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I do not want to see my brother today.

We need to talk.

Growling in frustration, I send him a reply. I have class at two.

Then let’s meet at 12:30. What’s that café by campus called? The one Mom used to take us to when we were kids?

Chick’s Café.

Yeah. Don’t want to go there either. It’s full of good memories from when we were little, when Mom still wanted to hang out on campus and pretend she was young and carefree. She actually told us that once, right before she gave birth to Addie. It was the last time we went there as a family, minus our dad. But a lot of my memories from early childhood don’t involve our dad. He was too busy working.

I’ve gone to the café a couple of times since I starting going to college, but mostly for takeout during lunch. I took a girl there once on a date, but we didn’t last long beyond that.

My phone buzzes again. 12:30 at Chick’s. Okay?

Okay, I answer before dropping my phone onto the granite counter with a loud clatter. I don’t want to talk to Park, I don’t want to make nice or listen to him go on about him and Diane and his twisted reasons for having an affair with Dad’s wife. He can’t rationalize his actions to me, no matter how hard he might try.

“Hey.”

I turn to find Jensen padding into the kitchen, wearing an old black hoodie sweatshirt of mine and nothing else. Her feet are bare on the cold tile floor, and her legs look endless. Her hair is a mess and there’s black smudges under her sleepy eyes, and I’m tempted to grab hold of her and drag her back to my bedroom so I can keep her naked and in my bed all day.

But I have classes to go to and my brother to meet, so there’s no time for any of that.

“Good morning,” I tell her, rising to my feet. “You want coffee?”

“Please,” she says with a nod, and I go to pour her a cup. She follows after me, grabbing the creamer and dumping a bunch of it in her coffee before she grabs the nearby spoon and gives it a quick stir.

“Is that even coffee?” I ask her as she walks over to the counter and settles her cute butt on the stool Chad just vacated. “With all the creamer you just poured in it?”

She shrugs and takes a sip. “This is the way I like it.”

Noted.

“You have any classes today?” I ask.

“Yeah, just one. You have a couple, right?”

“How do you know?” We’ve not really shared our school schedules with each other. At least, I don’t think I have. And after what Chad said about her name, I’m feeling suspicious. Just when I think things are cool between us, someone has to go and say something to freak me out and screw it all up.

“You’ve, uh, mentioned it to me before. How Thursdays are busy for you, with class and practice.” She smiles.

I don’t remember ever telling her that. But maybe the constant sex is literally burning brain cells. I don’t know. Though I do remember some things. Like, “I have a game tonight. You should come watch me.”

Her face falls in disappointment. “I wish I could, but I have to work.”

The reminder that she has to work at the strip club sucks. It both depresses me and makes me angry. “You’re going to try and switch shifts so you can go to Addie’s party on Saturday night, right?”

“I’m going to try.”

So tempted to tell her trying isn’t good enough, but that sounds like something my father would say and I’m not going down that road. “Addie will be really disappointed if you can’t go.”

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nbsp; Irritation fills her eyes. “Are you purposely trying to make me feel guilty?”

“No.” Yes.

“Well, you are. I need this job, Rhett. I know you don’t approve, but I have to make money to live.”


Tags: Monica Murphy Damaged Hearts Romance