Page 150 of Quiet Obsession
“Youidiots,” she scoffs, getting out of bed. “How is it that you two are the worst communicators on the planet, when I’m the one who stopped talking for a year?”
“What do you mean?” I sit up to watch her get dressed.
I was inside her ten minutes ago but my cock still juts at the sight of her naked body. It calms down once she pulls her panties on, then goes limp when she throws my clothes over.
“Don’t just sit there, get dressed.”
“Millie—”
“He doesn’t think you’re not good enough, Eli,” she clips, yanking her sweater over her head. “He thinks I’m stealing you. That he’s losing you.”
My stomach roils as something Millie said to him hits me.
You don’t get to act like I stole from you.
Then I remember our conversation by Millie’s hospital bed, and I swear under my breath when the puzzle pieces start falling into place. He’s got it fucking backward. Instead of worrying about his sister, he’s worried about me.
Again.
And it pisses me off. Hyde’s supposed to be smart, but he’s repeating his worst mistake. Has he learned nothing?
I grab my keys from my pocket and show Millie which one opens my room. Fuck knows how long it’ll be before I’m done with Hyde and no way am I sleeping alone tonight. And no way will I sleep here, sandwiched between Millie and the cold wall.
“Wait in my bed,” I say.
“What? I thought I was coming with you.”
No way in hell. I can’t let her see me hit her brother after I just fucking told her I can keep my shit together...
I’ll start tomorrow.
“This is between him and me, Millie. Go to my room.”
***
I didn’t hit Hyde.
Even though during our two hours ofcouples therapy—as Dash called it—I wanted to nail his face at least ten times.
Millie’s asleep when I enter my room, the bedside lamp on, her body curled under my sheets. She looks peaceful, and for a moment, I watch her breathe. It’ll take a while before the thought of her loving me fully sinks.
Probably as long as it’ll take Hyde to recover from what Noah said. We were running around in circles, arguing, then making promises, then arguing again as if we were dividing our estate in a divorce.
My head was pounding, a myriad of contradicting emotions and frustrations. Nothing I said worked. I couldn’t fucking get through to him that I wasn’t going anywhere, that loving his sister wasn’t bad for our friendship.
I gave up and called for backup.
Dash did jack shit, save for comic relief, but Noah... hereallyneeds a new major because Hyde’s eyes were watering after three sentences. What I’d been trying to hammer into his head for over an hour suddenly sank with ease.
Yeah... Noah always knows what to say.
You’re friends now, Hyde, but next year, you’ll be doing post-grad while Creed’s done with college. Maybe you’ll stay in touch for years, maybe you’ll drift apart, but imagine how life will look five years from now if Creed’s with Millie. You won’t just be friends. You’ll be brothers.
And just like that, Hyde understood he’s not losing me...
He’s stuck with me.
I strip off my clothes and slide in beside Millie,maneuvering her until she’s sprawled over my chest.
