh, well, I can’t wait to meet him,” I say, smiling.

“Stop talking, and get dressed,” he says as he walks out the door to rush everyone else.

We walkinto The Shack and look for a good table to watch the band. Lena takes sharp breath, and her eyes widen with mischief as we are about to sit. I mouth,what.

A huge smile spreads across her face before she comes to me, whispering in my ear, “It’s the same band as last weekend!”

“Are you sure?” I whisper back, not knowing how she figured it out.

“Yes, the band name is on the drums,” she says in my ear. My heart feels like it is going to jump out of my chest thinking one of these guys is Preston’s cousin. What are the chances? I can feel my face turning a deep shade of red thinking ofhim. It can’t be, can it?

“No secrets, now you have to tell all of us. And it’s a good one by Sof’s face,” Preston teases us.

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