Page 1 of Cru's Crush
1
CRU
Beau Barrett was my best friend and, where Daphne, the woman gazing at a framed photo, was concerned, my nemesis as well. I didn’t need to see it to know whose image she studied. Based on her sad expression, it was of the man I wished was here, with us, just so I could bash his fucking face in.
The two had been one of those on-again, off-again couples since they were teenagers. Every time they broke up, I hoped it would be long enough for me to have a chance with her. But, honestly, if Daphne had been the slightest bit interested in me, she wouldn’t have been turning to Beau again and again and again.
“You gotta give it up, man,” my oldest brother, Brix, whispered. “Beau will be back before you know it.”
“Not this time, bro.” I led him from the living room, down the hallway, and into a bedroom, then shut the door behind us.
Brix rested against the wall and smirked. “You keep tellin’ yourself that. How long have you been crushin’ on Daphne Cullen? Ten years? More?”
“Things are different now. Beau is with Samantha Marquez.” Frankly, I was surprised he didn’t know, given his wife, Addy, and Sam were best friends.
Brix chuckled. “Not a chance. There’s no way Sam would put up with his shit.” His expression changed. “Wait. Do you know where Beau is?”
Shortly after his mother’s funeral, Beau had disappeared, and until I saw him in New York, I’d had no idea where he was, either. Turned out he was with Sam.
“I’m telling you; it’s serious between them.”
Brix pushed himself away from the wall. “So where is he?”
“C’mon. Don’t ask me that. He’s with Sam. That’s all I can tell you right now.”
“What makes you think they’re serious?” Brix shook his head. “No offense at all to Sam, but I just don’t see her with Beau.”
I held up my phone so he could see the text I’d just received from our brother Salazar, who everyone called Snapper.
“No, shit! Beau proposed, and Sam said yes? Damn, Daphne is gonna be butthurt.” Brix was practically shouting when someone pushed the door open. When he moved out of the way, I came face-to-face with the woman whose name he’d just uttered.
She spun around and raced off in the opposite direction, but not before I saw tears fill her eyes.
“What the fuck, Brix? Butthurt?” The asshole was pushing forty but sounded more like a twelve-year-old.
He grabbed my arm when I walked past him. “Let her go.”
I shook my head and pulled away from his grasp. “I can’t.”
My brother stood in front of the door, blocking my exit, and put his hands on my shoulders. “This is going to sound corny as hell, but, Cru, you’re supposed to be the leading lady, not the best friend, and for some reason, you’re acting like, you know, the best friend.”
I took a step back from him. “What the fuck are you talking about, Brix? The leading lady?”
“It’s from a movie Addison and I watched last night. You get my point, though. You need to stop acting like the best friend, so Daphne can see you as the leadinglady—err, man.”
I shook my head and looked out the window. As I could’ve predicted, Daphne was walking on the beach, alone. Even from here, I knew she was crying.
Brix approached and stood next to me. “If you go out there now, she’ll cry on your shoulder. You’ll console her, and it’ll be just another conversation about her and Beau. The next time you talk to her, it needs to change. No more her and Beau. Make it about her and you.”
“Like it’s that easy.”
“Take it from me; it is if you want it bad enough.” He turned to look at me. “You’ve loved her for as long as Beau has. And actually, I’m not sure he ever felt as strongly for her as you have.”
“That doesn’t mean she’s ever seen me as more than a friend, or ever will,” I murmured.
“Convince her otherwise.”
I faced my brother and stared into his eyes. “What are you suggesting I do, Brix?”
