Page 69 of Into the Woods

“It means, you’re a dumbass and she’s right—you really did expect her to sit around with a chastity belt on, waiting for you to finish getting your dick sucked and fucked by half the female population of California.” He gave me a disgusted look. “It’s the twenty-first century, dude. Women can have casual sex, too.”

“Did I ever say they couldn’t?” What the fuck was going on?

“You implied Bex couldn’t,” he responded.

“That’s different,” I insisted, but the argument sounded shitty, even to my own ears.

Bishop clapped his hands down on my shoulders. “Court, you can’t have it both ways. Either you want her, or you don’t. If you do, go tell her right now, and I’ll cancel the room. But if you can’t? Then get out of her way.”

“You mean your way?” I knocked his hands away.

He grinned. “That, too. I’m not going to apologize for appreciating what you’re intent on throwing away.”

“You’re my brother,” I finally snapped. “Aren’t you supposed to have my back?”

“Who the fuck says I don’t?” He moved around me. “So? What’ll it be? Are you going to talk to her?”

I ground my teeth together, my jaw aching as my gaze cut to her closed bedroom door. My eyes dropped, but not before I caught Bishop’s smirk.

“Exactly what I thought.” He made a tsking sound under his breath as he walked by me, and that was all it took for me to spin and shove him.

Bishop stumbled forward a few steps, surprised but regaining his balance quickly. He turned and glared at me. “Don’t.”

I shifted my weight to my back leg, bracing myself for him to fight back. My blood craved the violence, needed it to soothe some savage part of me that was going apeshit at the idea of Bishop and Becca alone in a hotel room together.

“Stay the fuck away from her,” I ordered.

The door across from us opened and Rook leaned a shoulder against the frame, watching us with annoyance. “You two fuck up this room, and it’s coming out of your paychecks.”

I glared at him. “He—”

Rook held up a hand. “I don’t give a fuck. We have more than enough shit to deal with without you two whipping out your dicks to see whose is the biggest.”

“Mine is,” Bishop chimed in.

I snorted, not even bothering to reply to that.

“Bishop’s right,” Rook added.

Bishop blinked in surprise, then smirked. “See? Told you mine was bigger.”

“Not that you idiot,” Rook muttered, shaking his head. He looked at me, holding my gaze. “Either you’re in or out with her. If you’re out, then it shouldn’t matter what your brother or any other guy does with her.”

“And if I’m not?” I glared at them both.

“Then say so, and I’ll never look at her again,” Bishop told me, his voice conveying absolute honesty.

“What happened to the good, old-fashioned bro code?” I mumbled, not wanting to deal with these annoying feelings and what they meant.

“It absolutely applies, but only if you’re willing to admit that you have feelings beyond friendship for her.” Rook made it sound so simple.

I’d been ready to do just that. I’d thought she and I were on the exact same page when I’d gone to take a shower, then I’d come out and everything had gone to shit. Now she was going on a date with my damn brother?

Bishop and Rook watched me, neither willing to give an inch. As if making me face up to the feelings I had for Becca would lead to some kind of miraculous revelation. Like this was one of those bullshit primetime teen soap operas where the main character suddenly realizes he’s in love with the girl next door.

I didn’t need a special moment to know I’d been head over heels in love with Rebecca Whittier since the day I’d understood what love was.

And I’d been running from it ever since.

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