“Jesus! Can you imagine if your brother found out you two were hooking up?”
I shoot her a stern look. “Nik.”
“Sorry.” She winces, looking around. “But seriously, he’d murder him.”
“Yeah, which is why he’s not gonna find out.”
Not that it matters now. My dating days are over for the summer because Shane’s made sure every guy in town knows his little sister is off limits.
Which is really annoying because I’m already invisible to the guys back home. Until this summer, I’d only kissed two boys. I thought Jordan really liked me. We had fun together, and he never pushed me to do anything I wasn’t ready to do even when hours of making out led nowhere.
Well, until last weekend. I don’t know what I was expecting, but a couple of thrusts while he grunted in my ear wasn’t it. I was kind of surprised; sex always seemed like such a big deal, but now that I’ve done it a handful of times with him, I don’t get the hype.
When Gabe showed up, Jordan backed down immediately. He drove me home in complete silence, and I haven’t heard from him since.
A fire is the only light aside from the moon illuminating the swarm of teenagers drinking and laughing. Music blares from an old black truck that’s parked backwards on a gravel path between the trees.
A cute guy parts through the crowd, making a beeline for us. “Nik!”
He flips his wavy blond hair that’s just shy of being in his eyes and flashes a big bright smile. He’s got one of the kindest faces I’ve ever seen.
She wraps her arms around his waist. “Hey!”
With his chin resting on the top of her head, his light eyes meet mine. “Who’s your friend?”
“I’m Ash.” I hold out a hand.
“Ash?” His brows shoot up. “Like Shane’s sister?”
“Uh… yeah?”
“In that case”—he finally shakes my hand—“I’m Theo.”
Nik shoves him, laughing. “Shut up!” Hooking her arm with mine, she tells me, “He’s joking. This is Akers.”
“Theo’s my brother.” He chuckles. “But if Shane finds out you were here, he’ll kick my ass.”
Here we go.My brother’s going to ruin mywholesummer.I don’t know why he’s so hellbent on putting his nose in my business. Any other time, he barely acts like I exist. Actually, between him and Gabe, I’ve wondered if I’m invisible at times. They come and go from Gran’s without saying a word to me.
If Gabe weren’t such a douchebag, I might have a teeny, tiny crush. I mean, he’s one of the cutest guys I’ve ever seen. But luckily his rotten personality keeps me from thinking about those perfect lips on mine. And I definitely don’t daydream about what his calloused fingers would feel like on my skin.
I grin. “Don’t worry about Shane. I’ll deal with him.”
“Yeah…” He narrows his eyes. “You know what? Maybe just don’t tell him you came. He can’t cut my dick off if he doesn’t know.”
Nik rollsher eyes. “You’re such a wuss.”
Grinning, I say, “I swear not a word about this to my brother.” I pretend to zip my mouth and throw away the imaginary key. “My lips are sealed.”
“Deal.” With a stern look to Nik, he says, “That means you too, blabber mouth.”
She scowls. “Like you have any room to talk.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He rears back. “I know how to keep a secret.”
“Bullshit! You told everyone about Gabe and that girl in the bathroom!”
“No, everyone already knew about that. You could hear her from the hallway!”
