Page 5 of Starry Skies, Stolen Kisses, and My Best Friend's Brother

“I thought you had a boyfriend.”His tone is casual, but I can hear a note of surprise that he’s trying to hide.

“We broke up.”

Seth gives me a look but doesn’t say anything.I usually tell him everything, but for some reason, I didn’t tell him about my breakup with Rick.I was sad that day, but surprisingly, the next day I was fine.Maybe I didn’t love him as much as I thought I did.He was a good guy.Everyone loved him.Even Abi, though as soon as she found out he dumped me, she hated him.Maybe I’m so used to people leaving me, that I expected it.I try not to think about the other reason I didn’t really care—the fact that no man will ever be like Seth.

But the thing that irked me most about the breakup was that I had done everything Rick asked or expected of me.I put out as much as he wanted.Even if I wasn’t in the mood.I changed my appearance so that I could attend important political events with him.I hid all my weird quirks and fandoms—though most of those were already hidden from the world.

A chameleon.That’s just who I am.I do what I can to make sure I’m exactly what people want me to be.

And it still wasn’t enough.I wasn’t good enough for him.But I couldn’t tell Seth that.

Abi giggles as she hops out of the back.She jogs over to Mark, and they hover over his phone.Seth turns his full attention on me, whips off his Bulgari sunglasses, and gives me the most devastating smile ever.I’m not going to survive this summer.

“You want to have my babies?”He raises both brows and gives me a cocky grin.One that I want to read way more into than I should.

I read the sign still in my hands and toss it into the back seat.“Abi made the signs.”

“We’d make pretty babies.Too bad you’re mymei mei.”He says the last two words in that high, squeaky voice I hate and ruffles my hair.He thought it was terribly funny that my name sounded the same as little sister in Chinese, and he’s been calling me that ever since.

“You’re holding my bra, so I sincerely hope I’m not yourmei mei.Besides, we’ve been over this.You’re too old for me.”

It was a longstanding joke that started last year when Abi was hell-bent on turning me into her real sister.She actually made me go on a date with every single one of her brothers—including Mark.There was zero chemistry or interest on all sides.

Seth is the only one left, but since he lived so far away, we couldn’t date.And when Abi pushed the issue, Seth and I used the only argument we could think of.

The age gap.

He’s twelve years older than me, and I’m barely out of college.

It would be too weird.At least, that’s what I’ve told myself so I wouldn’t get hurt when he rejected me.I don’t really notice the age difference very often.

I flick the lapel of his suit.“What are you wearing?”

“What I wear every day.”

“Seth.We Facetime all the time, and you never have a suit on.”

“Because you only see me when I’m alone at home.In public, I wear a suit.”

I find it strange that I didn’t know this about him already.“Why?”

He shrugs, and then frowns in the direction of Mark.

“Are you happy to be home?”I ask.We never talk about why he doesn’t come here—ever.

He gives me a fake smile.“Not really.”

“Why not?”I ask, but he doesn’t answer, and I don’t push.

“You guys, this is awesome.”Abi waves me over.We both climb out of the car, but before I make it more than a few steps, Seth grabs my hand, and my heart races.He can’t touch me like that.I’m bound to jump him without thinking.

“I want a proper hug.”

I twist my arms around his neck, and he pulls me close to him, one hand on the small of my back and one between my shoulder blades.He smells like soap and expensive cologne.He buries his face in my hair, and the hug goes a beat too long, then he releases me.There’s too much wrapped up in this hug, and I know he feels it too.

He looks at me, and for a half second, his gaze is so intense that I think he might kiss me.But he takes a step back and lifts his pant leg.“I may wear a suit every day, but I also only ever wearmei-meisocks.”

The tension breaks, and I laugh.The socks have me and Abi’s faces on them.We send him socks every month, the uglier or the more obnoxious the better.I don’t even know why it started, but it’s a tradition I hope we never stop.Finding new and fun socks for him is so fun.

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