Karli picks a needle, the biggest one apparently, and brings it to his ankle.
He looks away from her and up at me. “I’m only doing this because I love you, Len.”
My heart beats harder, and an overwhelming love fills my soul, and I can see the past in more clarity. Some of their pranks were just that. But the big ones that I thought I hated actually made me brave. I hated the soccer team, but I made my best friend on that team. The same friend who introduced me to graphic design. And the night I snuck out of my house with my friends was one of the best nights of my life. They used their bets to push me, because they loved me, not because they wanted to see me fail.
I lean over and wrap my arms around Micheal. Who knew pulling this prank on them would teachmea lesson. “I love you too.”
“Ow!” He jerks back and I barely catch myself from falling to the floor. “That hurt.” He yells at Karli.
I look at Karli, my eyes wide. “What are you doing? You can’t give people real tattoos.”
“Chill.” Karli smiles and holds up a tiny needle. “I just poked him with a pin.”
“Wait.” Michael jumps from the chair. “What’s going on?”
“I think my work here is done.” Karli stands but instead of leaving, she joins Juliet in the kitchen, snagging a cinnamon roll for herself.
“Lennox?” Michael scolds, “What was that?”
I look at each of them. Micheal’s unruly blond hair, Trent’s baby cheeks that are covered with a neatly trimmed beard, and Sean’s always innocent brown eyes.
“That, my brothers, was your payback for betting on my love life.”
Their eyebrows furrow.
“What?” Sean yells.
“You guys never learn your lessons. So I decided to help. I never even dated Noa.” I smile. “He was just a friend pretending to be my fiancé for the night.”
“No.” Trent shakes his head and scratches his beard. “That wasalla prank?”
I grin. It feels so good to beat them at their own game. “Sure was.”
“Huh. Who knew little Lennox could pull one over on us all?” Michael shakes his head and looks at me with something akin to admiration.
I barely refrain from bowing.
Just kidding. I bowed.
“I guess she’s learned a thing or two.” Sean muses and he takes a step closer to me.
I immediately back up. Right into the couch.
“She still hasn’t learned how to run away,” Trent says, and then they all rush after me.
I don’t have a fighting chance. They spray whipped cream on my face and tickle me until I can’t breathe. But I’ve never felt so happy getting teased by my brothers.
Maybe these bets and pranks aren’t too bad.
“What about Grant?” Michael asks as we take turns leaning over the kitchen sink, washing whipped cream out of our hair.
My hands freeze under the water. “What about him?”
“Did he know it was a bet?”
“He figured it out,” I say, turning away and picking up a hand towel.
“Was he mad?”
