Page 74 of Never Pucking Ending

Are we going to talk about this here? In the middle of a restaurant? There were at least two people who turned their heads when Jesse walked in. It could be because he’s tall and handsome, or maybe because of the scar he doesn’t try hiding. But more likely than not, it’s because he’s one of the league’s best players.

Clearing my throat, I ignore the people around us. They don’t matter. Their opinions shouldn’t matter. “My concern is more about…personal opinions.”

He looks at me, a little lost at first. I stare at him with my brows raised hoping I can convey my meaning without saying it. It doesn’t take long before he nods. “I’ve considered that,” he admits, speaking of our parents. “And I’m not sure it will come as a surprise to them.”

I can’t help but gape at him, the warm bread in front of me long forgotten. “Why do you think that?”

He shifts in his seat and pulls his wine closer to him, staring into the red liquid. “My dad might have said something to me about it.”

He what? “When?”

“A few weeks ago,” he admits, almost sheepishly. “And then he brought up the stats of stepsibling porn—”

He stops abruptly when the waiter comes back with our salads, placing them in front of us with a smile. An amused one. Because he definitely heard Jesse bring up stepsibling porn.

Wonderful.

“Cheese?” the waiter asked, nodding when we both shake our head and wait until he walks away before Jesse explains the rest of that very awkward sentence.

Because…what the hell? “Your dad brought up stepsibling p-o-r-n?” I don’t know why I’m spelling it out like we’re surrounded by toddlers and not grown adults who, assumingly, can spell.

He presses his lips into a thin line and nods once, looking about as pleased by that as me. I’m so glad I wasn’t there for that conversation. “He basically said he wasn’t shocked that I didn’t like you going out with David.”

I deadpan. “Dane.”

Jesse waves a hand. “Whatever.”

He knows damn well what Dane’s name is, so I let it go. “Did he ask if we were together?”

He shakes his head. “Not quite. But he did tell me I had a lot to figure out. I know it would be a strange dynamic for everybody, but would it be the worst thing? We all get along. We all love each other. We’re family. That won’t change.”

Is it really that easy? I try to think of what my mother would say if I came to her and said ‘hey, Mom, I’m in love with Jesse and we’re going to get married and have two point five babies. Cool with you?’ What would she say? How would she react?

I lean back in my chair and stare absentmindedly at my salad. “Do you think that our parents have talked about this?”

“Maybe.”

Maybe. Maybe. But they’ve never brought it up. Why would they? They probably didn’t want to let us entertain the idea if it didn’t come up already.

I poke at a piece of lettuce and frown. “My mom has…hinted at things. Asked me questions that felt a little pointed. But I never thought she was directly talking about you.”

Okay, that’s a lie. Sometimes, I wondered if she was referring to him. She never name-drops him though. I think she wanted me to come to her with my feelings. No thank you. I love her. We’re close. But there are some things I’ve been afraid to admit.

Like how I’d snuck out of the house at thirteen to go to my first boy-girl party and got my first kiss from a boy two years older than me. In hindsight, I had no idea he was fifteen. He was the brother of another kid there, and I thought he was cute. Somebody dared us to kiss, and we did. It was sloppy and a little awkward, and he tasted like marijuana because he’d just passed a joint around, but it wasn’t terrible.

Or the night I’d lost my virginity at sixteen when I lied to Mom about having Casey, my best friend at the time, come over. She was used to us having sleepovers, so she didn’t question it. She told us to have fun. Except, it wasn’t Casey that stayed in my bed that night. It was her cousin Corey. I didn’t have some big thing for him, but he was cute. We flirted on and off and he made his interest known. Casey mentioned to him that my mom would be away, on her first weekend getaway with Jesse’s dad, and that we should hang out. So, we did. Only our planned movie night turned into a make out session that turned into…more. Next thing I knew, I was half naked and he was struggling to get the condom on. I had a panic attack the next morning when he slipped out the window, worrying that Mom would have some sixth sense and know I’d had sex.

She didn’t.

She had no clue.

There are some things we don’t talk about. It’s odd. For someone who wants grandbabies so much, we never really talk about how they’re made. Because who wants to know that their kid is having sex? I wouldn’t.

Blowing out a breath, I brush off those thoughts for now. “So what do you think we should do?”

Jesse thinks about it for a second. “I think we should figure out what we want first and enjoy that for a while. Just us. Then, when we’re ready, we can tell them.”

It’s a logical plan. A good one. “I don’t want to lie to them either,” I admit, nervously rubbing my thigh with my hand. “I know we’re technically not. But if someone at the photoshoot leaks that we were…friendly, then they could find out some other way. I mean, you’re always rumored to be dating some hot celebrity athlete or supermodel. I swear, every month it’s said you’ve knocked someone up or proposed. If they see an article that I’m your girlfriend, who knows if they’d believe it or not.”