In which I fall in love with my brother's best friend.
*****
"Don't pretend like you don't feel anything." His voice is low, sending shivers down my spine.
"What do you mean?"
"You know damn well what I mean."
"I don't know what you're talking about...
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It's been a week since Vaughn moved into my house, and everything has been wonderful. The past few days have been spent having meals together, talking about our days, finishing college stuff together, cuddling before bed -- and, of course, having morning sex, afternoon quickie (sometimes) and another making love session at night.
Psst! It turns out that we've managed to try almost everything in almost every corner of the house. Our lovemaking has been passionate and bold, fierce and brutal, slow and innocent -- you name it.
Things will surely get weird if Jake suddenly pops up in the house, which (I hope) won't happen. Fortunately, we still manage to keep our relationship a secret to the rest of the population in Boston -- except for Austin.
I'm also surprised to find out that Vaughn is actually a good cook. Sometimes, he would just take over my kitchen and prepare dishes that would make my mouth water. His speciality is Italian cuisine. Seriously, what is it that this guy is incapable of?
As for right now, we're cuddling before bed after he listened to me rattling about how Stacey is having a crush on a guy from our Business Ethics class. I don't even remember how our conversation has turned into kissing while we're lying down here on my bed, facing each other.
Vaughn brushes his lips against mine, his arms wrapped around my waist. My hand is on his back, our toes touching each other, the lower parts of our bodies covered by a blanket.
And no, we're not naked. Yet. Judging from my experience, I can't be too confident about that.
I can't help the soft smile tugging at my lips as I kiss him back. When we pull away, my heartbeat doubles as I look into those intense amber eyes of his. They never fail to make my legs go weak and shake helplessly underneath me.
Especially when he's staring at me with that look. That look, which expresses something beyond admiration.
As if he loves me.
As if I'm the only girl in his eyes.
"It's funny how you're goddamn excited about another person having a crush on someone," Vaughn says, amusement in his eyes.
I giggle. "Come on. Stacey is my best friend. I can't help but feel excited for her. I don't know why, but hearing others' love stories always make me giddy and excited for them, like I can't wait for what's in the store for them."
But then, I realize why. It's because ever since high school, I've been used to hearing my friends chattering about their love interests. And I've always wondered in anticipation about the end of their stories, wishing that it would be a happy ending.
Back then, I'd never experienced what love was. No one ever dared to make a bold move for me because of Jake, and even if some guys had given me some signals here and there, I was too dumb to notice them because I was so clueless and had zero experience in love or about being courted by someone. I was always the one who was left out. I was always the one who listened, to the point that I would feel so absorbed in my friends' stories, hoping that they would succeed. It would be enough if they did, because it made me happy too.
