“Of what?”
“Of being a man-whore?” I shrug. “No offense.”
“Wow. You always know how to cheer me up. It’s honestly a gift.”
“Thanks for noticing. You have no idea how much effort it takes to stay upbeat and constructive—especially when you’re dealing with a person who acts like such a jerk, you know. So, let’s give this one last shot.” I take a deep breath in. “Why’s this personal-development thing so important to you?”
“This summer, something life-changing happened,” He leans into me. “God came to me in a dream to tell me I’m destined for greatness… if I stop screwing around.”
Okay, I give up. I said I was sorry. I needed to clear my conscience so I could move on, and now that I’ve done just that, it’s time for me to bounce. Game over, dude.
I slip my bag onto my shoulder and shuffle over to the end of the seat.
“It was nice catching up with you, Donovan. I wish you all the best in becoming the arrogant, fucked-up asshole you’re clearly destined to be. Have a nice life.”
I nod at him curtly. I’m tempted to throw in something about how he needs to grow some balls, but I don’t want him to start thinking I’m obsessed with them.
I spin on my heel and make for the door, guiltless this time. But just as I’m about to reach for the handle, strong fingers grab my elbow, and I freeze. I look up. And up.
Is it me, or is Donovan actually panting?
“This summer,” he tries again, “somethingdidhappen.”
I glare up at him and try to pry myself free. He pulls on my arm, and I practically lift off the ground as he hauls me closer. I bump into his chest, and now that I’m getting an up-close look, I realize he’s pretty ripped—way more than I gave him credit for.
He still hasn’t let go of me—worse—he leans into my ear, his cheek grazing my temple.
“It’s my sister… I messed up. Bad. And this whole ‘being a better boyfriend’ thing is the only thing I can think of to even start fixing things.” He pulls back, his eyes searching. “Please, will you sit down?”
My mind usually starts racing a hundred miles an hour when I’m around him, but this time, it goes completely quiet. I nod slowly and take a step back.
Instead of letting go of my elbow, his fingers trace the length of my arm down to my wrist where his thumb gives the faintest stroke—and I shudder despite myself.God help me—apparently, I’m so starved for human touch that a tiny, accidental brush sets off a full-body shiver.While the poor guy is quite literally confessing his trauma, of all things.
He didn’t even mean to—I can see it in his eyes.
I settle back across from him and watch as he heads off to grab us some coffee. Now that he’s started telling his story, I’m dying to know more, but I have to play it cool. He doesn’t need to know the way to my heart is a solid plot twist.
“So.” I rest my chin on my fists. “You were saying, about your sister?”
Smooth.
“Okay, so first of all—promise not to tell?”
“Uh? Who do you think I am?”
He eyes me. “Oh, come on. We don’t even know each other; it makes sense that I’d ask.”
“Weusedto not know each other. Now we do.” I smile at him sweetly.
He doesn’t bat an eyelid. “Swear?”
“I swear. On the entire population’s life.”
He lets out a long sigh and starts.
“Amelia is three years younger than me. Our relationship has been crappy for years now. Worse than crappy,” he adds. “It’s basically the shittiest brother-sister relationship you can imagine.”
“How come?”
