A teaser scene with Jen and Bryce. Can’t Let You Go is a standalone new adult romance and book three of the Wheeler Brothers.
BRYCE
“Hey.” I move over, sitting beside her feet.
“What?” she says, staring at the TV.
“Get over here.” I pull her blanket back.
“Why?”
“Because you’re freezing and I always warm you up.”
She pulls the blanket back over her. “I thought you were leaving.”
“I’m watching TV with you. Now get over here.” I tug on her arm until she sits up.
“It’s after eleven and you have to be up early tomorrow,” she says shifting her legs to the other side.
“Yeah? So? I’m not tired. I’m not ready to sleep.” I lean back on the couch and put my arm out for her. “Come on.” I motion to my chest. “It’s toasty warm.”
She half-smiles as she snuggles up beside me and lays her head on my chest. “I don’t know how you stay so warm all the time, even in winter.”
It’s true that I tend to run warmer than most people, but that’s not the only reason I’m burning up right now. It’s also because I’m with Jen. The attraction between us is so freaking strong that keeping it under control is a damn workout. Like right now, having her this close to me is torture. I want to kiss her and touch her in a way that goes far beyond friendship. But I force myself to hold back and just be her friend. Because that’s what she needs right now after being manipulated once again by her mom.
I take the remote from her and she swats at me. “Hey, I was using that!”
“You haven’t changed the channel since you picked it up. And we’re not watching a documentary on turtles.”
She laughs. “Is that what this is? I wasn’t even paying attention.”
Because her mind was on her mom. And probably also on me, trying to figure out what I’m doing here. I shouldn’t be here, with her lying in my arms. I told myself I wouldn’t do this again, but shit, Jen’s like an addiction I can’t break. When I’m apart from her, all I can think about is when I’ll see her again. And when I’m with her, I go back to old habits, like having her lay on me on the couch.
I’ll try again tomorrow. That’s what I tell myself every time I break my rule to stay away from her. But then tomorrow comes and I’m back to wanting to see her again. It’s a cycle I just can’t seem to get out of.
“Here,” I say. “We’ll watch this.”
“Monster Truck racing? No way. Give me the remote.” She sits up, reaching for it.
I hold it away from her, smiling. “Fine. We’ll watch something else.” I flip to ultimate fighting. “How about this?”
“Bryce.” She holds her hand out for the remote.
“You know I’m just kidding.” I flip through the channels, stopping when I see one of her favorite movies.
“Oh!” She smiles. “I love this one!”
“I know you do.” I set the remote on the side table and scoot down a little, getting comfortable. Jen situates herself on my chest and adjusts the blanket over her legs.
The movie is a sappy romance, but Jen loves it. She loves all those romance movies, I think because they’re so opposite of what she saw in real life growing up. Her mom has never been in love. She just has sex with guys, using it to trick them into giving her what she wants. If that’s all Jen had seen growing up, she probably wouldn’t even believe love exists. But she does, because she grew up around my parents, who loved each other more than anything.
A half hour into the movie, I feel Jen’s head drop down and notice she’s asleep.
“Jen,” I whisper. She doesn’t move. “Jen, you should get to bed.”
She’s sound asleep and doesn’t hear me. I gently pick her up and carry her into her room and set her on the bed, tucking the blanket around her.
I lean down and kiss her forehead. “I love you,” I say in a whisper so faint I could barely hear myself say it. I’m not sure why I did. Maybe because I want to tell her that so fucking bad. But I can’t, at least not when she can hear me.
I quietly walk back to the living room, turn off the TV and leave, locking the door behind me with the key she gave me. We have keys to each other’s apartment, as if we’re boyfriend and girlfriend.
Our relationship is so screwed up. We’re childhood friends, and yet sometimes we act like we’re more than that, even when we’re dating other people. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to actually date Jen, without worrying about all the shit I constantly worry about when it comes to her and me.
What would it be like to actually tell her how I feel? To take her out and be able to kiss her goodnight? Or invite her up to my place to finally relieve the sexual tension between us? I can’t let my head even go there because it’s not going to happen.