PROLOGUE
BRANDON
The club buzzed with excitement, and, oddly enough, so did I. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t be caught dead at a busy nightclub for a Halloween party, but when Nathan asked me to play wingman, I was all in. He had been talking about this girl nonstop since meeting her a few weeks ago, and tonight was the night he was going to shoot his shot again. She had already turned him down once, but since then, he’d really been putting in the work to win her over. I was optimistic that he’d finally get the girl and excited to be a part of it. Usually, my brother Dylan would be the obvious choice for a night out at a club, but he thought this whole thing was stupid since he wasn’t a fan of relationships.
I, on the other hand, was what you might call a romantic at heart. And even though I’d been unlucky in love so far, I wanted my brother to find his person. I knew from an early age that I wanted the kind of love my parents had shared.Seeing them have fun, work together, and build an amazing life set the standard for what I wanted for my own life one day. Sure, I had dated, but I hadn’t found my person yet. I thought maybe I had once, but she wasn’t the one for me. I wasn’t really looking for anything in particular; I didn’t have a list or anything, but I always thought I’d just know when I met her.Corny, I know.
Nathan and I were leaning against a bar, taking in our surroundings, when my gaze landed onher. There was no way for me to actually hear her, but it felt as if I could when she tilted her head back and laughed with her whole body. That smile and the way she commanded attention—it was no wonder that a crowd of eager suitors had surrounded these two gorgeous women dressed as sexy clowns. Her friend, whom I assumed was Daphne because of her coordinating attire, was staring intently at my brother, whose face was now covered by his mask.
“Hey, is that them?” I elbowed my brother in his side.
He answered almost immediately. “That’s her.” Then he was gone, meeting her in the middle of the dance floor. They talked for a moment and then took off out of sight.
After watching them disappear, I looked back towards Daphne’s friend, Lexi, who was now staring back at me. I told Nathan I’d keep her company while he and Daphne caught up, but what I didn’t know at the time was that Lexi was fucking gorgeous. Even from across the club and in her ridiculous costume, I could tell that she was attractive. I couldn’t tell her height or eye color from where I stood, but I found her curvy figure and the confidence she exudedsexy as hell. I smiled and raised my glass in her direction. She smiled back and then started towards me, swaying her hips the whole way.Who knew I’d have a thing for clowns?
“Hey, I’m Lexi. You must be Brandon.” She stopped in front of me and held her hand out for me to shake.
“Hey, yeah. Brandon. Nice to meet you, Lexi.” I took her hand in mine and gave it a squeeze. She was beaming up at me with a wide smile. Now that she was right in front of me, I could fully appreciate her beauty. She seemed to be of average height for a woman with a full figure, which made me want to drop to my knees right there to worship her. Her bright blue eyes and ample breasts fought for my attention, but I kept my shit together long enough to ask, “Can I get you a drink?”
“Yeah, thanks. I could use another vodka soda,” she said as she came up next to me at the bar, placing her now-empty glass down while I flagged down the bartender.
Once I had secured fresh drinks for the both of us, I turned to her and held up my beer. “Cheers. To new friends.”
“To new friends.” She winked at me as she clinked her glass against mine and then took a sip. “So, how’d you get roped into this?” she chuckled.
“Honestly, it didn’t take much convincing. I really hope this works out for them. I mean, what a way to meet!? What were the odds? It’s like it was meant to be,” I babbled. Lexi was so distracting, I wasn’t even sure of what I was saying.
“Meant to be?” Lexi scrunched up her nose. “I don’tknow about all that, but my girl deserves to be happy, and if Nathan makes her happy, then I’m here for it.”
“So, I take it you don’t believe in fate?” I asked.
“Ha! Not on your life! Every choice we make leads us to a future that we created, good or bad. It’s not written in the stars or whatever. That shit only happens in movies.” She rolled her eyes and continued, “You really think you have no say in your future happiness?”
“Well, no, that’s not what I’m saying.” She had me there.Did I really believe our fates were predetermined?This was some heavy shit for a first meeting.
She raised an eyebrow. “So whatareyou saying?”
“I guess I mean that it’s hard to imagine their meeting at that cabin was some sort of coincidence. They both went through breakups, and just so happened to be at the same place at the same time? That’s too crazy of a coincidence for me. Listen, I know we are all in control of our own choices, and those choices determine our futures, but when it comes to love and meeting your person, I guess I’m just a romantic. So sue me.” I shrugged and took a swig of my beer. This wasn’t the typical getting-to-know-you kind of conversation I was used to having. She was making me think, and I was actually enjoying our little back and forth.
Then she acted like she was throwing up, complete with exaggerated gagging and motioning to her mouth with her finger. “Um, no, thank you, sir. I am happily single and ready to mingle, and I plan on keeping it that way. Relationships are a fucking joke, anyway. They all end eventually, and someone always gets hurt. Hard pass. But good on youfor being so emotionally available or whatever,” she snorted. “I’m sure your girlfriend eats that shit up.”
Mentioning my non-existent girlfriend seemed like a ploy to find out if I was single, but everything else she was saying seemed to contradict that.There was no way she was interested in me, right?Even though she clearly wasn’t looking for a relationship, I couldn’t help but entertain seeing where this would go. “No girlfriend, but I hope when I meet her, she’s less of a skeptic.” I laughed and took another sip of my beer.
“Skeptic? I prefer the term realist. But enjoy living in your fantasy world where everything always works out for you. Must be nice.” She smiled sarcastically and then finished her drink. “If we are going to keep the conversation so serious, I’m gonna need another one of these,” laughing, she held up her glass towards the bartender.
“I don’t think I started it, but I got you.” I put more cash down on the bar to cover her drink.
“What a gentleman. Thanks.” She took a sip of her fresh drink and continued, “Okay, let’s change the subject. So what is it you do for work, Mr. Romantic?”
I laughed, because what was I going to do? Refute the title? I was, after all, a hopeful romantic at heart, despite my past heartbreaks. “My brother, Dylan, and I run our family’s tattoo shop here in the city.”
“Oh, nice. I guess I should have known. I mean, look at you.” She gestured in a sweeping motion towards my six-foot-four, mostly tattooed-from-neck-to-ankle body. One usually assumed I was either a tattoo artist myself or acriminal of some sort, a stigma that pissed me off, even if it was meant as a joke. “Oh, I’ve always wanted a tattoo. I’ve been begging Daphne to do bestie tattoos, but she keeps making excuses. I may have to go and pop my cherry without her.”
“You’ll have to come by the shop sometime. I’ll hook you up,” I offered with an involuntary wink.Who was I?
“Maybe I will. Thanks,” her voice trailed off as she scanned the club. Her brows furrowed. “Oh, fuck no.” Lexi’s concerned expression had me following her line of sight, but before I could figure out what she was looking at, she was off and moving across the club.
I quickly pushed off the bar and followed her. I wasn’t sure where she was going, but she looked pissed. Rounding a corner, I momentarily stopped in my tracks when I saw Nathan punching some guy in the face.
