Page 124 of These White Lies

“Not even with your ex?”

I shake my head.

“Why didn’t you leave him earlier?”

“I don’t know. In the end, I didn’t. He left me, even though he was the one dragging out the divorce. At first, I thought it was the worst thing that had ever happened. But it turned out to be the best.”

Her eyes narrow, and then she rolls them. “You’re not one of those every-cloud-has-a-silver-lining people, are you?”

A laugh slips out, unexpectedly. Her brows lift, and for the first time, she smiles widely, and some of the stiffness in her shoulders drops.

“Definitely not,” I say. “But if he hadn’t left, I’d never have met Brady.” Something eases between us. I study her, and the corner of my mouth pulls. “I see what you’ve been doing. Stillaredoing most of the time.”

Her posture tightens, arms crossing.

“I’m a prickly bitch, too. Better to keep people at arm’s distance, right?”

She doesn’t reply, but she doesn’t look away.

“With your brother, I don’t feel like that.”

My chest pulls tight at the thought of telling her this—of being so vulnerable. But she is Brady’s sister, and I can’t hide this from her. Not if I hope to have a future with him.

“He makes me forget I’m supposed to fight, because I know he’ll have my back. I’ve spent most of my life bracing for what could come next, protecting myself from what happens if I slip for even a second. I don’t want that with him. I want to be the woman he deserves. And I’ll do everything I can to be that person. But it’s… scary. To be so in love with someone that I don’t care about protecting myself.”

The words tumble out before I can stop them.

Her hazel eyes widen. “You love him?”

“Oh, shit.” Heat floods my face. My hands fly up. “I didn’t mean to… I mean… I haven’t even told him?—”

“Elizabeth?” Brady’s voice calls from the outer common room.

Panic grips me, and I snap my gaze to her. “Please.”

For a beat, she just watches me. Then her mouth curves into a sly grin. “I won’t say anything. But for what it’s worth?” She leans in slightly, and whispers, “I’m pretty sure he feels the same.”

35

BRADY

Holy Shit.

My mouth goes dry.

Elizabeth is standing in the middle of the bedroom in a red dress that looks like it’s painted on, and her thick, dark hair tumbles over her shoulders in waves. She looks like sin and salvation in one body, and every man in that ballroom tonight is going to want her.

I can already feel it—the feral need to lock the door and keep her here, where no one else can see. I stare at a spot high on the wall, telling my body to calm the fuck down.

My sister’s in the room, for fuck’s sake.

Sera snickers beside me, like she knows how close I am to snapping.

“I’ll give you a minute,” she says, still laughing as she closes the door behind her.

“Brady.” Her breathy voice hits me, and before I can think better of it, I’ve got Elizabeth backed against the wall, my hands gripping her hips hard enough that she gasps. Her eyes widen, but she doesn’t push me away. She tilts her chin up instead, daring me.

“Mine,” I grind out, my voice almost unrecognizable. It’s not rational—I know that. It’s primal. The idea of walking her into that room, of putting herself out like bait for those animals, rips at every nerve I have.