The Hot Brother (Romance Love Story) (Hargrave Brothers - Book #5)

by Alexa Davis

  “I didn’t know he was your brother.”

  “I know, but it still hurts.”

  “I thought we were just friends.”

  I looked at her profile. She was still staring at the roses. I cupped her chin in my hand and turned her face up toward me. The strings of lights across the canopy covering the rose bushes from the weather lit up her pretty, hazel eyes. I wanted to kiss her, but I fought through that and said, “I agreed to be your friend because you said that was as much as I could get. I knew it was going to bother me to see you with other men, but I can’t even describe how it feels to see you with Ethan.”

  “I don’t know what to tell you, Nick.”

  I knew what I wanted her to tell me. I wanted her to tell me that she’d never see Ethan again. I wanted her to tell me that she wanted me as badly as I did her. I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want her. If Ethan ended up with her instead of me, I was afraid of what it would do to the relationship I had with the only family member I care anything about.

  I decided that truth was better than regrets. “I want you, Karli. I don’t just want to fuck you. I want to take you to places like this and show you off. I want to work-out with you and cuddle on the couch with you. I want to wake up on Christmas morning and have breakfast with you before we exchange gifts…” She reached up and put her fingers on my lips.

  “Nick, I think I want all of those things, too.”

  My heart sped up. I felt everything open up inside of me like I’d just taken a hit of an inhaler. “Really?”

  She nodded. “But I just can’t believe that would be possible with you. I told you before that I like you and I think it’s obvious that I’m sexually attracted to you, but that’s not enough, Nick. I don’t want to date a fighter. I don’t want to date a man that lives his life on the run from fans and the tabloids. I don’t want my boyfriend’s face and body hanging naked all over the city I live in.”

  I wanted her, badly. But I didn’t think I was at a place where I was willing to give up my career – the only thing I was really good at – to have her. Living with the consequences while training with her father would be hell. At least if I didn’t have to see her all the time, I might be able to find other ways to occupy my mind.

  “Even if I promised that I only want to be with you, Karli? I mean, would it matter who else wanted me as long as I was faithful?”

  “I think you telling me now that you would be faithful would be like lining a table with candy bars and telling a child they have to look at them every single day, but never touch them.”

  “You don’t trust me.” It wasn’t a question. I could see it in her eyes. The guys that she’d been with in the past must have done a number on her.

  “It’s not specifically you I don’t trust, Nick. It’s guy’s like you. It’s the lifestyle itself. Let me ask you this: have you ever been faithful to one woman?”

  “No, but I’ve never been in a committed relationship, either.”

  “I don’t want to be your trial run,” she said. She pulled out of my touch and stood up. “I should get back inside.”

  I nodded, and she waited like she expected me to say something else. What else was there to say? I couldn’t prove I’d be faithful unless she gave me a chance, and she didn’t seem willing to do that. Fuck my life.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  KARLI

  I got into the limousine when the party was over already feeling hung over. My head was fuzzy and my thoughts were all jumbled, but I doubted it had much to do with alcohol. I hadn’t drunk enough to even get a good buzz going. Nick was what had done it.

  First, that talk we had…it should have made me feel better, but instead, it made me feel like shit. I clearly told him why I couldn’t date him and although he’d looked hurt at the time, he came back inside not long afterwards and drove my point home.

  He was slamming down one drink after the other and every time I saw him, it was in the center of a menagerie of females. He was on the dance floor several times, too – each time with a different woman. It had clearly taken him no time at all to get over me, and as much as I knew that should make me feel relieved, it didn’t. Instead, it made me feel sick to my stomach to see him holding those other women close as they danced, or to watch how they all wanted to touch him as they talked. Each time I looked at him, he was flashing his dimples at one of them; I wanted to scream.

  I did my best not to let poor Ethan know that I was distracted by his brother, but when the limousine dropped me at home, I knew that I hadn’t succeeded. He walked me up to the door as I said,

  “Thank you, Ethan. I had a great time.”

  He smiled, and I tried so hard not to think of his brother when his dimples creased. “Good; I did, too.” He took my face in his hand and I thought about when Nick had done the same thing earlier. I had wanted him to kiss me so badly I could taste it. He didn’t, though, and now neither did Ethan. Instead, he looked into my eyes and said, “I like you a lot, Karli, but I don’t want to be a stand in for my brother.”

  “Oh no, Ethan! That’s not what you are.”

  “I don’t think it’s a conscious thing on your part. But, anyone that had eyes this evening just had to look at your face and know how much you want Nick. The same look was on his face every time he looked at you. Let me tell you something, Karli. In the twenty-four years that I have known my brother, I have seen lots of women look at him the way you do, but what I have never seen is him look back at them the way he looks at you. I saw something in him tonight that I’ve never seen before, and I never even knew existed. Nick probably had no idea it existed, either, until you came along. I think you would be good for him.”

  “First of all, I’m sorry, Ethan. I didn’t realize that I was so obviously mooning over him. Second of all, I really like you, too—”

  “But you’re ten times more attracted to my brother.”

  I nodded. He deserved the truth. “I don’t know why. I don’t want to be with a fighter. I want someone with a nice, safe occupation like…”

  “Defending murderers?” he asked with a crooked little smile. He was so handsome and sexy and smart…why couldn’t I want him the way I wanted Nick?

  I smiled, too. “Yeah, like that.”

  “He’s a good person, Karli, and he’s smart and funny. Did he tell you he graduated third in his high school class?”

  I didn’t think Nick was stupid, but third in his class pointed toward academically gifted and that did surprise me.

  “No, I didn’t know that. It doesn’t change the fact, though, that he’s in this very high profile position that just seems to feed every narcissistic fiber in these men’s bodies. To this day, I honestly believe that my last boyfriend loved me. The temptations were just everywhere, though, constantly. It was too much for him and he thought he could taste some of that forbidden fruit and I’d never know. The night I caught him only made me wonder how many times I hadn’t. I don’t want to live like that. It would just chip away at my self-esteem and right now, I like myself.”

  Ethan nodded. “I can’t argue with that. I will say that my little brother is one of the most loyal people I’ve ever known in his other relationships with friends and family. But, that’s as much of an argument as I’m going to put up for him.”

  He smiled, but his eyes looked sad as he said, “You do know that I can’t continue to see you, knowing how my brother feels, right?”

  I smiled back at him. “Yeah, I know. Thank you, Ethan.”

  He softly touched his lips to mine. “Thank you, Karli. If you ever want help with any of your school work or you’d like to grab lunch or something, call me. I’d like for us to be friends.”

  “Thanks, Ethan. I will.”

  I felt better after talking to him. Dating him would have been so unfair, considering I couldn’t make myself stop thinking about his brother. Dad was asleep when I went into the house, but Kevin was still up and sitting in the dark in the living room.

  “Hey, Kevin.�
�

  He looked surprised like he hadn’t even heard me come in. “Oh, hey, Karli.”

  “You okay?”

  “Um, no. Not really.”

  I went over and sat down next to him. “What’s wrong?”

  He made a face and said, “I probably shouldn’t tell you this.”

  “Me? What does it have to do with me?”

  He sighed. “Well, earlier tonight I went out with some of the guys from the gym. When I got home, I didn’t see Charlie anywhere in the house but the door was unlocked so I went looking for him to make sure he was okay. I started to open the garage door and that’s when I heard him talking. He was saying my Mom’s name. I know I shouldn’t have, but I eavesdropped in on the conversation.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “So what were they saying that has you so upset and worried about me?”

  “I don’t know how much you know about your dad when he was younger. Nobody wants to think bad things about their parents.”

  “Kevin! Just tell me what’s going on.”

  “Your father and my mother were talking about me…being his biological son.”

  My mild headache was beginning to feel like a thousand drumsticks beating on things in there all at once. “My dad said that you’re his son?”

  “Yeah, he was telling her to stop worrying, that he wasn’t going to tell me. Mom made a fuss when Dad suggested I come out here. It got me thinking about the last time you and Charlie visited us in Philadelphia; do you remember that?”

  “Yeah, I was about fourteen at the time, I think.”

  “Yeah, and I was eleven. I never told anyone this, but I walked in on them kissing once during that trip. Dad was at work, and you and I were supposed to be watching that hockey game at the park; remember?”

  “I do remember the hockey game because…well, I remember it.”

  He nodded. “I know you had a thing for that goalie, Mark. Anyways, do you remember I had to run home and get my jacket? I was freezing, and I’d left it at home on top of my bed?” It was beginning to come back to me.

  I nodded and he went on. “I went in the back door. The house was quiet and I thought that was weird since Charlie and Mom were both there when we left. I heard a noise in the bedroom and my over-active imagination had a robber in the house and them tied up with guns to their heads.

  “I tip-toed down the hallway and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw them. My mother’s shirt was on the floor, but she was still wearing her pants and bra. Your dad was kissing her and he had his hands on her butt. I never told anyone because I was embarrassed about it. But this, Karli…what if this whole time the man I thought was my father wasn’t and this other man that I looked up to was nothing more than a cheater?”

  He seemed to forget that cheater was the man I looked up to my whole life. My Dad. I felt sick. If this was true, my own father was proof that these glorified jocks could not be trusted.

  That last time we were in Philly was his last fight. Women had always been all over him the way they are with Nick. I used to hate it even when it was my father they were throwing themselves at. But he never let on in front of me that he was a player, and even if he had been, he was single at the time. But Kevin’s mom wasn’t, and my dad was his dad’s best friend since college. I hate thinking the man I loved so much was capable of that kind of betrayal. I’d rather hope Kevin misunderstood what he heard…and what he saw all those years ago.

  “What do you think about taking a DNA test before we tell anyone anything? We can buy one at the drug store and Dad’s DNA is all over this place. If it’s negative, he’ll never have to know.”

  “Okay, but if it’s positive, then what?”

  “It’ll take a few weeks to come back. If it’s positive, then we’ll deal with it, Kevin, together. Okay?”

  “Okay. I’m sorry to bring you into this. Maybe it’s a moot point anyways, you know? I’m nineteen years old, almost twenty. My dad was a good dad and all I ever knew. What would I even do with this kind of information?”

  I was thinking the same thing myself. “Why don’t we wait and not worry about it until we get those results?” I told him. “Let’s keep this all between us until then and let’s promise we’ll sit down and talk about it then before either of us talks to Dad. Deal?”

  “Yeah, deal.” Poor kid looked like a nervous wreck. I didn’t blame him. I was nervous, too. I had put my father on a pedestal all of these years. Now I was faced with the prospect of being the one to knock him off of it.

  I woke up Sunday morning with a sense of dread for two reasons. One, I’d promised Kevin that I would buy the DNA test and two, I promised Dad I’d help out at the exhibition fight. I was strangely both looking forward to seeing Nick and not looking forward to it. That didn’t make any sense and my brain and heart were both in turmoil.

  I showered and dressed before going out to make the coffee and found Dad in the kitchen. As soon as I saw him, I had a visual of him and Kevin’s mother together. It made me sick to my stomach. I forced myself to return his smile.

  “Good morning, sweetheart.” He took my mug out of the cabinet and poured me a cup of the fresh-brewed coffee. “How was the masquerade ball last night? Did this Ethan turn out to be Prince Charming?”

  “Actually,” I said, taking a sip of my coffee and a seat at the table. “He turned out to be Nick’s brother.”

  “Nick? Storelli?”

  “Yeah, small world, huh?”

  “I can’t believe it. He seems so…I don’t know, they just seem so different. You didn’t have any idea?”

  “No. Ethan’s last name is Grant. Nick uses his mother’s maiden name. I was surprised, but once I found out, I wondered how I hadn’t noticed the strong resemblance between them.”

  He took a seat at the table with his coffee, too. “You’re not going to let that keep you from seeing Ethan, are you? He seems like such a nice young man. Perfect for you.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. I was angry with him and suddenly realized that I was spoiling for a fight. “And, Nick isn’t because he’s a fighter, right?”

  He made a face. “I don’t have to tell you that these boys are all players, Karli. Nick Storelli is full of himself and doesn’t go anywhere that women don’t flock around him. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

  “Why is it that women can’t flock around a man and that man leave them alone? I mean, you were a famous fighter in your day, Dad. You weren’t a player, were you?”

  “We’re not really talking about me. Do you want some breakfast, honey?”

  “I want you to answer my question. Were you a player?”

  “Yeah, I was. But I was single and I never led women to believe it would be anything but a one-night stand.” My stomach rolled at the very idea of my father as a sexual being, but I pushed on.

  “Did you ever worry that one would get pregnant and you’d be saddled with another kid?”

  “I told you not to talk about yourself that way. I wasn’t ‘saddled’ with anything. I had the privilege of being your father.”

  My heart thawed slightly. “Thanks, Dad, but seriously, didn’t you worry about the possibility?”

  “Well, if you must know, I used protection.”

  “Condoms?”

  “Karli, what is this about? You’re not pregnant, are you?”

  “Oh, hell no! I’m smarter than that, Dad. But, we were talking about you.”

  “Yeah, I used condoms.” He got up and turned his back to me to me. “You want toast?”

  “No thanks. I don’t have an appetite today.”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  NICK

  I was ushered into the back door of the event center by a bunch of guys who were bigger than me. The place was packed already with a roaring crowd, press, and cameras. This was an annual event that they put on for Halloween.

  I was in it last year, but I wasn’t a headliner like I was this time. I was fighting a retired fighter, but he went out on top as a heavy weight champi
on and had only retired a year earlier. The press was saying that how I do tonight might indicate how I would do in my own title fight in less than two months.

  I’d watched this guy’s fights over and over. I memorized every one of his moves and felt like I was ready. I wasn’t nervous at all about the fight, but the idea of being watched on Pay-Per-View by millions made me a little nervous.

  It was compounded by the fact that I’d woken up after a restless night with anxiety filling my chest over what happened with Karli. Our talk had put any hopes I had of getting together with her to rest for good, and it was killing me.

  This was the first time I had ever imagined a future with a woman and I’d been shot down. I felt like my heart was breaking and that was an entirely unfamiliar feeling for me. The worst part was that it was not for something I had done, but for something she thought I might or might not do in the future. It wasn’t fair and I knew eventually all of this hurt and anxiety would turn into anger. I was almost looking forward to it, hoping the anger would be easier because this just made me feel pathetic and I hated that.

  I was led to the locker room, and the atmosphere inside there was almost as explosive as the one out front. It was filled with fighters and trainers. I said hello to Jonah and a few other guys as I made my way to the back where I could see the top of Charlie’s head. I passed Kevin on the way. He was sitting on a bench, staring at a spot on the wall.

  “Hey, buddy; you okay?”

  He looked up at me and for a few seconds he looked like he was trying to remember who I was. “Nick…yeah, I’m okay. Did Karli tell you?”

  I glanced over at Charlie. He was busy chatting up another trainer, so I sat down next to the kid. “Did Karli tell me what?”

  “That she might be my sister; what else?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Shit. She didn’t tell you, did she?”

  I laughed nervously. “No, she didn’t tell me anything remotely close to that.”

  “Fuck. I’m sorry, man. I’m a mess.”