Page 7 of Bro Amazing

Okay, maybe two aspects of my life, since I'm not going to tell them about my slight genre shift, either. They're already weirded out that I write romance books with fade-to-black love scenes. To tell them I'm going to switch to high-heat romances with all the spice might give them an aneurysm. There are just somethings we don't talk about in our family, and my sex life or sex fantasy life are definitely on that list.

"Do you need help setting up anything else? Or unpacking?" asks Mom, eyeing the towering stacks of boxes along the wall.

"No, I'm good. Thanks though," I assure them. "We already have the bed set up and I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to arrange the rest of the room yet. There's no rush though, I can do a little bit every day as I make those decisions."

It's starting to get late and I'm not sure how long this ARAM my new roommates mentioned takes because I don't know exactly what it is. My parents need to be out the door and on the road before they finish and come out of their computer room, though.

"We have a long drive, then," says Dad, pulling me into a hug. He's sweaty and so am I, but there's so much love in these arms. "We love you, sweetheart. You call us if you need anything."

"Thanks, Dad." I completely believe him. My parents would rescue me the way they think I need rescuing, but I want to do this on my own. Prove to myself that I'm an adult and can stand on my own two feet.

Well, with the help of my five new boyfriends.

"Take care of yourself, Clarissa." Mom pulls me into the quickest hug imaginable. She turns away to head downstairs, but I swear I catch her wiping her eyes behind her glasses, even if she is trying to be discreet about it.

I follow my parents to the front door and wave goodbye from the top of the stoop as they drive away. As soon as they turn a corner and are out of sight, I close the door and slump against it. I'm absolutely exhausted from rushing around and doing an entire move in one day.

Trudging back up the stairs, I dig through the boxes labeled “bathroom” until I find my shower things. Right now, I'm really grateful for having my own en suite so I don't have to worryabout interacting with any of my roommates or being caught unprepared.

As I wash the sweat from my body, I think that this house might be a little run down, but at least it has amazing water pressure.

Once I'm clean, I feel better. I have a place to live and a path forward. However, because my packing was so chaotic, I can only find a hand towel to dry myself off. Unpacking is definitely moving up on my list of priorities.

Walking out into my bedroom to look for one of the boxes with my clothes, I am met with a sight that has me scrambling to cover as much of myself with my tiny towel as possible.

Ethan is standing in the middle of the room looking around as if it's a museum and not my bedroom.

I guess their whatever-it-is is over then.

"Can I help you?" I try to remember if I'd closed my door or not. I'm so tired though, I can't remember. Either way, my door is standing wide open now. And I don't want to tell him off for not knocking if I'd left the door open in invitation to anyone passing by.

"So, are you our girlfriend now?" Ethan has a soft voice. I realize this is the first time I'm hearing it. He looks even more uncertain than I am about this situation.

"I … guess so?" I dig a little through the nearest box for anything I can use to cover myself up while glancing back at the bathroom. Which option would hide me quicker?

"I pentakilled today," says Ethan, fisting the ends of his sleeves over his hands.

He says it so simply, I can't help but stop my search and look up. "Is that good or bad? Because I don't know what that means."

"It's good." Ethan nods, more to himself than to me since he's still not looking at me. "Can I kiss you then?"

Clearly we're starting right away with all the benefits of being in the middle of a relationship. None of the get-to-know-each-other first dates. Just right into the deep end.

Unless Ethan really means he only wants a kiss, and nothing more.

Part of me wants to say no. I've had a rough day, making a big, life-changing decision and moving my entire life into this room. But this is the agreement. I'm their girlfriend and I need to make myself available as they requested.

"… Okay." I suppose there's no better time to hold up my end of the bargain and start my own research. I can do this. I just need to pull on my big girl pants and kiss this stranger I just moved in with.

Except I guess I can't pull up my big girl pants, because I can't find any of the boxes with my clothing in it, but the point still stands.

"Okay," repeats Ethan as he shuffles over to where I'm standing, still shielding myself with the hand towel.

Ethan places his hands on my bare shoulders. It's a little bit shocking—I knew it was coming, his touching my bare skin, but it's still a surprise. He's focused on my lips, and I can't help but stare at his own. At the way he bites his bottom lip a little in anticipation, so when he moves closer there's the tiniest markings where his teeth were a moment ago.

He's moving so slowly, it's making me more anxious, and I just want to get this first time out of the way. Thinking about something and prepping for it is painful. Let's rip the BandAid right off this entire situation so I am no longer freaking out, and can no longer back out.

Leaning forward ever so slightly, I meet Ethan's lips with my own. I capture his mouth in a kiss that's both tentative and warm. His lips are plush and the perfect amount of moist, with a slight hint of mint. It makes me wonder if he made the effort ofa special trip to the bathroom to use mouthwash and rolled on a sheen of lip balm.

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