on his cheeks. The faint hint of sweat at the end of a workout, and now the yeast smell of alcohol. All
simple smells, but on him, suddenly they’re my favorite.
“You changed Maya,” he mumbles. “A lot. I didn’t know what to make of you at first. You were
annoying, and you kept losing things,andyou own the ugliest clothes on the planet.” He lifts his head
and frowns. “The Universe. Your dresses are the ugliest in the universe. If the aliens came to earth
and found you wearing that damned bug dress, they’d turn around and go home.”
I roll my eyes at him, because what else am I supposed to do? He catches me and blows a
raspberry. “They’re ugly, you know it.”
His eyes widen, and he takes a step back. “Don’t you? You know they’re ugly, right?” His grip on
my shoulder is firm, and clearly he’s waiting for me to answer him. I let my lip tremble a little and
hide my eyes.
With a sad sound, he pulls me in for another hug. “Shh. It’s ok. Shit. You didn’t know. You are so
lucky to have me. I can make sure you always match. Don’t worry.”
Snorting with laughter, I drop my head on his shoulder. “Yeah, I’m not worried. You are such a
snob, you know that?”
He frowns down at me, eyes slightly crossed. “It’s not snobbery, it’s good taste.”
“Whatever,” I mumble, sinking into him. I’m thoroughly enjoying this stupid conversation, and I
don’t plan on moving at all if I can help it. There are enough people inside to han—.
“Maya, stop fondling your boyfriend, and come on. We’re waiting on you.”
I groan and twist to glare at Abby. She waves me in frantically, but I’m serious. I don’t plan on
going. But before I know it, Zach walks us right through the front doors.
The first thing that registers is the muffled barks coming from the double doors past the small
reception area. I drag my eyes away from them, and glance around at the giants filling the space.
Kade’s shirt is still off. The rest of them are leaning on the walls, or studying the posters. Zach
wanders over to Jonas and leans against him. Jonas takes his weight easily, but as only a brother
would, knocks him into the wall with a thump a second later.
I always wanted a sibling, and watching the brothers over the last month has been eye-opening.
The roughhousing and the picking on each other should maybe make me think twice, but it doesn’t.
Not really. I would have traded the silent oppressiveness of my house for the chaos of a family like
this in a heartbeat.
