Page 91 of Our Broken Pieces
He looks down, and his hands cover his face. “Fuck, Marcus, tell me those are not Gigi’s.”
Jax approaches. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” I snap.
“This is worse than we thought.” He looks at Jax, pointing to the counter. “He’s walking around with her underwear in his pocket.”
I give the clerk a tight smile as I stuff the fabric into my pocket. She sits grinning, this is probably the most fun she’ll have this evening.
“Jesus, Marcus.”
“What I carry in my pockets is none of your fucking concern. Linc, are you taking me home, or do I need to order a car?”
“I’m taking you home, but we need to have a chat first. Plus, I’m hungry, so let’s go.”
The three of us are crammed into a booth at a twenty-four-hour diner just outside of the city. The waitress sets down our food, Linc’s plate filled with pancakes and extra cups of syrup. The amber liquid pools on his plate as he pours all three ramekins over the stack.
“God, Linc, need more syrup?” Jax rolls his eyes.
“Blame Mel, she started this addiction.”
I shake my head as I cut into my eggs.
Jax swallows his bite of toast. “Alright, Marcus, tell us what’s going on.”
“Nothing to tell.”
Linc points his fork at me, syrup dripping. “Bullshit. I understand you defending Gigi tonight. Shit, you did what we allwanted to. But I saw you kiss her. You’re carrying around her unmentionables, and you came back from Orlando a little too happy. Tell us.”
I set my fork down, leaning my elbows on the table. “I’m rethinking our agreement.”
“Elaborate on that,” Jax says.
I lean back in my chair. “I think I fell for her.”
“What happened to keeping feelings out of this?”
“Believe me, I tried.”
“And since you walk around with her intimates, I take it you haven’t kept your dick in your pants.”
“Who the fuck calls them ‘intimates’? Linc, I remember what I agreed to, but things changed.”
“Do you remember, Marcus? Because I think you have a whole bunch of feelings going on. I knew you always liked her, but fuck, falling for her isn’t what you two agreed to.”
“I haven’t always liked her.”
“You have for a while now. You just wouldn’t let yourself admit it.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“I knew there was something there the night we all went out the weekend before Jax and Audrey’s wedding.”
“I think I knew something was different the night you two met for the first time at the fundraiser.”
“You’re delusional. That was two years ago, and she had a boyfriend.”
Jax speaks first. “You two have been hanging out for a long time, years now. Maybe more is true to your little fake engagement plan that you thought. You developed feelings for her over that time and now that she’s single, you can allow yourself to see it.”
