Stepbrother Dearest(65)

In reality, she’d never looked more beautiful.

She laughed. “A hot mess.”

“Let’s go. I’m buying you a new outfit.”

“It’s fine. I’m just a little wet.”

A little wet. Fuck. Get your mind out of the gutter, Elec.

“No, it’s not fine. That was my fault.”

“It’ll dry. Tell you what, if you win something tonight, you can spend it all on a new outfit for me at one of these expensive shops. That’s the only way I’m letting you spend any money on me.”

I felt like a douche, and I knew I wasn’t leaving tonight until I bought her the nicest dress in this joint to make up for what I did.

After I’d gone to get drinks, I told her it was better if we separated while I played poker. There were a ton of guys who looked like they were on the prowl in the poker room, and I didn’t want to have to f*ck anyone up tonight. Greta didn’t realize how attractive she was.

It amazed me that she even listened and agreed to go play the slots for a while.

When I sat down at the table, my phone vibrated.



Why does it matter to you anymore if other guys hit on me? You’re not supposed to care.



Shit. It shouldn’t have been a surprise that she called me out on my behavior.

She was right.

I was being selfish. I wasn’t really afraid of some guy hitting on her. What scared me was the possibility that I’d have to watch while she returned the interest or entertained it. She was single, and I wasn’t. What was to stop her? I was just as jealous as ever, and I had no right to be. It was unreasonable and wrong. So, I didn’t respond to the text because there was no good answer.


I couldn’t concentrate on the game and kept losing. My mind was too focused on the text and more so on my unacceptable behavior. I took out my phone and swiped through pictures of Chelsea in an attempt to remind myself whom I belonged to. I scanned through the photos: our drive to San Diego, she and my mother cooking Ecuadorian food, she and I kissing, our cat Dublin…the ring she hadn’t seen yet. I tried to turn my attention back to the game, but Greta’s question kept eating away at me. So, I texted her a non-answer that happened to be the truth.



I know I’m not supposed to care. But when it comes to you, what I’m supposed to be feeling has never seemed to matter.



About twenty minutes later, I was down 200 bucks when she met up with me and waved a thousand dollars cash in my face. I couldn’t believe she’d won all of that money on the penny slots.

“Shit, Greta! Congratulations!”

When I gave her a congratulatory hug, I could feel how fast her heart was beating. I told myself it was because of her win and not the same reason my heart was exploding.

We decided to look for a place for dinner and opted for the steakhouse. All throughout our meal, I was obsessing over a strange text I’d received a little while earlier from an unknown number. It was the number 22 and had come in at exactly 2:22. February 22 was Randy’s birthday. I was convinced the message was from him, that it was his way of f*cking with me from beyond. So, I was barely touching my food.

Greta, on the other hand, had no problem finishing off my steak and hers. She’d drowned the meat in A1 steak sauce.

I busted her balls. “How about some steak with your sauce?”

“I love it. It reminds me of my dad. He used to put it on everything.”

Watching her eat had made me smile. She couldn’t have known how much her being there for me that night meant. I’d only freaked out in a gazillion different ways yet she was still here…with A1 sauce all over her face.

She noticed me grinning at her. “What?” she said with her mouth full.

I took my napkin and reached across to wipe the side of her mouth. “Nothing, sloppy.”

It suddenly hit me: tomorrow could be the last time I ever see Greta.

My entire body tensed up. This day had put me through the wringer of every feeling imaginable. Something else also hit me: the answer to the question she texted me earlier, the reason why it bothered me if other guys came on to her. I was eventually able to let Greta go only because I thought she was happy and that she was with someone who loved her. Everything I believed to get me over her was a lie. Realizing that had now put my feelings back at square one even though I wouldn’t be able to act on them.



***



I lay my head back on the couch and let out a deep sigh. This glimpse inside of his head was killing me. I needed to take another break from the book because an incredible amount of anxiety was building about where this story was going.

I was running late for my friend’s 30th birthday party at Club Underground on top of that. I couldn’t exactly skip out because I’d been one of the organizers along with a couple of my co-workers.

I decided I would take a shower, get dressed then take my kindle with me to sneak in reading whenever I could tonight while I was out. My device showed that I only had 15-percent left in the book. I assumed I’d be fine to finish it in public.

You know what they say about assuming things.





CHAPTER 20



The night was unexpectedly chilly as I stood on the corner and tried to hail a cab. The thin red dress I was wearing was definitely fitting for Club Underground, but I probably should have taken a jacket.