"Really?" I was surprised. Everything always seemed good between the guys. "Josh never said anything."
"You know how he is. He hates drama and kicking Austin out of the apartment is drama."
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, he's the exact opposite of his sister. She fucking thrives on it."
He frowned. "No, she doesn't. Seriously, you need to get the fuck over whatever's going on in that head of yours. You keep taking cheap shots at her, and it’s pissing me off. I wish you two would just kiss and make up already. Everyone else agrees."
"Nice to know you guys have been talking behind our backs."
Drew pinned me with a look. "Every time you talk to Brooke, it's only one step slightly less than hostile. You've been a dick to her. Did you tell her how you felt and she said no or something?"
I winced. "Not exactly."
"Whatever it was, you need to talk it out. Josh is probably going to freak out and kick your ass the next time you snap at his sister, and no one is going to stop him. I'm surprised he's lasted this long. He can be as much of an asshole as he wants with his little sister, but someone else treating her that way is another story. I think the only reason he's let it go on for this long is because of how close you and Brooke were."
Were.
Past tense.
I ran a hand down my face. "I'm just not ready to forgive her."
"You're with Talia now."
"What's your point?"
"You're with Talia now," he said slowly. "Why are you still punishing Brooke when you're with another woman? Unless you think this thing with Talia is short-term."
I scoffed. "Of course not."
He leaned back in his chair and studied me. "Then forgive her already. Even if you aren't ready to do that, quit biting her head off if she even looks in your direction. It's getting old, Dom."
I glared down at my beer. He was right. I was lucky Josh hadn’t kicked my ass. And I was being antagonistic toward Brooke.
"Can we talk about something else?"
He frowned. "I'm glad to see I didn't get through to you at all."
"I...I just need more time."
He held my gaze for a few seconds. "Okay. Just remember the more time you take, the more time she has to move on."
"Move on?"
He plastered on a smile. "So do you want to hear about my pathetic dating life? I've hit on two straight guys since we got here. Luckily they both took it pretty well and didn't threaten to kick my ass."
"Hold up. You said move on."
"I meant move on from your friendship. You wanted to drop it, so we're dropping it."
I didn't believe him, but I wasn't going to push the issue. He was obviously taking one for the team by telling me all this. If I really wanted to know what he meant by move on I could just go talk to Brooke. I wondered again about how her anxiety attacks were. Hopefully, she hadn't had any more of them. I knew how debilitating they were for her.
"Earth to Dom." Drew waved his hands in front of my face. "I lost you there for a second."
"Sorry. I'm all over the place tonight. I really need to spend some time sketching. It's been weeks since I've even picked up a pencil."
"Anyone in particular you’ll be sketching?" he asked innocently.
I pinned him with a look. "No, I’ll probably draw the beach. In fact, I'll probably bring my stuff along tomorrow so I can do that."
Drew smirked. "I would think you’d want to draw the most beautiful girl on the beach tomorrow, not a bunch of sand and water."
I wasn't taking the bait. Drew was an awesome friend, but he liked drama a little bit too much. At least he'd given me a heads-up about Josh, even if it meant I had to hear about how much I actually missed having Brooke around.
It took me a few minutes, but I finally looked up to meet his eyes. "I'll try."
Drew immediately got it. "That's all we ask, Dom."
***
The water felt amazing. Sand gathered between my fingers as I ran them over and through it. It was calming, and since I was the only one on the beach, I was able to spend my time sketching and lounging in the sand. Talia had gone to lunch with the girls, and the rest of the guys were all hungover from going out last night.
I was thankful for the opportunity to spend the day thinking. After my 'date' with Drew, I felt uncomfortable, like my skin was too tight for my body. He was right when he said I was with Talia and that I didn't really have a right to be mad with Brooke anymore. As hard as it was, it was time for me to let go of my anger. Eventually Brooke and I would need to talk, but for right now, I needed to take a few baby steps to see how things went. She'd told me she didn't actually know how I felt before that conversation. Do I believe her or not?
Knowing Brooke, she'd probably spoken without thinking. If something was on her mind, it was word vomit when it came out unless she really took the time to consider how to bring things up. That was a huge problem with her a lot of the time. Not only that, but the almost kiss a few days before had blurred the lines. I should've just kissed her then. Maybe things would’ve been different. It's possible we’d be together now if I'd just grown a pair and actually kissed her.
As I walked up and down the water, I thought about why I was so angry with her. Was it because I felt everything that could've been had gone up in smoke? Or was it because I thought she truly knew and was mocking me for it? Fuck. As soon as I realized I was into her, I should've asked her out. Screw Josh and his stupid comments. Drew had said last night that she would move on if I didn't talk to her soon. I didn't believe him when he said it was about our friendship. Did he mean she has feelings for me?
I glanced up from my sketch and studied the horizon. My mind was wandering into dangerous territory. If she did, would I be willing to let my relationship with Talia go to find out? I had to consider this carefully. It wasn't just me I had to think about. If I talked to Brooke and she said she did feel the same way, we both were in relationships. Austin was a dick, but he seemed to really like Brooke. Everything was starting to fuck with my head. If I were in my room back at the apartment, I’d probably have a hole in my wall by now.
I rolled my tight shoulders a few times. The only thing I knew was that I needed to talk to Brooke.
But would she talk to me? I'd been pretty fucking awful to her lately. Yes, she'd pissed me off, but she didn't deserve how I'd acted. She had also tried to apologize and explain what happened several times, but I’d blown her off. The scene in the student union came to mind. Something about that day stood out. It was time. I just hoped she still wanted to. Otherwise all of this anger wasn't worth anything—our friendship wasn't worth anything.
Loving Brooke had been my dirty little secret. It was one everyone knew except her. I never owned up to it because she couldn’t possibly feel the same way I did. For one brief moment I thought she might, but that changed the second Austin finally showed interest in her. It made me wary if he did it just to get under my skin. Salvaging my friendship with Brooke was the only thing I wanted right now. I could give up any hope for ever being in a relationship with Brooke if she just forgave me.
Chapter Eleven
Brooke
I was relieved when Caroline suggested lunch that it was only the two of us. The last thing I wanted was Talia tagging along. I loved my friends. But it was annoying as hell that they went out of their way to include Dom’s girlfriend. Maybe I was just salty.
There was no maybe about it. I was.
As we waited for the waiter to bring our drinks—both sparkling water—Caroline started playing with her fingers. It was an old nervous habit she’d never been able to break. I always knew when she wanted to discuss something important when she did it. She jumped when I reached over and placed my hands over hers.
“To what do I owe the pleasure of your company for lunch?”
“Do we have to have a reason to eat a meal together?” She answered my question with a question. What was going on with her?
“Not at all.” I gla
nced down at her hands pointedly. “But I have a feeling there is one.”
She lowered her eyes.
“You know you can tell me anything, Care. What’s going on?”
“I got a text from Landon last night.”
I scrunched up my face. “It’s been months since you’ve heard from him. Why now?”
“That’s exactly I thought.”
“Did you text him back?”
She shook her head quickly. “God, no. I can’t get all that started again. We’ve been doing the hot and cold thing for way too long. I’m sure he just couldn’t find a girl to screw last night.”
The bitterness in her voice was hard to hear. Caroline deserved better than her asshole ex. He kept stringing her along, and no matter how much we talked about how she needed to move on, she always seemed to go back to him.
“Sweetie, don’t you think it’s time you move on? We can find you a great guy here to move on with.”
She blanched. “You mean a one-night stand?”
I backtracked. Oh, goodness, this wasn’t going to be pretty. “No, not at all. I meant maybe just a guy to hang out with during the summer. It could be fun.”
Her expression ranged from skeptical to pissed off at my suggestion. “I’m not getting over Landon by getting under another guy.”
The waiter chose that second to bring our drinks. To his credit, he only raised an eyebrow as he set down our drinks. Caroline flushed bright red and stammered out her order as quickly as possible. I stifled my giggle while he stood there, but as soon as he walked away I burst out laughing.
“Stop it. That’s not funny.” She hid her face in her hands. “Oh my God. This shit only happens to me.”
“Not true,” I said, wiping at my eyes. “Remember Quinn and the bartender incident?”
Caroline finally started laughing. “She brings that on herself, though. I just say stupid things at the wrong time.”
I sat up straighter. “I have a pretty valid case of word vomit too.”
“You get too honest when you drink. Well, I take that back, it’s not only when you drink. It happens all the time.”
“See, you aren’t the only one who says stupid shit.”
She finally relented. “Fine. I get it, but I’m still not sleeping with some guy just to get over Landon.”
“I never said that.” I rolled my eyes. “Just keep an open mind. I’m sure somewhere on this island there’s a nice guy you might actually have a nice time talking to. Maybe he’s even a good kisser.”
“Doubtful. In my experience, intellect doesn’t often come with a hot body and the ability to make a girl come.”
My gaze flicked up to the movement past Caroline’s shoulder. The waiter cleared his throat a few times as he set our food down on the table.
“I see I have impeccable timing again,” he said, looking at Caroline with interest.
This time I couldn’t hold back my laughter.
***
Music pulsed through the club, causing everyone to sway to the hypnotic beat. We’d been drinking for hours, and now I was unsteady on my feet. Quinn was dancing with some random guy she'd met up with at the last bar, Riley and Josh were cuddled up in a corner, and Austin was getting us more drinks from the bar. The last thing we needed was more alcohol, but for once, it was keeping me from thinking about Dom.
An arm wrapped around my waist while I stood next to our table. I looked back, expecting to see Austin, but instead Dom stood behind me. I cocked my head to the side, and he grinned.
"Can we talk?" he slurred.
I let him lead me to the top level of the club. There were patios far enough away from the music you could actually hear, but close enough that the colorful lights still bounced around the area. Dom swayed as he neared the wall, and I gripped his arm tightly so he didn't fall.
"What's up?" I asked, standing closer to him than I'd been in over a month. The spicy scent of his cologne filtered into my senses and caused me to shiver.
"Are we okay?"
I stared at him for a few seconds. "I think that's up to you. I wanted us to be okay, but you've been so mad at me. Are you ready to listen to my apology?"
He leaned in closer. Damn it, Dominic. His lips were only inches from mine and if I moved any further, we’d be kissing.
God, I want to kiss him.
"I think you need to grovel." His husky words were teasing, more like my old Dom, but the tone wasn’t one he’d ever used with me before.
I swallowed hard. "Here?"
His eyes flashed and he smirked. My panties were going up in flames. Holy hell, Dominic was hot. Hotter than I ever realized.
"Are you even going to remember this in the morning?" I teased. "Because if I grovel—if I get on my knees for you—you better fucking remember it."
My throaty words made him shiver. "Brooke, I think it's time we put all of this past us. I miss you."
"Dom, I want—"
My words were cut off as his mouth slammed down on mine and his fingers tangled in my hair. I groaned into his mouth. His tongue tangled with mine, and I grabbed at the front of his shirt to pull him closer. A niggling feeling made me pull back, but when I did, I wasn't kissing Dom. Austin was there—his lips swollen and a cocky grin on his face as he looked back at me.
What the hell is going on?
Was I actually so drunk I imagined I was with Dom instead of Austin?
"I think we should go back to the house." He pressed his hard length against my leg, and I blanched. As I tried to pull away, his grip around me tightened.
"Austin, let go." I shoved at his hard chest, but he didn't budge. He stared down at me with that stubborn, mulish expression on his face. "I'm not ready for that."
"You always say you aren’t ready, but the way you kissed me says you are."
I was horrified as I looked into his eyes. They were so cold and unmoving—almost frightening. He pushed me against the half wall, and I could see the ground below. It would probably kill me if I fell.
“Come on, Brooke, you know you want to fuck me.”
I sat up quickly in bed, my body covered in sweat and breathing hard. Austin was next to me, fast asleep and totally oblivious to my terror. I shoved my hand in my mouth to cover the sob that broke through. The sheet was tangled around my legs, and it took me a few seconds to untangle myself so I could go downstairs without waking him. Being in this room after that dream was suffocating, and staying there with Austin was terrifying, even if I knew it wasn’t actually him. I couldn't shake the dream.
My bare feet padded on the floor lightly as I went into the kitchen to grab a glass of water. I flipped on the light and saw Dom sitting at the table. I jumped back, knocking the counter behind me hard with my arm and causing the stupid pineapple sitting on the kitchen island to fall to the ground.
My hand flew up to my heart. "You scared me! What are you doing here sitting in the dark? It's creepy."
Dom looked up in surprise but quickly recovered when he saw it was me. He shrugged. "Couldn't sleep. Why are you up?"
I was amazed he'd actually spoken to me without his normal ire. It was a start, I guess. "Bad dream," I mumbled as I reached for a glass out of the cabinet.
Concern etched his features. "Are you sure everything is okay? You're acting weird."
I shook my head. There was no way in hell I was talking to Dom about my dream. "I'm fine. I just needed a drink to help clear my head."
He ran a hand down his face. "I know we're still not really talking, but if you want to talk about it—"
"I'm fine. Thanks, though." I set the glass back on the counter and headed for the stairs.
"I miss you, B."
Tears filled my eyes. I didn't want him to see, so I ducked my head away from the light. "I miss you too."
I waited a few seconds to see if there was more. When he didn't say anything else, I left. Because what else was there to say? I couldn’t come clean now, not with both of us in relationships. Maybe Dom and I would
figure it out one day, but obviously that wouldn't be happening any time soon.
Chapter Twelve
Dominic
I put my head down in my hands and basically pouted like a two-year-old. It was killing me to not have my best friend. I thought by now we would've made up, but I couldn't let go of everything. I had Talia, and Brooke seemed happy with Austin, so I should’ve been okay, but there was something off with them, more specifically him. I couldn't put my finger on it.
I glanced over the stove at the clock. It was four forty-five in the morning. I'd been awake for over two hours, sitting in the dark, contemplating what an asshole I was. Talia and I were great together. We really were, but I felt like something was missing. It could be the fact I hadn't actually spoken to my best friend in over a month, and it was starting to get to me.
Guilt ate at me as I thought about the missed opportunity to spend even a few minutes talking with Brooke. She seemed shaken when she first walked into the kitchen. Instead of sitting there like an idiot, I should've asked her what was going on, but I didn’t want to push. My brain apparently didn’t work that way. No, I let her push me away. I banged my head on the table. Why was I damned dense sometimes?
My head was all messed up because of Talia. Earlier she’d dropped the bomb on me that she wanted me to visit her family in New England after our vacation in Padre. She'd gone as far as looking at prices for plane tickets to Boston. As much as I liked her it seemed a little premature. If we'd known each other longer, maybe I'd be ready for that step, but this was moving at breakneck speed. It was out of my comfort zone when Brooke invited Talia along to Padre.
Now I found myself sitting in the dark, trying to decide if I was holding back because I was still hung up on Brooke, or if I was acting like a normal twenty-one-year-old guy who wasn't ready to be on the fast track toward marriage.
Keeping Dominic (The Golden Boy Series Book 1) Page 8
