My Best Friend's Brother (Hometown Heroes Book 3)

by G. L. Snodgrass

  He continued to frown at me and I knew he didn’t believe a word I said. To him, all that mattered was that a boy like Luke was taking his daughter out. If he had his way I would be locked up in a tower until I went to college. In fact, even better would be to bring the college to my tower.

  “I’m not a little girl anymore,” I told him. “You’re going to have to get used to that fact.”

  He sighed heavily and shook his head. “No, I don’t. I can do denial very well.”

  I laughed just as the doorbell rang. My heart slammed to a halt then sprang back to full-on race mode when I saw the time. I swallowed hard as I turned.

  “I’ll get it,” Dad said as he rushed past me. I stopped for a moment and took a deep calming breath as I ran my hands down the front of my dress.

  I heard Dad open the front door and say something. He then called out my name as If I could be anywhere and not nervously waiting in the study. Like I said, my dad could be a good guy when he wanted to be.

  I opened the study door and stepped out into the hall. There he was, in a dark charcoal suit, a black shirt and a gray tie. The man looked so handsome my insides melted. This was my Luke. A sense of pride flowed through me. I couldn’t wait to be seen on his arm. I could just imagine the jealous stares.

  I was going to savor each and every one of them.

  “Hello,” he said with that smirk of his. The one that reminded me that I was a woman. “You look unbelievable.”

  I smiled at him as I clutched my purse, afraid that if I looked away the moment would be broken.

  Dad coughed and I remembered where I was and what we were doing.

  “Don’t wait up,” I said to my father as I gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

  He scoffed and shook his head. “Yeah, like that’s happening. I’ll be right here until you get home.” As he said it, he stared at Luke, probably wanting to mention something about shotguns.

  I smiled at him. “I’ll call if I’m going to be late.” I wanted to add a comment about Tuesday or Thursday but chose to keep it to myself. Sometimes the best lines don’t need to be said out loud to make your point.

  Luke gently brushed my back as he walked me to his truck. He opened the door then held out his hand and helped me up.

  “You really do look wonderful,” he said again with a strange look in his eyes.

  “You seemed surprised?” I said before I could stop myself.

  He laughed. “No, I just … I was thinking about what it was going to feel like walking in with you on my arm. Like I had actually achieved something. You know. Even though I didn’t have anything to do with it.”

  I smiled as my insides squealed. The man could always make me melt.

  “You had everything to do with me being here. So yes, you get to feel good about yourself. It is allowed you know.”

  He smiled at me and started the truck. As we pulled around the corner he pulled over to the side and parked. My brow furrowed in confusion. Had he forgotten something at our house? Were we going back?

  He continued to sit there, both hands on the wheel, his knuckles white with stress.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked softly as I reached out to touch his shoulder.

  He flinched from my touch and took a deep breath. “Do you realize this is the first time we have been alone together in weeks. Since your game room, in fact.”

  I swallowed as I saw the look of hunger in his eyes.

  “And then,” he continued, “to see you looking like that. Like a goddess. The sexiest goddess that ever lived. It is taking every bit of me not to pull you into my arms and kiss you for the next two weeks.”

  My heart lurched as I realized just how much this wasn’t the Luke I was used to. This was a different, troubled Luke. And I was the one troubling him. I will be honest. I loved the idea.

  I reached out again and gently laid my hand on his shoulder. He didn’t pull away this time.

  “I know what you mean,” I told him. “Believe me. I’ve been thinking about us kissing for so long that I’ve forgotten how to think about anything else. … But, if we do, then we will never make it to the dance. And you know it.”

  He slowly nodded his head as he shot me a quick grin.

  I sighed with regret, a large part of me wished that he had just pulled me into a hug and we forgot about the rest of the world. Instead, he started up the truck and once again we were off. But ever so often, I would catch him glancing at me and shaking his head.

  He was regretting it as well, I realized and that thought made it easier.

  Of course, a big chunk of that regret disappeared when I walked into the ballroom on Luke’s arm. The stares were priceless. As if I had won the lottery and every girl there was having her own regrets.

  Luke led me over to Jenny and Chip, patting my hand before he stepped away a little distance. Just enough to make it look like there was nothing between us.

  Jenny smiled and complimented my dress. We exchanged mutual admiration and gossip. All the while, I wanted to take Luke’s hand in mine and tell the world the truth.

  How much longer could I do this I wondered? .

  Just as an awkward silence fell over the four of us, the band started up with an old Nirvana song. Chip smiled hesitantly and cocked an eyebrow.

  “Are you asking me to dance?” Jenny said to him.

  He swallowed hard and said, “Yes.”

  She smiled back and led him onto the dance floor. Shooting me a quick look that let me know just how excited she was.

  Once they were gone, Luke leaned down and said over the music. “I’d ask you to dance but that might send the wrong message.”

  My insides tightened up. Not dance with Luke? No, life couldn’t be that unfair.

  He laughed and took my hand to guide me onto the dance floor.

  I couldn’t stop myself from smiling as the two of us caught the beat and began dancing. My heart raced as the joy of being alive filled me. The music, Luke, just life. Everything was so intense. So wonderful.

  The band shifted over to another fast song with a heavy beat, and then another. We never stopped. Luke moved well. Coordinated, powerful without being flashy. He towered over me making me feel small and feminine.

  As we danced, he leaned forward and whispered, “You are too hot.”

  My insides melted as my cheeks exploded with heat. Hopefully, people would think It was the exercise and not the thoughts running through my head.

  But, of course, good things never last. The band started a slow song and without asking, Luke pulled me into his arms and began to sway back and forth. My body tensed up as I tried to figure out if Jenny could see us or not.

  Her and Chip had gotten lost in the crowd. What would she think if she saw me dancing like this with her brother?

  “Relax,” Luke whispered as he gently pulled my head to his shoulder. “No way am I missing an opportunity like this.”

  I swallowed hard as I let myself sink into him. My arms around his neck as if holding on for dear life. This was where I belonged and I couldn’t pretend otherwise.

  We danced together, lost in our own little world. Just the two of us. I loved him, I realized. I mean really loved him. His happiness was more important than my own. His world was my world. My heart swelled up with pure joy as I let the awareness fill me.

  Leaning back a little I looked up into his eyes as I wondered how he felt about me. Did he feel this specialness as much as I did?

  He stared down at me with that smirk of his that slowly disappeared as a serious look crossed his face. Then without thought, we came together. Our lips meeting as we exposed our true selves to the world.

  “Amy?” Jenny said as she and Chip worked their way through the crowd. Her eyes as big as toadstools and her face as white as last winter’s snow.

  My soul plunged as I saw the shock and anger in her eyes. NO! I thought. My perfect moment had been ruined. My best friend hated me for good cause. I had betrayed her. Even I hated myself.

&n
bsp; Chapter Twenty

  Amy

  The four of us stood there in our own little cloud of tension and shock.

  “I can explain,” I began as my mind furiously fought to find something that might make it better.

  Luke, shook his head. “Oh, by the way, Jenny. I’m in love with your best friend. Get over it.”

  My stomach fell. That was so not the thing to say.

  She stared at him for a hard second then back at me. As if I had sold her only child to the black market. I would never be forgiven. I was scum that did not deserve to live. Turning on her heel, she stormed back through the crowd.

  Chip looked at us, then at Jenny, then back to us. He took a deep breath, and followed her. I stepped out of Luke’s arms and made a move to follow her as well but Luke held my wrist and shook his head.

  “Give her time,” he said. “She’ll come around. The one thing I know about Jenny is to never push her when she is mad. People get their heads bitten off that way.”

  I wanted to die. I wanted to just shrivel up and float away. How had I allowed this to happen? How had I let myself get into this situation? Jenny was too important to me to let something like this happen.

  Yes, I would have told her eventually. But not like this. Not in the middle of everyone we knew. It was almost a double betrayal.

  “I can’t wait,” I told Luke as I pulled away from his grip and hurried after her. My mind continued to swirl with doubts and fears as I tried to think of some way to explain away my betrayal.

  As I twisted and turned to get through the crowd, I caught a glimpse of Jenny in the far corner, Chip standing next to her as if he were trying to comfort an injured animal. Afraid to get too close in case he got bit, but close enough for her to know he was there if she needed him.

  “Jenny,” I said as I approached them. She looked up, her eyes red from holding back tears. The angry look she shot me made me falter for a moment. I took a breath, calmed myself and nodded for Chip to leave us alone for a second.

  “No,” she said to me as Chip walked away. “There is nothing you can say that will make it alright. Nothing.”

  I sighed and slumped in defeat. “You know how important you are to me.”

  “Not important enough, obviously,” she snapped.

  “We didn’t plan this,” I told her. “It just happened.”

  “Yeah, right,” the doubtful tone in her voice just dripped with sarcasm.

  My own anger was starting to build as I snapped, “This was why I was so afraid to tell you.”

  Her eyes grew even bigger. “So, this has been going on for a while and you were hiding it from me? I thought we didn’t have secrets. I tell you everything.”

  My stomach fell. I had walked into that one. Brushing it aside, I decided not to address her concerns.

  “What? You don’t want me to love him?” I asked. “It doesn’t work that way. We can’t control who we fall in love with.”

  Jenny stared hard at me. I could see her thoughts wrestling with themselves. A faint hope flared inside of me until she turned to Chip and said, “Can you take me home please?”

  Once again, my heart lurched. We, Luke and I, had ruined their evening. Her first real dance and her memory for all time would be this sense of betrayal by her best friend.

  Chip sighed heavily as he nodded and followed her. My shoulders slumped in defeat as I watched the two of them walk away.

  “Don’t worry,” Luke said as he stepped up next to me and put his hand on my lower back. “I’ll talk to her. She’ll come around.”

  All I could do was shake my head as a tear fell down my cheek. I knew she wouldn’t, this was Jenny. She’d be mad at me forever. I had committed the ultimate sin and fallen for her brother. This was something that couldn’t be forgiven.

  Turning into him I wrapped my arms around him and buried my head in his chest as I let the tears fall.

  .o0o.

  Luke

  Okay, the evening could have gone better. Once again, I’d screwed things up by kissing Amy in public. But give me a break. This was Amy. How couldn’t I?

  Taking a deep breath, I held Amy and let her cry. People were staring at us. All I could do was shoot them evil glares over the top of her head, silently letting them know if they didn’t leave us alone, I would rain a world of hurt on their head. Most of them were smart enough to turn away and pretend nothing was going on.

  Of course, this would be the topic of discussing around school for the next week. But in reality, I didn’t care. All I cared about was that Amy was upset and I couldn’t fix it.

  “Can we go?” she asked finally as she sniffled and wiped at her eyes.

  Damn, I should have brought a handkerchief or something. Dad would have made sure. He knew about these things. What did I know about women? One more thing to kick myself for.

  “Sure,” I said as I put my arm around her shoulder and led her out of the ballroom.

  As we stepped out into the cold night air I said, “I’m sorry.”

  She frowned up at me for a moment then hugged me back. “It’s not your fault. We couldn’t have kept it secret like this forever. Maybe it is better this way.”

  I smiled sadly down at her and thought, she’s being kind. This was totally my fault.

  The two of us walked across the parking lot. My arm around her shoulder, holding her close. Afraid if I didn’t, she might float away. The pain and anguish inside of her was tearing me apart for so many different reasons. I hated seeing her hurt of course. But I also, deep down, worried that this would be the excuse she needed to walk away from us.

  That this would be the thing that separated her from me. A cold dread ate at the bottom of my stomach. No, I thought, I couldn’t let that happen. Not now, Not ever.

  As I turned on the truck, I glanced over at her. She was scrunched up in the far corner with a look of pain and despair that made my guts tighten up. That familiar fight reflex kicked in, but there was nothing to fight. Nothing to hit. No target. Not even a way to counter-attack.

  It was all so flimsy. This netherworld of emotion and thought. No physical enemy, just a fog-like cloud hanging around us. Nothing I could get my hands on and destroy.

  “Where to?” I asked as I put the truck in gear. “Do you want to go home?”

  “No,” she said as she shook her head. “Can we just drive. Maybe forever? Put this behind us and never come back?”

  I laughed. “Be careful what you ask for. I am more than willing to kidnap you and take you back to my cave.”

  She smiled a little, “You mean castle. And we could pull up the drawbridge behind us and keep the rest of the world out forever.”

  I liked this girl. She thought about things the right way.

  “Sounds good to me,” I said as I turned left out of the parking lot. Away from town. Away from all of our problems in life.

  A silence fell over us. Not awkward, Amy and I were well past that awkward stage. We were too comfortable with each other. No, this was a painful silence as we each dealt with the situation internally.

  “Did you really mean it?” she asked. “When you told Jenny that you loved me?“

  My heart slammed to a quick stop. Had I said that out loud? Really, in front of everyone? Man, I could be so stupid sometimes. But she was right. I had said it and I had meant it.

  “Of course I did,” I said.

  She smiled sadly and slowly shook her head. “It is so unfair. The most wonderful thing anyone has ever said to me and it will be tainted by the fact it hurt Jenny.”

  “To hell with Jenny. She needs to grow up.”

  “No,” Amy said shaking her head. “Don’t blame her. I was the one that broke the unspoken rule. Best friends aren’t allowed to fall in love with the brother.”

  “Again, who says? Besides. It happens all the time.”

  She looked at me sadly. As if I was an idiot and would never understand.

  Once again, the painful silence fell over us. I wondered briefly if
this was how it would be always. That we’d never get out from under it.

  We continued to drive, I didn’t really have any idea where I was going, just following the back roads to nowhere.

  “I love you too,” Amy said out of nowhere.

  My heart lurched as my hand jerked the wheel and we swerved just a little.

  “I just thought you should know,” she added as she bashfully looked at me from beneath her eyebrows.

  A sense of peace filled me as I stared into the night. Amy Jensen loved me. How had the universe suddenly shifted to being on my side? My heart swelled with pride, and shock, and a sense of specialness that I knew I would never be the same again.

  “Wow,” I said as I slowly shook my head. “We two are so smart. I proclaim my love in a crowd of strangers and you do it while I’m driving. Aren’t we supposed to come to an epic kiss or something? You know. Sort of seal the deal.”

  She smiled slightly more than a second and I felt a little better. We were going to work through this. I just knew it.

  “I have a weird feeling that nothing we ever do will be normal,” she said.

  I laughed, when the girl was right, the girl was right. This was one of the many reasons why I loved her so much.

  As If to confirm my thinking. She unclipped her seatbelt and slid over next to me.

  My heart soared as she belted herself back in and smiled up at me, her shoulder brushing mine, her hip settled in next to me. Yes, life could be good. Just the two of us facing it together.

  We continued to drive, letting the night wash away our fears.

  After an hour or so, I slowly began to circle around and head back to town by a different route just to change the passing scenery. I didn’t want to get too far away. I still had the whole angry dad issue to deal with. No way was I creating a reason for him to come between us.

  “I’ve got to stop for gas. Do you want anything? Mountain Dew? Chocolate? Doritos. That’s my comfort food. Doritos.”