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Nick and Stella couldn’t be more different. He got into as much trouble as he could. She stuck to the rules.
Nick wasn’t always this protective over his sister, but she was bullied in middle school to the point that she stopped eating for way too long. When we found out about it, he and I came to her defense. Then she met Winnie and everything changed.
I needed to get this over with. “She was with someone, though.”
“Who?” His eyes narrowed and I instantly filled with dread.
“Me.”
“Oh, so you made sure she didn’t do anything dumb?”
“Uh, mostly. But I mean when I waswithher, I mean in a ... more than friends way.”
Nick froze, and when his eyes moved to me, they were like ice. “You didn’t.”
“I did.”
“Are you fucking serious?”
I took a step back. His voice was low, more like a growl than anything else.
The only time he’d ever talked like this was when he found the kids who had upset Stella when she was in middle school. I never thought he would turn it around onme,even if I’d been with her.
“Yeah, I am.”
That was the wrong thing to say. He stood. “Do you know how fucking gross that is?”
“I don’t know aboutgross?—”
“Alden, you knew her when she was a kid. She’sfouryears younger than you.”
“Weren’t we also kids?”
“Older kids!” he snapped. “What the hell were you thinking going after her?”
“I didn’t go after her at all! I said hello.”
He crossed his arms. “Then how the hell did you end up with her?”
I closed my eyes. I don’t even know how we’d ended up in the back of my truck. Most of our conversation was drowned out by that damn teal sweater she’d been wearing. “Things just ended up that way.”
“Just ended up that way?” he asked. “Try again.”
“I don’t ... I’m telling you the truth. What else do you want from me?”
“For you to have walked away from my little sister, Alden.”
“I didn’t just use her or anything. Ilikeher.”
“She’s mysister.You don’t feel anything for her. Besides, she’s too young to know better.”
“Stella is an adult,” I reminded him.
“Fuck off,” he snapped, his glare piercing. “Isn’t that what your dad said about his new wife?”
Fuck.He had. All the regret hit me again. I promised never to sound like my dad or date anyone younger than me.
But there was one defense I had.