The Wrong Perfect Match (Fullilove in the House Book 1)

by Sidney Bristol

  “I need to head out soon. Are you going to be okay on your own?” Jayden asked.

  “Oh.” She set the rag aside. “Thanks for all the help. I had no idea you’d be so good at this.”

  He paused and glanced back at the top half of the hutch he’d so carefully restored. “It’s very soothing. Meditative. I can see that.”

  She brushed her hands off. “It really is.”

  Jayden turned his head and their gazes locked.

  Shit.

  She curled her toes against the concrete. Despite the cool evening air, she suddenly found it hard to breathe.

  An hour of talking herself out of liking him and he undid all her work with one damn look.

  His gaze seemed to search her face. Or study her. She wasn’t sure which. “Okay, so—tomorrow night?”

  “You don’t have to come help me with this stuff. It means there’s less for me to do.”

  He edged toward her. She couldn’t force herself to maintain the distance between them. He wasn’t inappropriately close. She could smell him though, and he smelled yummy. The kind of yummy she wanted to roll around in. The kind that stayed on a pillow for a day or two...

  Jayden shook his head. “No. I’m not backing out of my end of things.”

  She tried to swallow, but her mouth was impossibly dry.

  He looked down at her with something that felt like promise. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Think about what you want to eat.”

  Was he an option? Because she was hungry...

  No.

  Bad roommate!

  One side of his mouth screwed up into a lopsided smile. “Night, Brandi.”

  “Night,” she whispered.

  He hesitated, remaining exactly where he was just a little too close, his head bent, eyes on her...

  Brandi’s heart sped up.

  If he were anyone else, she might have kissed him by now. But he was Nicole’s guy. Not Brandi’s.

  Her phone began to ring. She jumped, startled by the sound.

  Jayden stepped back, glancing at her phone then her. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “O-okay,” she stammered out.

  He backed away a few steps, his gaze hot and considering.

  Sweet Jesus.

  He felt it, too.

  He kept backing away. His smile made it impossible for her to move.

  “Night, Brandi,” he said in a lower, more sensual voice.

  “Night.” Her own voice was breathy.

  “Your phone’s still ringing.”

  “Shit.” She whirled, snatching the phone up and jabbing at the screen.

  Of course it was Nicole. It was like she was keeping tabs on Brandy and her man.

  Brandi mashed the phone to her ear. “Hello? Hey, you there?”

  Jayden’s car rumbled to life. She turned with one hand up to shield her eyes from his headlights as he began backing out of the drive.

  “Hey, did I catch you at a bad time?”

  Brandi tilted her head to the side. Had she heard Nicole right? “Are—Nicole, are you drinking?”

  “Damn it. How do you know?” Nicole wailed.

  Brandi laughed, one of those full-belly, body shaking laughs that reset the soul. “You sound way too bubbly.”

  “I killed it today. I deserved a few drinks.”

  “A few?” Brandi leaned out of the driveway, looking down the street at the stop sign.

  Jayden’s car didn’t move on after the initial stop.

  What was he doing?

  A hand rose, waving.

  Busted.

  She waved then backed out of sight and hit the garage door button. There would be no more work tonight.

  “Yesterday’s class freaked me out. I mean, we are learning a lot, but the class is more geared toward you passing the test than teaching you. Which I don’t really like, but I also appreciate. It’s a weird place to be ethically.”

  “Well, isn’t the course called a test prep course?”

  “Yeah, I guess I just expected a more comprehensive—wow. I just used all my words.”

  Brandi hit the lights and chuckled. “Please tell me you’re in your hotel room?”

  “Yup. Ate in the restaurant across the street. Had exactly three drinks with classmates, then came up.”

  “Look at you.” Brandi was quite proud of Nicole. Some days she still seemed like that ultra-sheltered kid Brandi had taken under her wing.

  “I need your help.”

  “Okay, hit me.” She closed the door to the garage and wandered inside the house.

  Nicole lowered her voice. “So there’s this guy in my class and I think he’s flirting with me.”

  “Really now?” Brandi stopped, blinking at nothing.

  “He’s really cute. Like, really, really cute. Would it be a mistake to flirt back? Or have I been flirting, but not realized it?”

  “I don’t know. I mean, without being there and seeing it, I have no idea. I thought you were still upset about your bad date?”

  “It was fine.” Nicole’s tone said she’d already forgotten about it.

  “I’m sorry,” Brandi said slowly. “I just thought you were really excited about that guy.”

  “Jayden. His name was Jayden. I know I didn’t use his name very often, but that’s his name.”

  “Okay, so you aren’t still hoping for another shot with him?” Brandi cringed. If Nicole was already over Jayden and had no interest in him, what the hell was Brandi doing?

  “I thought a lot about that while I was driving down here.” Nicole’s words were overly enunciated and she spoke slowly, probably trying to exercise control in her inebriated state.

  “First, are you in your room?”

  “Yes, I told you I was, mom.”

  “Sorry, you did. Continue. While you were driving?”

  “Jay was nice. Sweet even.”

  Brandi grit her teeth and resisted the urge to correct Nicole.

  “On paper, he was exactly what I wanted. Someone with a stable job. Someone educated. Cultured. Interested in travel. I think I built him up in my mind to be someone he wasn’t. Someone he was never going to be. There was just nothing there, and I think I was more upset that he wasn’t this dream picture I had in my head than anything else. Honestly? Him leaving early saved me from having to sit there and pretend I was having fun. So, thank you, Jay, wherever you are for leaving our date. I just don’t think I can be with someone so controlled and serious. I was looking for someone like me. Too much like me. What I need is someone different.”

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  Brandi paced the living room.

  This was a disaster.

  Jayden was of a mind to win Nicole back. He thought she was The One for him.

  Meanwhile, Nicole was moving on.

  And Brandi was trapped in the middle not sure if she should hold things together or give Nicole a good shove.

  Brandi yanked the elastic holding her ponytail. It was suddenly too tight. “I just think about how excited you were and I have to wonder if you aren’t making a mistake.”

  “Maybe I am, but I don’t want to be so scared of making a mistake that I do nothing. You always tell me to take risks. Well, I want to take a risk.”

  Brandi held her breath. Should she have said that?

  “I want to flirt with the cute guy in my class. I want to live in this moment right here and now.” Nicole’s breathless excitement was palpable.

  Only, Brandi felt more dread than anything else.

  She’d stood in Jayden’s way of making peace. She thought she’d been protecting Nicole. What if Brandi had just screwed everything up? Should she tell Nicole now? Come clean? How angry was Nicole going to be with her? Not to mention Jayden...

  “Will you think less of me if I sleep with him?” Nicole asked.

  “What?” Brandi yelped.

  Who was this person?

  Nicole had left most of her parents’ ideals and rules behind, but their influence was evident. She had been
shaped and molded for years under their thumb. She might not want to be conservative, but that word fit her. And there wasn’t anything wrong with it. That was simply how Nicole was.

  A one-night stand was completely out of character for her.

  “Come on.” Nicole huffed. “You don’t think I can do it, do you?”

  “You surprised me. How much did you drink again?”

  “Three drinks. Just three, okay?”

  Brandi did some mental math. Nicole on three drinks would be bubbly, less inhibited, but not out of control. She was simply saying what she’d otherwise be too shy to say.

  Under any other circumstances, Brandi would cheer on whatever Nicole wanted to do. But throwing Jayden into the mix muddied the waters. Did Brandi want to push Nicole at this classmate so Brandi could have Jayden to herself? Or did she want to keep Nicole on the make-up course and aimed at Jayden?

  “Someone’s at the door,” Nicole muttered.

  “Hey, Nic?” Brandi’s gut rolled.

  “Hold on.”

  She paced the darkened living room. Just what the hell did she do?

  “Oh my God. Oh my—Brandi?” Nicole’s whispered excitement was so high pitched it hurt Brandi’s ears. “It’s him. He’s outside my door.”

  “Hey, Nicole? Wait, I need to talk to you.”

  “I’ll be careful. I know. I need to go now before I lose my nerve.”

  The call ended.

  Brandi stood there in her darkened home while dread wrapped around her.

  What had she done?

  Day 4: Wednesday

  Jayden breathed in nice and deep while listening to the client on the phone drone on. Jayden exhaled with the same slow, measured pace he’d been using.

  The irritation he’d felt simmering all morning wasn’t going away.

  Frustrated with himself, he opened the top drawer of his desk and grabbed his phone. He tapped the screen, so it lit up.

  No new messages.

  Nothing at all from Brandi.

  He shut the drawer a little too hard, but that was okay. He’d muted himself.

  Jayden mentally balled up the frustration and dealt with the client. By the time the call was over, his stomach was growling and he was ready to bite heads off.

  Why wasn’t Brandi texting him back?

  Even on Monday, when she hadn’t been his biggest fan, she’d gone back and forth with him.

  Today?

  Nothing.

  He pulled the phone back out and stared at the text icon.

  Last night when he’d left, they’d both felt it. She’d looked at him with wide, shell-shocked eyes as he’d gotten in his car he’d known. Something had clicked between them. He’d been aware of it Monday night, but his focus had been on Nicole, so he’d written it off.

  Only, it wasn’t Nicole he wanted anymore.

  Brandi understood him. Yes, they were vastly different people. She would always be too loud, too rash, too—something. But that was what he liked about Brandi. She challenged his way of thinking and wasn’t afraid to call him out when he messed up. She’d been right on Sunday to say that he didn’t really know Nicole. Getting to know Brandi had shown him how wrong he’d been.

  So how did he go about telling Brandi things had changed?

  “Hey, uh, bro?”

  Jayden glanced up at Maddox. There was sweat on his brow and he looked decidedly nervous.

  “What now?” Jayden could hear the annoyance dripping from his words.

  “I didn’t do it.” Maddox held up his hands. “The fridge went out and that gelatin thing that was in there went liquid and it’s all over your lunch. So, I thought, what if I took my big brother to lunch? I mean, I still owe you.”

  Jayden stared at Maddox.

  Was he serious?

  Gelatin all over the fridge? What Gelatin thing was in there? Wait. Did he really want to know?

  What else was going to go wrong with today?

  Jayden blew out a breath. “Sure. Yeah. Sounds good.”

  Maddox’s phone went off. He pulled it out of his pocket and blinked at the screen. “It’s Axl. He’s asking what we’re doing for lunch.”

  Jayden waved his hand. “I guess it’ll be the three of us?”

  He wasn’t really in the mood for his brothers, but maybe they were what he needed.

  Fifteen minutes later Jayden, Maddox and Axl were seated at a tiny, family-owned Italian place with a robust lunch menu.

  “You look like hell.” Jayden pushed a glass of water toward Axl.

  “Thanks,” Axl said dryly. He flicked the straw wrapper at Jayden.

  “What’s up? Why aren’t you at work?” He was curious. Next to himself, Axl probably had the biggest work ethic. During crunch time at the video game company he worked for, Axl probably had more.

  Axl groaned and leaned back, shoving his fingers through too-long hair. He really needed a trim, a shave, probably a shower.

  “I got trapped in that one more thing, loop. Which wound up with me at work at almost five in the morning,” he said.

  “Wow.”

  “Isn’t that, like, not allowed?” Maddox asked.

  Axl grimaced. “Yeah. Technically I’m in trouble, but not really. I put in more hours than they asked and I’m ahead of where they want me to be.”

  “Need to take care of yourself more, man.” Jayden shook his head.

  “I know.” Axl sighed and rolled his eyes. “I’m just really excited about what we’re doing. It’s going to be so sick.”

  Maddox grinned at them both. “I’m dying to check it out.”

  Jayden nodded. No doubt he’d buy the game and donate it to the house library for the kids there. Which also meant Maddox wasn’t expected to share his. Jayden would play a little, but he wasn’t very good and he’d never really caught the gaming bug like the others.

  “What’s going on with you guys?” Axl asked. “I didn’t really come out to talk about work.”

  Jayden sat up a little straighter and looked to his right, at Maddox

  He shrugged casually. “Nothing much, man. It’s end of the six weeks, so if I’m not working I’m helping the boys with homework.”

  Axl gasped and gripped at his chest. “How are they not all failing?”

  Maddox chuckled. “Fuck you.”

  Jayden took a drink and glanced around.

  “Where have you been this week?” Maddox asked Jayden.

  Shit.

  “I, uh, I’ve been helping out a friend.” He wasn’t very good at coming up with on-the-spot answers like this where he didn’t want to share the full truth. That was Asher’s specialty.

  Axl’s eyes widened. “A friend? You have those?”

  Jayden glared across the table. “Screw you.”

  Brandi.

  Why hadn’t she texted him back? What the hell was going on?

  “Who is it?” Maddox asked.

  “Someone you don’t know.” Jayden shifted in his seat.

  “Someone I don’t know?” Now Maddox was interested. He leaned forward. “Dude, you live and breathe work. How do I not know everyone you do?”

  “I have a life outside of work.”

  Axl’s laugh was so loud it was startling. “Yeah right.”

  Jayden glared at one brother, then the other. “Fine. Her name is Brandi.”

  “Brandi? Why haven’t we heard about Brandi before?” Maddox propped his chin on his hand, dark eyes sparkling.

  Jayden considered shutting the conversation down. He could. If he flexed his boundaries, they’d back off. But was that what he wanted? Could he use some outside input?

  He blew out a breath and started at the most logical place. The beginning. With Nicole. And ended at this morning with the no answered texts. Both Maddox and Axl sat quietly listening. Though part of the reason they were so quiet might have been that their food was served.

  Jayden finished talking by checking his phone one more time.

  “Let me get this straight.” Maddox pl
aced his fork on his plate just so. “You’ve been trying to get on the roommate’s good side so you could ask out the girl you bombed with, but now you think you like the roommate more?”

  Jayden stared at the red and white checkered table cloth. “I liked the idea of who Nicole and I could be. I don’t think I actually listened to who she was telling me she was. Then again, I don’t think she was really letting me in. Not from what Brandi has told me about her. I pretty much didn’t know the real Nicole at all. Last night I reread a lot of our messages and...I don’t think either of us were honest about who we really were.”

  Axl jabbed his fork at Jayden. “That is really deep and I wish I knew what to say.”

  Maddox squinted. “So, the roommate—Brandi?”

  “Yes, Brandi.”

  “You like her?”

  Like was a tame word.

  Brandi got him. Jayden wasn’t sure that he’d ever found someone who understood him like she did apart from his twin. And these days Jayden and Asher weren’t close.

  “So, what’s the deal?” Axl asked.

  “I feel a deep connection with Brandi. It wasn’t like this with Nicole.” Jayden stared at his untouched food.

  “Obviously I’m the last person you should take relationship advice from.” Axl pressed his hand to his chest. “But, I say go for it. Any woman who can twist you up has to be able to take you on.”

  Jayden glared at Axl, but there was no heat behind it. He might be right.

  What if Jayden’s whole plan, his entire blueprint for the future, was wrong?

  He’d thought he knew exactly what he wanted, but sometimes the universe showed up to give you what you needed.

  Like when they were kids and all Asher wanted was a home. He got the home, but not in the way he’d imagined. Could this be like that? The universe working to meet his needs in a way he’d never seen coming?

  Jayden stabbed at his food, all while his mind spun. There was just something that felt right about being with Brandi. When they hung out, he didn’t care about work or think about what tasks he had to do. He was in the moment, and he wanted to know if there was a possibility for more.

  The only thing he could do now was go for it. See if Brandi was interested in him the same way he was interested in her.

  It wasn’t easy.

  The whole point of showing up and hanging out with her had been to prove himself worthy of Nicole.