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“You didn’t even like her!” Roan pushes me, and I push back. What the fuck did liking her have to do with anything? I fucked her. Nolikinginvolved. Although I beg to differ, I do actually like Ophelia. She’s sweet, in the kind of kid sister way, which if we’re honest about it, makes me taking her virginity feel like a creep, but whatever.
“She wanted it.” My taunting smile makes an appearance. “Her pussy was tight.”
Ricky jumps between us, as if on cue. “All right. That’s enough. Knock it off.”
“Let them fight,” Shade groans, returning to the kitchen. “Maybe then they’ll stop bringing this up every time they see each other.”
“I’d fuck her again, too,” I add, glaring at Roan, who looks like he wants to cheese grate my head right about now. Welcome to brotherhood of the clinically insane. It’s just like love, but for assholes.
Every muscle in my body braces for a brawl. You know, I understand it. Why he’s being this way. Roan’s pain is real. I fucked his girl. And worse than that, took her virginity. Virginity he wanted. Virginity I took carelessly, without regard to her feelings and then told her to get the fuck out. In truth, she knew what she was doing when she asked me to take her to my room.
With Ricky between us, Roan growls out a breath and storms out. I smile and return to the kitchen with a pack of smokes in the other.
Camden returns, too, a game controller in hand. “There’s a chick with a kid at the door looking for you.”
That’s not something you want to hear when you’re twenty-three, is it?
I reach for my sweatshirt on the counter beside me. “Who is it?” I stand there, staring at him, my heart pounding in my ears, searching for an answer.
Camden shrugs, flopping on the couch beside some drunk dude who’s been snoring most of the morning.
Coming around the corner and into the foyer, the massive double doors leading into the house are wide open, and Amberly stands, wearing a sunflower yellow dress, her deep purple hair braided and hanging over her left shoulder.
I glance, though, briefly at the child.
Why is she here?
I drop my hood back; my dark eyes find motionless seas of green. My heart pounds, drowning out nonsense I can’t make sense of anyway. Nervousness crawls at my skin and I want to slam the door in her face. Sure, she knows where I live, and she’s spent her fair share of time here, but she stays clear of this place, always afraid of what it means. She knows what goes on here. “What are you doing here?”
Her face frowns, her disappointment in me greater than her unconditional love she seems to have. Or did. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Pale pink lips push out barely spoken words.
I want her mouth crying my name. I want my cock in her mouth and my cum dripping from her lips. I know, bad, but this is what she fucking does to me. It’s insane and one-tracked.
I hear her words, know what they’re asking, but still, I ask, “Tell you what?” It’s not like Amberly has ever been my girlfriend. In fact, she’s never even gone on a date with me. Not that I’ve ever gone on a date with anyone, nor have I asked, but she’d be the closest to that if I had.
The child holding her hand lets go, finds interest in a lizard on the porch and crouches down.
“Ava,” Amberly whispers, attempting to keep her voice at a volume the girl can’t hear. “Did you sleep with her to hurt me?”
Yes. No. I don’t remember.
“Wait, which sister are we talking about? Which one’s Ava? The one with the stick up her ass, or the one with the dick up her ass?”
Amberly blinks, slowly. Tears form, pool, and release all in the same breath it takes for her to realize I’m purposely being an asshole. I didn’t mean to make her cry, and ordinarily, it takes a hell of a lot more than that to make her cry. “Are you serious right now?”
I lean into the door, crossing my arms over my chest. Her face is delicate, fine cheekbones and sea green eyes that constantly destroy me. A wave of nausea hits me, making me swallow hard. “What is it that you want from me? Is that why you kept calling? Because I fucked your sister?”
Disbelief clouds her eyes and takes the color from her cheeks. “How could you have kept this from me? How could you keepherfrom me?” She shifts her eyes to the child in a discrete gesture.
“Her?”
“She’syours.”
I laugh, my eyes lingering on her purple hair that inhabits my dreams and smothers my heart. “Slow your roll.” If I’m being honest, I knew about the kid. Not entirely, but I had an assumption after seeing Ava at the store about a year ago and the girl was with her.
Take a look at the girl. Do you see her, kneeled down petting the lizard that’s strangely still? Don’t tell her, but it’s because he’s dead. Shade stepped on him yesterday, and we didn’t move it because Scarlet was convinced he’d grow a new body like they do tails. Fucker’s dead. He ain’t coming back from that shit.
Look at the girl though. Do you see the eyes, the dark hair. . . the faint dusting of freckles? She’s my kid. Something inside my chest stirs as I watch her. I’m unfamiliar with the emotion. I wouldn’t say I feel anything toward her, or do I?