Squeezing her hand, I said, "It sounds like you've had to do this before."
"I'm accustomed to using their disinterest to my advantage."
"It's not right that they favor one daughter over the other."
Brooke shrugged. "It's just the way it is."
It was clear that the situation hurt her. There was nothing I could do about that, other than give her so much of my attention that she never thought about it again.
"May I drive you home now, then pick you up first thing in the morning?"
She smiled. "Yes."
"Am I permitted to think about you all night long?"
Her lips met mine in a soft kiss. "Also yes. In fact, as your brand new girlfriend, I insist."
9
BROOKE
My eyes fluttered open slowly. Saturdays were for sleeping in, and reaching for my phone, I saw that it was almost eight-thirty. I already had a few texts.
Warrick:Hey, can I pick you up at 8?
Warrick:Or maybe 8:30?
Warrick:I'm sorry, you're still asleep. Please let me know when you're up.
Wow. I'd never been the focus of someone's attention before, and had to admit it felt pretty incredible.
Me:Just waking up. Let me shower and get caffeinated.
Warrick:There will be coffee where we're going. Can you be ready by nine?
Me:Yes-ish. I'll text you as I'm walking out the door, and you can tell me where to meet you.
Dropping the phone, I dashed into the shower, then found a flirty dark teal dress that would probably be good for almost any occasion. It was barely past nine as I walked out my front door, texting.
Me:Walking west to the corner of Sinclair Avenue.
My eyes snapped up to see Warrick parked in our driveway, leaning on his car.
I had just passed my parents in the kitchen, murmuring that I was going out. They must have heard him drive up.
Warrick grinned as he took me in. "I am officially the luckiest man in the world. It's killing me not to kiss you until we leave."
He casually tossed me the keys, then opened the driver side door. "M'lady."
As I backed the beautiful sports car carefully out of the driveway, the living room curtains were pulled aside. Yep, my parents definitely saw me driving away with Dad's friend.
"You're probably going to get a call from Dad at some point, "I said. "They just saw us."
Warrick turned to me. "Really?"
"Parents tend to look out the window when their daughter is leaving the house. It's a thing."
"Damn. Sorry. That didn't occur to me."