Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card

CHAPTER 41 JESS

Lying on my bed, I scrolled aimlessly through my feed, trying to distract myself from the turmoil inside me. The morning had been a whirlwind, and I was still reeling

from the confrontation with Luke. My thoughts were a chaotic mess, making it impossible to focus on anything for more than a few seconds.

Suddenly, a message popped up on my screen, causing my heart to skip a beat.

Luke: Jess. We need to talk.

I stared at the message, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. The last thing I wanted was to talk to him, especially after everything that had happened. I locked my phone and threw it beside me on the bed, taking a deep breath to calm myself. But my phone pinged again, making my heart race.

Luke: Jessica. Just answer the phone.

Anger surged through me, fueled by the frustration and hurt that had been building all morning. I grabbed my phone and typed back furiously.

Me: NO

I sent the message, hoping it would be enough to deter him. But within seconds, his name flashed across the screen. He was calling me.

1

15 19

I hesitated, my thumb hovering over the "Decline" button. But something inside me-maybe curiosity, maybe the need for closure-made me swipe to answer.

"What do you want, Luke?" I snapped, not bothering to hide my anger.

need to talk. Please he said, his voice softer than I expected,

to you,"

hear me out," he pleaded. "I need to

"How you pretended to care about me, only

what happened, and you know it," he said, frustration creeping into his voice. "Just, let's talk

completely. But another part of me needed to hear what he had to say to understand why he had hurt

lay back on my bed, feeling the weight of the morning's events pressing down on me. My phone

11:30- you

exactly where. The tree house. Our old

back a reluctant

Me: FINE

truth was far from it. My parents were rarely home, and Josh

pizza and swallowed hard. "Yeah. I applied to a few places

got a few offers, and so did Luke," he beamed, and my dad immediately

she said, pulling my dad's attention. "We need

I dropped my pizza and pushed

be true. Why even bother coming back at all," I mumbled, storming off to my room. I knew it was childish, but I needed my parents. I needed my mother. I needed to tell her what happened with Bryan, to have

the door behind me and threw myself onto my bed, tears streaming down my face. The hurt and anger bubbled

III

CHATTER #1

glared at the screen through

see

go, but something inside me pushed me to get

splashing cold water on my face. I looked at my

that they were... whatever they were. Maybe Sam, but I just remembered that she had a date