The Consequence of Loving Colton

“Shocked. Really. My heart almost stopped.”

“. . . and kissed another guy. But to be fair he kissed me.”

“Do you want me to yell?”

“Yes!”

“The pain!” Max shouted. “The misery in my heart! It’s dying, I’m dying, you’ve killed me! You’ve killed us! Do we mean nothing to you? I bought you an aloe vera plant, Milo! Do you even know what those mean?”

“Uhhh.”

Colton held out his hand. “Give me the phone. I’ll explain.”

“No,” I argued.

“NO!” Max yelled. “Well, let me tell you. Aloe vera means healing, it means love, and I gave you a piece of my heart, so you would heal me, not run me over with your Mercedes!”

Colton won the war and jerked the phone out of my hands. “Listen, it’s my fault, yeah.” His eyes narrowed and then he started laughing. “Well, yeah, that’s true. Yeah. Oh, man, you should totally come down. Yeah, that would be great.”

No. No. No. No. I tried to snatch the phone as Colton walked off with it. “Sure, dude, yeah, and again I’m so sorry, bro, apologies, I just, I don’t know what came over me.” He smiled in my direction. “Yeah, she sure is. Okay, I’ll tell her.”

He hit “End,” his face still set in a firm smile. “Nice guy.”

It was official. I hated all men.

Colton handed me the phone. “Oh, and he said to call him. He said he was surprising you for the wedding, was gonna show up and be your date, now that things are . . . awkward.” He coughed. “I told him it was a good idea. Besides, you’re probably still pissed at me for mauling you like that—you should be able to have a date for the wedding.”

Damn the man for continuing to march all over my heart like I was dirt and he was the freaking army storming some other girl’s castle!

“Right.” I forced the word out of my mouth, and promised myself I wouldn’t cry again.

“Yeah.” Colton nodded and looked away. “I should, uh, go help Jason. Thanks for . . .” He stopped talking. “’Night, Milo.”

CHAPTER FIVE

MILO

Escaping Colton for the rest of the night was not an option. My parents were big believers in doing everything in the evening together—and I do mean everything. So when I said I wanted to go to bed early rather than watch a movie with everyone, the response was yelling until I finally consented to watch half the movie.

Jason was making popcorn in the kitchen—shirtless. That was how he did everything. It used to irritate me that he made food with no clothes on. Then again it wasn’t like he had crazy chest and back hair. I could have sworn he waxed but he always denied it.

I tilted my head as he shook his ass in front of the microwave and then continued dancing to the newest demented beat in his head.

Girls had always loved him.

I never saw the pull.

I mean he had the whole olive skin, light eyes thing going for him—compliments of my very Spanish grandparents—but still. To me he was just Jason.

Then again he was my brother, so understanding the whole attraction thing . . . probably a sin.

I turned and rummaged through the fridge for a soda. Really what I wanted was to drown my sorrows in something a bit stronger, but getting drunk in front of the parents all because my childhood crush kissed me and made me cry after we played Ping-Pong and a game of slap? Yeah . . . the idea just made me that much more depressed. Add in the whole “you’re like my sister” reference and yeah, let’s just say I wouldn’t be a nice drunk. That was the last thing my parents needed on wedding weekend.

“Squirt.” Colton swatted my ass with a towel and breezed by.

As. If. Nothing. Had. Happened.

I gripped the door to the fridge so hard that my knuckles turned white.

“So, what did she say?” Jason asked behind me.

“She said not a problem.”

“Told you she’d be your date.”

The soda I’d just grabbed dropped to the kitchen floor with a thud. Quickly I picked it up and closed the door, still listening.

“She’s hot,” Jason continued. “You two’ll have fun.”

“I’m sure we will,” Colton said, not sounding convincing at all.

“Date?” I interrupted, holding the can in front of my face.

“Yeah.” Colton nodded. “You know, since you have Max and all—you were supposed to be my date for the wedding, remember?”

No. I hadn’t remembered. In the heat of the moment, I’d survived. I’d made up a huge lie in order to cover up my own hurt feelings and ended up shooting myself in the ass, not that it mattered since technically Max had held the gun and pulled the trigger! I give him one job! Lie! And he goes and invites himself to the wedding! I was going to murder him.

“Right,” I said through clenched teeth.

“See?” Jason patted my back. “It all works out.”

“Yes . . . it’s all working out.” I jerked open the can of soda.

And was rewarded with it spraying all over my face and white shirt.

The guys burst out laughing.

And for the second time that night I wanted to cry.

Nothing had changed. Nothing was different. I was like some sexless friend to Colton and even if by some slim chance he did want something more, he was too much of a pansy-ass to admit it.

“Screw you guys,” I muttered under my breath. “I’m going to go take a shower.”