Chapter 3 #2
I nod, not wanting to open my mouth again in fear of what else might spill out of me this time.
Maybe my most embarrassing moments, a little trauma dumping, or perhaps my social security number and my bank account information.
The man can just go ahead and steal my identity and blast all my secrets online that I’ve freely given him because I’m incapable of being calm, cool, or collected.
His tongue traces across his lower lip and I can’t help but track the movement. What this guy must think of me. “You know,” he starts and I’m already nodding.
I do not, in fact, know–anything, at all–but that’s not going to stop the bobble-head action I’ve got going on. Is there an Olympic sport for embarrassing yourself? Cause I would be a shoe-in for gold.
He doesn’t even bother hiding his grin this time and damn. It is a nice smile. It’s too bad they’re rare. Or at least they used to be. Maybe he smiles more now that we’re out of high school. It was a hellscape, especially for Ezra and his brothers.
“Jude is really good at stuff like that,” he continues. “He had to fix our AC at the beginning of summer. I can ask him to come over and take a look at yours? See if he can fix it.”
My mouth pops open in shock. I always knew Jude was good at tinkering with shit, but I would never have thought to ask him for help. “Oh my god, would you? Would he?”
Wow girl. Way to have some chill.
Oh no. That’s too big a favor for someone who barely knows me.
“Wait, no. I don’t want to impose. He shouldn’t have to go out of his way for me.
Neither should you.” I’d feel too bad if they cancelled whatever plans they had for me.
“Thank you, but I’ll be fine,” I promise.
“I’ll just sleep naked tonight or something.
” Mortification ripples through me. “You don’t want to know that. Please forget I said that.”
Ezra chuckles and it washes over me. “I don’t think I’ll be forgetting that anytime soon,” he teases. “Can I see your phone?” he asks.
I hand it over without even thinking. This man really could take my whole ass identity. I don’t think I’d even care. As long as he doesn’t look at my Kindle library. Anything but that.
“There,” he says, handing me back my phone. “Just text me your address and we’ll come over around six, if that works for you?”
I open my mouth to ask him if he’s sure, but he cuts me off. “Yes, I’m sure. And Jude will be happy to help.”
I chew on my lip but I nod.
“Do I need to watch you send it to me right now?”
I smile, but take my phone and send him a text with my address. “Six works for me.”
“I’ll see you then,” he promises, before walking away without waiting for a goodbye.
An elbow hits me in the side, making me jump and jarring me out of my thoughts as I watch Ezra’s retreating form.
“Girl!” Summer hisses. “You have some explaining to do!”
I flinch, having completely forgotten Summer was even there.
Oh. My. God. I forgot Summer was here. This whole time, she’s been here. I am the worst friend ever. And rude as hell.
“Who was that?” she asks, grabbing my arm and dragging me towards our class. Oh, fuck. I hope that our conversation isn’t going to make us late. Marshall is not a fan of tardiness. She’s been known to lock students out of the classroom.
“Ezra,” I answer her, checking the time and breathing a sigh of relief that we still have plenty of time.
She elbows me again. “I gathered that.” Summer wouldn’t know Ezra or his brothers.
We didn’t become friends until our second year of college at our job.
She came from out of town and I’ve never talked about the odd connection I’ve always felt to the brothers.
The one that always seems to frazzle my nerve endings and brain cells.
“Who is Ezra and why does he fry your brain?” she teases.
I groan, putting my face into my hands. “It was bad, wasn’t it?”
She’s smiling as she shakes her head. “Not that bad.” It takes one droll look and less than a second for her to start cracking up. “Okay, it was bad. I’ve never seen you ramble and lose your head like that. So I must repeat. Who is Ezra?”
Who is Ezra? How do I even explain him?
“We went to high school together,” I start. “Him and his two brothers.” You can’t talk about one of them without including the other two. I rarely ever saw them separated until we moved here.
“Oh, triplets?” she intones. “Are you telling me there are two more men out there in the world that look like that?”
I snort. “Not quite,” I answer. “They’re foster siblings. Grew up together for as long as I can remember though. I guess they stayed together when they left home and came here.”
“Fascinating,” she says dryly. “And what is the story with you two?”
Flinching, I shrug her question off. “There’s no story.
” Unfortunately. She waits me out and it doesn’t take me long to cave.
“Okay well, there was a time where I thought he might ask me out, but he never did,” I admit.
I’ve never admitted that out loud to anyone.
The couple of friends I did have from high school could never understand the way I was always interested in the three boys the entire community shunned.
It didn’t take long for those friendships to fizzle once we weren’t in such a small pond, but then there was still no one who would understand.
“He looks like he wants to do more than just ask you out,” Summer says, fanning herself. I have to correct myself, there was no one who’d care or understand until I met Summer. “He looked like he wanted to eat you out. Completely devour you.”
“Oh my god, Summer!” I exclaim, slapping her arm.
She only waggles her brows at me. “And the brothers?”
My cheeks heat and that’s enough for her to be the one smacking me. “You dirty little hooker!”
I burst out laughing, shoving her away from me. “There’s nothing there. I’ve always just kind of…” I hesitate, not knowing how to explain it. “Watched them?”
She blinks slowly. “Like stalk them?”
I huff in exasperation, “No! They don’t really talk to anyone but each other.
At least that’s how the three of them were in high school.
” And before. Not that I can blame them.
There isn’t a single person from our hometown I would have a nice thing to say about if I were them.
“But I always wanted to,” I admit. “Be a part of what they had,” I try to explain.
“I’ve never seen anyone love and care for each other the way they do. ”
They were always on the outside and yet they never seemed to mind. They kept to themselves as much as anyone left them out. The rest of the world could have burned and they probably wouldn’t have even noticed as long as they had each other.
No one has ever loved me that way. As if I was their sun, the center of their universe.
“On top of that, Ezra is literally the smartest person I have ever met in my life,” I continue, wanting to get away from my current train of thought.
Looking at them always made me feel lonely.
“You saw how kind he is and both of his brothers are exactly the same. Jude has always been really good with his hands. He’s got a mechanic shop and he’s gotten me out of a few tight spots without requiring my firstborn child as payment.
It shouldn’t even surprise me that he’d be able to fix my AC. ”
Summer’s so entranced in what I’m saying, she almost walks past the class. I snort, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the thankfully still open door and snag our usual seats towards the back of the lecture hall.
“And the other brother?”
“Weston,” I answer with a smile. “He’s quiet.
” Not shy, just quiet. He’s never used his words.
Used to drive teachers mad when he would give them a blank stare back every time they called on him.
You’d think they would have learned to not attempt to pressure or force him, but they never did.
“But he’s always seemed so sweet to me. I can’t explain why and we haven’t had a ton of interactions so there’s nothing to point to as evidence. He just seems sweet.”
“So he’s hot?” she asks.
The snort that rips from me has several people turning in our direction with curious looks. “They all are,” I admit. “But you saw Ezra’s tattoos?” I ask. At her nod, I continue, “I’m not certain, but I’m fairly positive it’s Weston’s work.”
Her brows raise as the professor comes in. “Impressive,” she whispers just before he calls our attention forward. We have no other chance to gossip about the guys or anything else through the rest of class.
When it’s over and we’re packing up to leave she smirks at me. “I’ll be seeing you tonight,” she promises.
I scoff but before I say anything she’s already gesturing to her bag. “To compare notes.”
“You’re such a liar,” I laugh. “You just want to see Ezra’s brothers.”
She winks. “I won’t be mad about seeing him again either.”
I can’t even be mad at her, because same girl. I’ve enjoyed looking for a long long time now. Maybe a buffer between us would be nice after all though. Maybe her presence will help me have at least a little bit of chill. “Fine, but you have to make sure I don’t embarrass myself.”
Summer giggles as she arches a brow. “I think it may be too late for that,” she teases. “But I also think that man could not care less even if you chopped your own foot off and swallowed it whole.”
She leaves me with a wave and a knowing look. I spend the rest of my day in a bit of a daze as I ponder her words, turning them over and over in my head. Could Summer be right?
Was I right all those years ago?
Could there really be some type of spark between me and Ezra?
Then I remember the way I told him I folded my laundry and didn’t know people did that. If there ever was a spark, it’s definitely dead now.
Lord fucking help me tonight when they come over.