His eyes narrow. “You looked me up.” He says it as a statement, not a question.
“No,” I tell him. “But Leila might have filled me in.”
He laughs, shaking his head. “I can’t believe she still believes that crap.” He wipes a hand down his face and exhales, looking at me. “I don’t either,” he says. “Indulge in casual sex.”
I scoff. “Right.”
“I’m serious.” When I glance at him, his shoulders lift in a shrug, and he gives me a smirk. “Cross my heart,” he says, gesturing over his chest in an X motion. “The last girl I slept with was over a year ago.”
I squint at him. “You really expect me to believe that?”
“Believe what you want,” he says. “I’m just telling you the truth.”
Huh.
I drop down onto the armchair, facing him, and smile. “Guess who just became interesting too.”
He shakes his head. “I’ve always been interesting,” he says with a grin. “You’re just too hard-headed to see it.”
My eyes roll at his cockiness, but a smile plays on my lips, and I realize… I’m actually having a good time with Lucas. “So we have something in common,” I say. “Doesn’t mean we have to hold hands and skip.”
“God no, I wouldn’t go that far,” he jokes. “But we can get to know each other better.”
My eyes narrow, wearingly. “So, what do you suggest?”
“21 questions?” he asks. “That way, you don’t have to tell me your entire life story, but we actually know stuff about each other. After all, you are supposed to be my girlfriend.”
“Okay,” I agree, knowing it would be hard to convince someone we were dating if we didn’t know anything about each other. “Question number one. Where are you from?”
He leans back into the couch and adjusts his position, rubbing his chin. I try not to ogle his chest when his t-shirt clings to his muscles, and I try not to think of what his beard would feel like against my skin, but it’s really hard to do so. God, what is wrong with me? I clear my throat and bring my attention back to his face.
“I was born and raised here,” he says. “I moved away to New York a few years ago for my career, but I decided to move back to Pennsylvania.”
“Why?” I ask.
He tuts, shaking his head. “It’s my turn,” he points out. “Question number two. Where are you from?”
“Born and raised in Colorado,” I tell him. “Moved here for college, never been anywhere else.” I paste a smile and say, “Question number three. Why did you move back?”
He lets out a laugh, but then it drops when he sighs. “My best friend had an accident,” he says, swallowing hard. “A few months ago, he was in a terrible car crash, and while hesurvived, he injured his spine, lost mobility in his legs, and um…” He scratches at his beard. “His mom died, so me and my family are all he has now.”
My stomach plummets, my brain flooding with memories of Nia. How I felt after the car crash that took her from me. I was so lost without her, but at least I still had my family. Even if their attention stopped, they were stillthere. I can’t imagine not having anyone. “Shit. I’m so sorry.”
He shrugs, but I can see his face dropping. “He’s okay,” he says. “He’s doing physical therapy, and he’s slowly learning to walk again.” He nods, more to himself. “But when I heard the news, there was nothing that could keep me in New York.”
I see the sadness in his face, and I feel it in my heart, in my bones. “I lost my sister in high school,” I tell him, blinking away the tears building in my eyes. “It was raining pretty hard, and she… um.” I shake my head, unable to finish the story.
“Fuck.” His face drops. “Madeline, I’m sorry. If I had known…”
I shake my head, wiping away the tears. “Don’t be, I was the one who asked.”
He shakes his head. “I can’t imagine losing my sister,” he says, his brows furrowing. “My dad passed away when she was only two. She didn’t even get to know him.”
His jaw clenches when he looks at me, and my chest aches at the thought of growing up without my dad. Sure, my birth parents might have given up on me, but I love my mom and dad so much. I can’t imagine life without them.
“She’s been more like my daughter than my sister,” Lucas continues. “I’ve watched her grow up. I watched her become her own person and the thought of something happening toher…” A heavy breath leaves his lips. “It would fucking kill me.”
“It sounds like you’re a good big brother.”
