My brother ducked his head, and I was surprised there was no quick comeback. Either my glare had finally worked on him—doubtful—or maybe he realized how messed up it would be to bring up dad’s death in front of strangers. Whatever the reason, I was glad to turn my attention back to Honor, the girl who’d just managed the impossible and made me laugh for the first time in years.
She was the one frowning now.
“Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to cause any issues between you and your brother.”
I raised a brow, thinking of the name she’d called out the other night. My issues with my brothers were many, but that one stood out like a sore thumb.
Apparently, she was thinking the same thing because she pulled me further away from the others and lowered her voice.
“I also wanted to say I’m so sorry about…well, you know,” she whispered.
I shook my head. “No, I don’t. You’re going to have to spell it out for me.”
“I’m sorry for saying what I did. It was a total accident. I wanted to apologize when I figured out my mistake but wasn’t sure I could handle the embarrassment.”
I crossed my arms and waited, knowing there was more.
“My brain was addled by pleasure,” she went on. “You were just so good at, well, everything. I mean, what do you expect? I can’t be blamed for what I said in the heat of the moment. At least, that’s what Charlie said. Right?”
“What did you say exactly?”
She gave me a look, realizing I was playing with her.
“What? I’m just a dumb jock. I can’t remember.”
“Archer.”
I felt the corner of my mouth tip up. “No, that’s what you should have said.”
“Ugh.” Honor raised her hands. “Can’t we just pretend like it never happened? I’d be okay with that.”
“Well, I wouldn’t,” I said seriously. “If you think for a second I want to forget what happened between us, you’re dead wrong. That was one of the best nights of my life.”
“It was?” she said.
“Yeah.” I reached up, catching a strand of her hair that’d escaped, and tucked it behind her ear. Her shiver felt like hitting a homerun with all the bases loaded.
“Even after I said Baylor instead of your name?” she said quietly, and I closed my eyes.
That memory would haunt me the rest of my days—or until I replaced it with a new one.
When I re-opened them, she was watching me closely. “Even then,” I said. “But that’s gotta be the worst case of mistaken identity ever.”
Honor winced. “Seriously Archer, I don’t know how I can make it up to you, but I really am sorry.”
“Keep saying my name,” I said and watched her blush reappear, pink spreading all over her cheeks. “I like the way it sounds coming from your lips.”
“Okay…” she said softly.
“And I hope I’ve made enough of an impression that you’ll remember who you’re with next time. Speaking of which…you want to go out?”
Her eyes widened. “Did you just ask me for a date?”
“Yeah,” I said, pushing my hands into my pockets. “So are you in?”
“This is so easy for you; isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“Being charming and laid back and sexy.”
I smiled. “You think I’m sexy? Good to know.”
“But don’t you see? That’s exactly why this thing”—she gestured between the two of us—”can’t go any further.”
I frowned. “Sorry, you lost me.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” she said, crossing her arms, bringing my attention to her sweet curves, but I fought to stay focused.
“And why is that?”
“I thought it would be obvious.”
I tapped the side of my head. “Dumb jock, remember? I have trouble understanding complex concepts and theories. Just put it out there, so I can prove you wrong.”
She sighed then seemed to gather herself.
“Archer,” she said, “you’re a super talented, athletic, quick-witted-possibly-devious man.”
“And sexy. Don’t forget the sexy.” I nodded. “Continue.”
“You’re confident, and judging by our night together, you seem experienced.” Her cheeks went red again, and I counted that as a win until she added, “You’ve probably had a ton of women.”
“I wouldn’t say a ton.”
“And I’m…me,” she finished. “Just an introverted bookworm, who’d never been to a college party before last weekend, one who was desperate enough to ask you, a complete stranger, to be my one-night stand. I read romance novels. But that’s as racy as it gets with me.”
She finally took a breath, and I waited until she met my eyes.
“You done?” I said. “Because the only thing I heard are excuses.”
“But—”
“Honor, you didn’t say you don’t like me.”
“I—”
I held up a hand. “And you didn’t say you didn’t want to go. In that case, I’d take your refusal and go lick my wounds in private.”
She laughed suddenly. “I don’t get it. You should be the one who doesn’t want anything to do with me. I thought you were a player, and I approached you to…to use you as my one wild hookup. Ugh, I’m awful.”
“I’m not complaining,” I said, taking a step closer. “And if you still want that one-night stand, I volunteer as tribute.”
Honor’s face was a mixture of disbelief and delight.
“What? You think jocks don’t read,” I said. “I devoured the Hunger Games the same as everybody else. I’m a Slytherin, too, in case you’re interested. Majoring in Sports Sciences with a minor in English. We have an aunt who’s a big book collector, got most of us kids into reading when we were young. Which reminds me, I still have your book. You should agree to go out with me to make sure it gets back to you safely.”
She shook her head. “You are such a surprise.”
“That depends.” I shrugged. “Do you like surprises?”
“Not usually,” she said. “Only if they’re the good kind.”
“What am I? Good or bad?”
“Oh, definitely good.”
“Okay, then you’ll go out with me?” I said, startled by how much I cared about her answer. There was no way it should mean so much to me. I’d just met this girl for crying out loud. I’d never been like Bay, never needed a girl at my side to feel fulfilled, hadn’t really wanted one either. But man, this girl…I wanted more than just one night. “Way I see it, it’s the only sure way to get your book back.”
Honor put her hands on her hips, her face a stern mask, trying to look scary. It was so cute I nearly kissed her.
“Are you seriously threatening to hold my book hostage until I go out with you?”
I gave her my best, most intimidating frown. “Hey, a man’s gotta do, what a man’s gotta do.”
She started to smile—but then her phone went off in her pocket, and she shook herself as if waking from a dream. As Honor looked away, she took one step back then another.
“Sorry,” she said. “I do like you, Archer. But I still don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“But—”
Before I could say more, she was staring down at her phone and walking quickly to what I assumed was her room. “I need to get this,” she said. “Family emergency. Anyway, it was nice talking to you. Bye.”
The sound of her door clicking shut was as final as a death knell, her absence taking all of the air and life out of the room.
Actually, it was suspiciously quiet. Looking around, I noticed everyone had stopped what they were doing, standing frozen, carefully avoiding my eyes. Great. They’d heard everything. My family had just witnessed my failed attempt at wooing Honor. Oh yes, and her friend from the party, and June had seen it, too. Just great.
Emmy was the first to speak.
“Hey,” she said to no one in particular, “are we mov
ing me in or not? I still have a couple more boxes downstairs. They aren’t going to lift themselves.”
It was as if someone had pushed play on a movie. All the people in the room started moving at once. Emmy gave me a wink, and I mouthed “thank you” to her as she walked into her new room with June. Chase and Finn went outside presumably to get the other boxes while Baylor made his way over to me.
“Tough break,” Baylor said, dropping a hand on my shoulder. “We all crash and burn sometimes, Arch. Don’t take it personal.”
“Yeah,” Dex said, coming up beside him. “Plus, that was damn entertaining. Who needs movies when you have real life drama like that?”
“Haha,” I said drily.
“No really. I was just waiting for the pig’s blood to drop on your head or something.”
“You’re hilarious.”
As Dex walked off, I noticed Baylor’s silence which was so out of character I grew concerned.
“What’s up, Bay?” I asked. His brow was furrowed, and he seemed to be deep in thought. That was odd as well. “You want to take a crack at me, too, go right ahead. I can take it.”
Baylor waved me off. “Too easy,” he said.
“That’s never stopped you before,” I replied.
“Did I hear my name?” he asked a second later. “That girl, Honor, I thought I heard her say something about me. What was that about?”
I made my face blank. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“You do,” he said, pointing accusingly at me. “Your face only gets all smooth like that when you’re hiding something. Just tell me.”
“No.”
“Aw, come on. Just say it.”
“Not in a million years,” I said back.
Baylor smiled, shook his head. “Oh now, I’m curious. You know, I’ll find out what it is. In addition to my devastating good looks, I’m also a great detective. You can’t have secrets in this family. The truth always comes out.”
I just shook my head, knowing he wasn’t going to let it go but unwilling to reveal the truth. Let him dig for it. I had my doubts that he could stay focused that long anyway.
“Alright.” Baylor sighed. “If that’s how it’s going to be, fine. I’ll find out on my own.”
“Good luck with that,” I said just as Chase and Finn walked back in.
“What’s going on?” Chase said.
“Nothing,” Baylor said. “Just Archer being closed-off as usual. But I’m going to give him a pass since he just got rejected. You’ll find someone else, Arch. No use getting so wound up over one girl. They’re not worth it.”
Taking the box from Chase, Baylor and Finn carried the last of Emmy’s things into her room.
“The sad thing is he really believes that,” Chase said, looking after his twin.
“I know,” I said back. “I worry about him, probably more than I should.”
“You’re not the only one.” Chase started to turn away but then stopped. “And hey, Arch?”
I met his gaze as he looked over his shoulder. It was crazy how much he looked like Baylor, I thought. It came with the territory of being twins, but we all had our father’s gray eyes.
“About the girl?” he said. “Don’t feel bad about going after what you want. Like Dad used to say, tenacity is a great trait to have.”
Chase nodded then walked away after delivering that bombshell. He’d always been the most introspective of all of us. I think it had something to do with all the reading he did.
“Hey,” a new voice said, and I turned to find the girl Honor had been with at the party staring at me, seemingly sizing me up. “I’m Charlie, Honor’s best friend and your sister’s new roommate.”
I nodded. “I’m Archer.”
She bit back a smile. “Oh, I know. Honor’s told me a lot about you already.”
“She has?” I said. So Honor had talked to her best friend about me? That had to be good, right? “All good things, I hope.”
“Uh uh,” she said, waving a finger at me. “Don’t try that charming act on me, oldest O’Brien. It won’t work. I’m not telling you anything unless I think it would benefit my best friend.”
“I can respect that.”
After giving me a quick look up and down, she nodded. “Lucky for you, I think you may be just what she needs. Honor’s special, you see. She’s not like other girls.”
This was so surreal. I felt like this was some kind of test.
“I agree,” I said. “That’s why I’m so interested in her.”
Charlie nodded again. “Well, it was a good try with the book. She loves those things. Smart move on your part.”
“Thank you?” I really didn’t know what to say to this girl Charlie. “So, you think I have a shot? With Honor, I mean?”
“Yeah,” Charlie said and flipped her hair over her shoulder, “you may have one—if you’re lucky.”
“Any advice?” I said.
“Hmm,” she said. “Just keep trying.”
With that, she turned on her heel and left.
I’d never been one to give up. Like Chase said, quitting didn’t really run in the O’Brien DNA. I was stubborn, and I had a feeling that would serve me well where Honor was concerned. If I needed the green light to pursue something with her, I’d just gotten it from Charlie, her best friend.
I just hoped Honor was ready.
Because I was more than ready for her.
As soon as the door closed, I leaned my head against it.
My eyes fell shut as I listened to the conversation on the other side. The sound was muffled, hard to understand the words. The voices were deep, clearly masculine, and I knew for a fact there had never been this much testosterone in Magnolia House since I’d moved in. That was thanks in large part to Charlie’s rule (one we’d all agreed to without objection) about not letting men into our space.
But despite the distortion the door created and how similar the brothers’ voices sounded, I could’ve sworn I knew which one belonged to Archer.
“So not a good idea,” I mumbled.
As if I needed the reminder.
Opening my eyes, I made my way over to my bed and plopped down. I remembered the first time I’d laid eyes on Archer O’Brien with perfect clarity. Even though I hadn’t known his name at the time, one of my first thoughts still rang true.
This guy could ruin me.
Would if I let him.
Luckily, my hang-ups wouldn’t allow me to throw my heart out there so carelessly no matter how sweet, clever, and irresistibly attractive he was. I knew what he felt for me was just a passing curiosity. He would get bored the second he realized I wasn’t actually as confident and bold as I was in our first meeting. Even with the awkwardness, something must’ve tripped his guy switch. But I wasn’t like Charlie, who could entrance men at a glance. No way would I be able to hold his attention. And when he decided to throw me away, I was sure I’d be crushed. I was just cutting it off before it could get that far.
I sighed, wishing things were different—that I was different—so we could have had a shot.
But like I’d told Archer, I was just me.
And despite my answer to his question, he did scare me. Just not for the reasons he was thinking.
My phone pinged again, and I looked down to see the same text from earlier.
Mom: Honor, call as soon as you get this! It’s an EMERGENCY!!!
I sighed, wondering what it could be this time, debating whether I should even respond. Mom hadn’t contacted me in over a month, and she only ever called when she needed something. But what if this was a real emergency?
Hitting the call back button, I waited for her to pick up.
“Oh, I’m so glad you called,” she said, sounding out of breath. “I need help.”
“Hi Mom,” I said. “How are you? Is everything okay?”
“No, Honor. No, it’s not. I’m overwhelmed, and I don’t know what to do.”
I sat up straighter. “What’s wrong? Did something
happen?”
“I can’t find it,” she sniffed, sounding like she was close to tears. “I’ve looked everywhere, but it’s just not here.”
“What’s not there?”
“My favorite sweater,” she said as if it should be obvious. “You know, the baby blue wrap one with the deep V? Dave really likes it on me, and we have a big dinner to go to with his colleagues. I need to look my best.”
I shook my head, lifting my eyes to the ceiling. “That’s the emergency? This is why you called, a sweater?”
“Well, yes! And you don’t have to be so rude about it. That’s not how I raised you.”
“Sorry,” I said. “Have you checked your closet?”
Her voice was all sarcasm. “Of course, I checked the closet.”
“What about your drawers? Did you look there?”
“Yes.”
“How about—”
“Do you have it?” she said.
I felt my lips pull into a frown. “What? Why would I have your sweater?”
“Oh, I don’t know. It’s just sometimes you like to borrow my things without asking. Remember the time you took my lipstick.”
“I was six, Mom,” I said deadpan.
She didn’t even pause. “And then there was the time you took my best robe to school.”
“That was for a project. I told you. I had to dress like Julius Caesar.”
Her patience had obviously run out. “Still, it just proves you’ve never respected my things. If you took the sweater to college, it’s not okay. I need it back now. Dave has been staying late at the office a lot more. He’s not engaging with me as much as he used to. It’s really important that I show him what he’s missing.”
Taking a deep breath, I said, “How about underneath your bed?”
“Why would my sweater be there?” she asked.
“You keep some of your winter clothes there during the summer to give you more space.”
I heard her moving things, presumably looking for the missing sweater, until finally, I heard a gasp.
“Oh my God,” she said, coming back on the phone. “I found it! Thanks, Honor, you’re a lifesaver!”
“You’re welcome,” I said. “I’m glad—”
“Me, too! But I need to go get ready. The dinner’s only a few hours away. Talk to you soon, baby girl!”
The Best Mistake Page 6
