Page 46 of The Good Girl (Nashville Neighborhood)

I knew all the details about her parents’ terrible curfews because I’d been talking to her every day. It had started with a simple flirty text from me the morning after our date, asking how she had done with her homework. I hadn’t meant it to turn into anything more, or some big conversation—but it had. She was easy to talk to.

And she wasn’t my girlfriend.

It meant I could say whatever I wanted and not worry about impressing her or if I might come off self-centered. I could just be me. The whole thing was relaxed. Low pressure. Surprisingly effortless.

But if we were getting together tonight, I’d need to put forth some serious effort. My bedroom was a fucking disaster.

I dropped the box on top of the others in the corner of the unit and fired off a text.

Preston: Tonight works for me. Pick you up at 7?

Sydney: See you then!

I began drafting my plan of attack. The first order of business when I got home would be laundry. It’d been an embarrassingly long time since I’d washed my sheets, and if everything went the way I hoped it would tonight, we’d definitely be using my bed.

The image leapt into my mind. Sydney, naked and tangled in my sheets. Her hair was spread out on my pillow and her face was sweaty and flushed because I’d just fucked her brains out—

“Preston.”

I turned to find Colin standing beneath the rolled-up door, backlit by the bright sun outside. He tilted his head as he peered at me, looking like he’d been trying to get my attention for a while.

“Hey, man.” He grinned. “I know I’m late, but you don’t have to ignore me.”

“Sorry. I didn’t hear you.”

Because I was too busy thinking about fucking your little sister.

I knew he was coming to help with the boxes, but I wasn’t prepared to see him. Guilt sat heavy on my shoulders and chest, making me feel like a piece of shit. He’d been there for me, the closest thing I’d ever had to a brother, and this was how I repaid him? Doing the one thing he asked me not to?

It was betrayal.

And yet I felt powerless to stop it. I wanted Sydney too much to turn back now.

Fuck. I was a terrible friend.

Colin strolled inside the storage unit and jerked his head toward the stack of new boxes. “You finish already? You should have waited. I would have helped.”

“It’s fine. There weren’t that many.” My gaze shifted away, landing on the clear plastic container where we stored stuff for bachelorette parties. It was full of pink and white feather boas and more dick-themed items than I could have ever imagined.

“Madison came home for lunch,” he added, “and I got . . . distracted.”

“Hope you got some good content,” I teased.

“You know, sometimes we fuck just because we want to, right?” he said lightly. “There doesn’t need to be a camera rolling.”

I shrugged. “Okay.”

He’d been shooting porn for two years, and I was fine with that, but every once in a while, I remembered how wild it was. Strangers paid to watch my friend and his girlfriend do everything, including other people.

I had mad respect for them because I couldn’t do it. Even if I had that much confidence in my body, and my game, to put it all out there, I couldn’t picture myself having a strong enough relationship where I was sure my partner would come back after being with someone else.

I was far too competitive to share.

But the voyeur aspect? Yeah. That wouldn’t bother me at all. It was kind of hot.

“I’m not saying we didn’t record it, though.” Colin flashed me a guilty smile. “Sorry I didn’t get here sooner.” He glanced around the space before refocusing on me. “What else needs to get done?”

“We need to talk about Troy’s launch party. Did you see the email from Warbler?”

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