Brynne #2
“It’s not you I’m horrified at. It’s the thought of something growing inside me, moving around like an alien.”
“I mean, that’s our baby you’re talking about, not an alien, but whatever,” he said softly, a teasing note to his voice.
She rested her head on his shoulder, laughing breathily. “No, Theo and I have news,” she clarified.
“Oh my god, are you leaving one of my brothers for the other?” Trinity gaped at her. “And you’re leaving Ronan for Theo ?”
“Oh goodness,” Willow muttered. “No. No. Definitely not.”
“Why definitely not ?” Theo asked. “I’m a catch.”
“Yeah, you’ve caught literally every STD known to man, and probably invented your own, too,” I said, smiling when Troy laughed.
“I’m clean,” Theo said defensively.
“Anyway,” Willow laughed. “We’re doing a bachelor auction to raise more money for the lighthouse.”
“A bachelor auction?” I repeated, and she nodded excitedly.
“We got a lot of grant money, but not enough to fund everything,” she explained.
“You’re doing something to the lighthouse?” Troy asked. I felt his knee brush against mine under the table, and I stiffened. When he touched me, it felt different than when Theo did. Not totally unpleasant, but…different.
Unwanted.
But then I remembered the way Theo stared at that girl at the bar, the way she touched him like she had any right to, and I felt myself press my knee against Troy’s in response. He sucked in a sharp breath as if he hadn’t been expecting it, and his reaction only gained attention from Theo.
His eyes narrowed as he flicked them between us, gauging what was happening right in front of him. I smiled sweetly as I took a sip of my drink.
“We’re restoring the lighthouse at the beach,” Willow said.
“Oh, yeah? That’s awesome. People will love it.”
“So, the bachelor auction,” Trinity said. “Does Cedar Ridge have enough bachelors for that?”
Willow shrugged. “I think so. We’ve gotten a lot of signups for it.”
“Are they attractive, though?” Trinity scrunched her nose. “I’ve seen what this town has to offer and…”
“Maybe we can ask Blackrock Bay Fire Department if they’d like to join,” I teased. She glared at me so hard, I’m surprised I didn’t turn to dust.
“A couple of them signed up, actually,” Willow said, nodding. “Rhodes and Owen?”
“Oh, I know them,” Ronan said mindlessly. “They’re friends with Dean. Good guys.” He used the tip of his beer to point at the Blackrock Bay table Dean was sitting at.
“Gross,” Trin muttered under her breath.
Troy leaned closer to me, his shoulder resting against mine as he whispered, “Does she actually hate him?”
His breath was warm and soft against my skin, smelling like beer and the lingering remnants of minty toothpaste.
“Not really,” I whispered. “They’re trivia rivals.” He nodded and leaned back but was closer to me than he was before. His leg was fully pressed against mine, his arm brushing against me every time he moved.
“Theo is doing it too,” Willow said, and I snapped my gaze back to him. He glared at us, his jaw tense as he stared at where Troy’s arm kept touching me.
Was he upset?
Good.
That was what he deserved for flirting with me all week, only to turn around and try to take some girl home right in front of me.
I leaned closer to Troy, never taking my gaze off Theo's. “Are you going to be in the auction?” I asked Troy, dropping my voice to a purr. He sputtered slightly, clearing his throat.
“I—I don’t know—I don’t think so. No one wants to bid on me.”
I rested my hand on his arm. “I would.”
Theo scoffed into his drink, trying to hide the sound. But I heard it.
I saw it.
“We always need more people to join,” Willow said happily. “Give me your email, and I’ll get all the info I need from you this week.” She typed it into her phone as he told her, but I wasn’t paying attention.
Not when Theo’s chest was quickly rising and falling with every breath.
I leaned against Troy again, just to see Theo’s face redden.
“Are you in it?” Troy asked Ronan, and he shook his head.
“I’m taken,” he said. Willow smiled, a flush settling on her cheeks.
“You two are…married?” he asked, looking between them. His hand disappeared beneath the table, and his thick fingers brushed against my outer thigh. Theo glared at the table as if he could see through it.
I let Troy explore, let him touch me, let him drag his fingers along my thigh until he wrapped his hand around it. Every second that passed, every touch, every movement, made him more confident.
“Not yet,” Ronan said. “What do you do?”
“I’m an electrician,” he said. “You?” I wasn’t sure who he directed the question to. Surely to Willow. Everyone knew Ronan was the sheriff.
“I work at The Sugar Shack,” she said cheerily.
Troy’s hand slid higher, teasing the hem of my dress as if asking for permission.
That was too far, though. Too much.
“I was going to be a baker once,” he said, and I glanced at him. “But I couldn’t make enough dough.” There was a beat of silence, and he cleared his throat. “And, you know, I’m not good at baking things.”
I looked around at the confused faces, then it hit me that that was supposed to be a joke.
I forced a giggle to slip free and watched as he deflated in relief when everyone followed my lead, laughing at the worst joke I’d ever heard.
But Theo didn’t.
He just glowered. Vibrated like he was riding an edge of control I’d never seen him lose before.
Then he took a deep breath, and his body relaxed, his face relaxed. He dragged his phone from his pocket and casually scrolled.
My heart stupidly dipped. Maybe he didn’t care that Troy was flirting with me—no, that I was flirting with Troy?
At all?
My phone buzzed against the table, and I snatched it up, staring at the Pulse notification.
There was only one person it could be, and he was currently sitting across from me, pretending like I didn’t exist.
I turned the brightness almost all the way down before opening the message.
THEO:
If you touch him again, I’m going to fucking lose it.
ME:
Jealous, Playboy?
THEO:
Don’t do that.
This game isn’t you.
ME:
I’m just having fun.
THEO:
I’ll give you fun.
ME:
You can’t.
But he can.
THEO:
If you want to fuck someone, Brynne. Fuck me.
Not him.
“The game’s about to start,” Trinity announced, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Who are you texting?”
“What?” My voice was too loud. “No one.” I slammed my phone face down on the table and smiled. Her eyes dragged to her oldest brother, then back to me. She wasn’t dumb, and we weren’t slick.
She was going to figure it out sooner or later—whatever it was.
I took a deep breath. I needed to end this with him before it started.
Or get a hell of a lot better at hiding it.