Page 29 of Never Tear Us Apart

I pull the door open and stop for a moment, looking back over my shoulder. “It’s good to know there are still a few of you left. Nice guys,” I add when he looks at me in question. “Maybe reconsider heading out to the beach, huh?”

I shoot him a small smile and he lifts his hand and gives me a wave as I pull the door open and leave, anxious to put this whole night behind me.

Chapter 7

Cruz

A heavy pounding in my head wakes me, and when I try to open my eyes and sit up, a flash of pain shoots through my skull. It feels like I’ve been hit in the head with a bat, then run over by a truck, and fuck this.

Dropping my head back down, I try to remember why I feel like shit, and slowly, through the haze of my booze-soaked brain, I remember everything that happened last night. Finding Ellery with Royce, our argument, and the kiss that followed…

After two years she was mine again for a moment, and everything felt right. Then that fucking song come on and the past smacked me in the face.

In the blink of an eye it was the summer of ‘89 all over again. Only this time, it wasn’t me driving away from Ellery while U2’s “With or Without You” played in the background, but her walking away from me.

I was so stunned by what was happening, I could do nothing but stand there and watch her leave. Only once I was able to pull myself out of it, did I race out of the room and down the stairs, wanting to apologize for what happened.

When I couldn’t find her, the idea that I’d hurt her again joined forces with the regret I’d been carrying for the past two years, and all I could do to escape it, was to make it so I felt nothing.

A fifth of Jack became my anesthesia for the rest of the night as I partied with my brothers and pretended as if I didn’t have a care in the world. But all the while I was growing more and more numb until the last thing I remember before passing out in this very spot, was Ellery’s watery green eyes, filled with pain thatI’dcaused.

Turning onto my side, I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block out how good it was to hold her again. I used to love the way her body felt against mine. Her petite frame with curves that were coming into their own, melding against my own.

But now she had curves grown women would kill for, and feeling her chest pressed against mine… Shit, just thinking about it made my whiskey dick hard, and body hot with need.

“Did you get a look at Cruz’s sister last night?” I hear Cal say through the pounding in my head. “Fuuuuckk, I would give my left nut to hit that.”

“Dude,” Marcus shushes him. “He’s on the couch.”

“He’s passed out,” Cal laughs. “Tell me she’s not hot as fuck.”

“Hot or not, she’s his little sister so you need to back off.”

I might feel like death warmed over, but I can still make a fist, and my hand is clenched so tightly, every vein in my forearm is bulging.

“Stepsister,” Cal corrects, “which means she’s fair game. So dibs, motherfucker. That ass…shit.” He lets out a whistle. “I can’t wait to—”

“I wouldn’t finish that sentence if I were you,” I hear Jake warn as he pads into the kitchen. Judging by the gravel of his voice he’s as hungover as I am.

“Why?” Cal tosses back. “You want a piece of her, too?”

“No dick. In case you forgot, I have a sister of my own, and wouldn’t hesitate to break your face if you were talking about her the way you are Cruz’s right now.”

“Well, one, your sister is married, so no worries there. And two, I’d take a broken nose for a chance with his. Actually, break every bone in my body if you want. She can nurse me back to health while wearing that short little skirt she was wearing last night.”

I don’t even realize I’m doing it, until I’ve pushed up from thecouch, and jumped over the back.

“Morning, brother,” Cal says with a grin as I stalk toward him.

My head is spinning and my mouth is dry, but it’s nothing compared to the rage I’m feeling.

“You’ve got a lot to say this morning.” I grab his shirt angrily and push him up against the wall. “Care to say it to my face?”

“Sure,” his smile widens. “Why not get it out of the way now? Saves us from having an awkward conversation later.”

Pain shoots through my head, striking both temples. “What conversation?”

“The one where I tell you I’m gonna nail your stepsister.”

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