Stepbrother Bestie (A Stepbrother Romance Novel) (9 page)

He smiled back, but in a sad manner.
“Yeah, I am really sorry. I never meant for any of that and I feel stupid…” He
sighed. “I did try to avoid you, but we just kept running into one another.”

I was pleased that he didn’t recoil his
hand from mine, but was surprised when he turned his hands, so that we fit
together securely. He gazed into my eyes and I knew that I was not mistaken. We
were definitely having a moment. I was
 
sure of it.

Our eyes locked and while the feeling of
friendship was in the air, there was also another, more serious and probably
problematic vibe coursing between us. Still, I was just happy for any emotion
to be sparked again and so, I let it play out.

After a long moment of just sitting there,
staring at one another, I heard words I had longed to hear for a very long
time.

“I miss you…” he said earnestly, shifting
closer to me.

I beamed with contentment. “I miss you
too. You have no idea how much.”

We took in the moment silently for a
little while longer, before he said, “You know, once upon a time, we were more
than just friends.”

I smiled and nodded, knowing well the
implications of where this conversation was headed, but just didn’t care. “I
remember.”

His eyes widened at this and I felt his
hands squeeze mine before he replied in a sincere tone, “I think…part of the
reason I was so angry when our parents finally got married, was because I
missed that too…and knew that it would be impossible…given the circumstances.”

It was about now that I came to my senses.
I realized later, that it was only moments before I did something that I would
likely regret.

I didn’t want to push him away, but I did
want to set boundaries. “I know how you feel…” I then detached my hands from
his grasp and said, “But unfortunately, you’re right. That is impossible.”

Before he could say or do anything that
would change my mind, I added, “I’m sorry, Shawn. I want to be your best friend
again. I miss you and I would give anything to have us back, but…” I shook my
head, feeling panicked. “I’m just…sorry.”

Within a second, I found myself turning
around and bolting in the other direction, afraid of what would have happened
had I stayed even just another moment.
 

Chapter
14

Shawn

I watched her walk away and immediately was
overcome with a sense of anger. I knew that there was a lot more to the
feelings that I was having then just simple rejection, but I didn’t want to
think about all of that right now; in fact, I knew that I couldn’t think about
it.

If I did, I would go crazy, plain and
simple.

So I watched what could have been walk
away and silently steamed from the intense sensation of emotion that I felt.

Then again, I didn’t have too much time to
wallow in my pity, because just as Valerie was eclipsing from my sight, I heard
my cellphone ring. It chimed just the right tune to let me know that Dalilah
was summoning me.

I knew that if I didn’t answer, which I
really didn’t feel like doing, she would continue to call until I got fed up. That
would only equate to more problems and so, I let it ring for a minute before I
picked it up.

“Hey baby…” Dalilah answered slowly after
I said hello.

“Hi,” I replied, not in the mood to be
lovey, considering I felt as though Valerie had just dangled her affection for
me, just close enough so that I would take the bait, before snapping the trap
closed on my heart.

There was dead silence on the other end of
the line for a moment, just before she came back and said, “What’s the matter
with you?”

I shrugged, even though I knew she
couldn’t see me. “I’m just…tired.”

Dalilah didn’t care very much for my
tiredness, which was readily apparent when she grunted a sigh. “Well…I thought
you were going to come pick me up.”

I scrunched my eyes shut as I tried not to
make any noise, which would signal that I had completely forgot. “Yeah…Of
course,” I told her when I trusted myself to speak. “I…I was just going to call
you. Is it all right if I just hang out tonight? I’m really beat…”

“Yes, you are,” she answered after another
pause. “And no, it’s not.” Her voice suddenly sounded angry, but I couldn’t
understand why.

“What?” I demanded, feeling intensely
annoyed. “What are you talking about?”

“Look behind you…” she answered and I felt
a stab of fear run through my heart.

I turned around quickly to see Dalilah
glowering at me. I could have sworn that I felt my heart stop.

I wasn’t sure what she was up to, but I
was sure that whatever it was, it certainly wasn’t a good thing.

Oh
God,
I thought.
What did she hear?

“What are you doing here?” I yelled at her
through my fear and angst. At that point, I didn’t even care that she was going
to probably lash back at me, fully loaded and angry. I was still caught up on
the fact that she was following me and that made me livid.

“I could ask you the same thing.” She glared
at me. “You don’t look like you’re too tired,” she moved in closer and added, “and
you certainly didn’t look too tired when you were cozying up to your girlfriend
over there.”

“Fine,” I answered solidly. “But last time
I checked, I was able to hang out with whomever I wanted.”

“She is the enemy!” she exclaimed, as
though by meeting with Valerie, I had done something inexcusable.

I had to laugh, but it certainly was not
because I found much humor in the situation. I could not believe that she was
acting so foolish and petty. “I think you’re overreacting,” I replied. “I can
see whoever I please, Dalilah. What I want to know, is why you are here.”

Dalilah backed up, as though I had
physically struck her. She gasped and her mouth hung for a little while, as
though she was shocked beyond measure. Finally, she replied, “You were late to
pick me up. You completely abandoned me. I came to look for you, because I
thought that heathen of a woman might have ensnared you into her clutches once
again, and I couldn’t be more accurate.”

I opened my mouth to say something. I
thought, very briefly about telling her that in fact, she had it all wrong and
that I was actually the one who had requested the meeting. But I quickly
decided that would lead to more questions that I didn’t want to answer rather
than any kind of resolve. So, I just shook my head. “I can’t believe you!”

“Yeah, well, then I guess you can imagine
how I am feeling about you right about now.” She scoffed with disgust. “You
leave me without even the courtesy of an explanation to go talk to your sister,
who has done nothing but make you feel terrible from the moment your father
tried to force one big happy family on you and shut you out?” She paused to
shrug, but did not give me any more time than a quick second to respond. “You
are impossible. I just don’t get it. What is her allure?”

“She was my best friend. And she is still
a part of my family,” I answered her honestly, even though I thought that I
probably shouldn’t. Still, considering the conversation that Valerie and I had
just finished, giving this answer was still far better than having her find out
the truth; that is, if she wasn’t holding her true cards a little bit closer.

Dalilah rolled her eyes at me before
answering the true question that was on my mind, even though I dared not to ask
it. “So what were you two talking about anyway? It seemed pretty intense.” She
scowled.

I felt my face grow red. I felt the heat
of it spilling out of my pores and I wondered if she was able to see the
nervousness that came over me. I was angry but having this particular
conversation with her also made me extremely uncomfortable. “Not that it’s any
of your business…” I said and she immediately interrupted me.

“What do you mean, it’s none of my
business? Of course it’s my business. I’m trying to help you...” She glowered
at me and hissed, “Do you think I’m doing this for my health? I’m doing this so
that you don’t get hurt again by them…” She shook her head. “You’re so
ungrateful!”

“No, Dalilah…I’m not. I’m just annoyed. I
don’t like that you were following me.”

“Well, the more you talk, the more I think
that personal privacy isn’t the only reason you don’t want me to follow you.
Are you hiding something?” Her eyes gleamed with hate and aggravation as she
stared at me with a hardened expression.

“What?” I demanded, “No! I’m not hiding
anything. I just don’t want to have this conversation with you.” I pressed forward
before I exclaimed, “I swear! It was nothing and I’d like for it to stay that
way.”

“Then why the hell are you meeting her,
not telling me, and even skipping a date with me to do it?”

“Because I…” I stopped short. My breath
got caught in my throat and I gasped, as though I was trying to take even the
two words I had said back. I had become so consumed with not telling her about
the moment that Valerie and I shared that I almost let it slip that I had asked
Valerie here to talk to me about what had happened the other night; to
apologize for Dalilah’s actions.

“Because you what?” Dalilah demanded,
narrowing her eyes and stepping toward me.

I bowed my head slightly. “Nothing, Dalilah.
I’m sorry.”

“You will be!” she screamed, continuing to
glare at me, “Because if you can’t even answer a simple question, where you
were in the wrong, then I don’t have any interest in being with you!”

“What?” I felt my heart sink deeper into
the catacombs of my chest.
I can’t lose
two people I care about today…
I thought desperately and as she turned
around, whipping her hair behind her, I ran after her. I grasped her arm. “Dalilah…wait…Come
on…”

However, she just turned around and
screamed, “Get your hands off of me!” before she slapped me across the face.

I felt the pressure of the hit before the
searing burn and both of them hurt, in their own way. I yelled out and pulled
my hand up to my face. “What was that for?”

“For touching me. How dare you try to stop
me.” With that, she turned herself around again and stomped off.

I watched her leave and wondered what in
the world had just happened. Either with Valerie or with Dalilah, I honestly
didn’t have a clue.

Chapter
15

Valerie

What
the hell was that all about?
I thought as I flopped
onto my bed.

Upon returning to my bedroom, I felt a
strange sense of emptiness encompassing my being.

Flashbacks of years before, what he had
said and how he had reacted when I had made the same suggestion that he had
wanted me to fulfill tonight reminded me of exactly when I believed the
beginning of the end of our relationship began. For a long time, I had tried to
ignore that idea. It had not been simple and it had not really worked all that
well, but I had tried it nonetheless.

I tried to see it from his perspective,
but tonight, what he had said and how he had acted had only made me angry with
him. I had not expected to be angry, but I was. I had not expected to feel hurt
or betrayed either, but I was.

On top of all that, I was also confused.

I might have not actually believed him
when he said what he did that night, which felt like so many lifetimes ago now,
but I had wanted everything to work out. I had the intention of everything
being okay. Because I knew that he didn’t mean it, I was willing to work past
the hurt and the frustration that I felt after being rejected. But then our
relationship just sank further and further into an abyss of nothingness, until
it dissipated altogether.

Then, the moment that I was ready to give
up on any kind of relationship between Shawn and I, he dropped this bombshell
on me; and instead of making me happy, it only made me angrier with him.

Instead of erasing all of those hurt and
unpleasant feelings that I had, what had happened tonight had only compounded
what I was already feeling, as dormant as it was.

In a way, I felt as though I should be
happy. Tonight was confirmation that I was right all along and I should be
excited by that, but I wasn’t. I was just frustrated.

After a moment though, I heard a knock at
my door. I breathed deeply and tried to focus on not sounding as depressed as I
really was when I answered, “Come in.”

My mother came through the door easily and
smiled at me. “I thought I heard you come in.” She turned her head and added,
“Are you all right?”

“Yes. It’s just been a very long week.”

She nodded, almost as though she
understood exactly what I was talking about. “Sometimes that will happen.” She
sat down on my bed and smiled at me. “Is there anything you want to talk
about?”

I shrugged. “It’s just…you think you know
a person and then…they surprise you in the most awful, horrible way ever.”