Page 41 of Only and Forever

Seb sighs. “It was anaccident.”

“Now, guys,” Ren says diplomatically, “let’s just take a breath and—”

“While I deeply appreciate your unsolicited help,” Viggo says, herding the three of them down the hallway, “please,please, just go.”

I bite my lip, fighting a laugh as they turn and say their goodbyes. Oliver squeezes Viggo in a hug that Viggo listlessly returns, patting his back. Seb kisses his fingertips, then brings them to Viggo’s cheek, which Viggo swats away. Ren gently tugs Viggo’s ball cap low and grins, saying, “Turn that frown upside down, brother.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Viggo mutters, following them out as they traipse through the main living area toward the door.

“Bye, Tallulah!” they all call.

Oliver throws Viggo an exaggerated wink. Seb wiggles his eyebrows. Ren gives Viggo two thumbs-up.

Viggo sighs as he shuts the door behind them, then turns toward me. His cheeks are bright pink. “Well. That was humiliating. And awkward. I’m sorry about that.”

“Nothing to be sorry for,” I tell him. “It’s nice that you have family who are so supportive.”

“It’s invasive is what it is.” He turns the lock emphatically on his back door.

“That accomplishes nothing!” Oliver yells from outside. “You gave me a key, remember?”

“Get out of here already!” Viggo hollers at the door, before tipping his head back, staring up at the ceiling. He sighs despondently as he yanks off his ball cap, rakes a hand through his hair, then tugs it back on. “The worst part is, I deserve it.”

“How so?”

Viggo drops his head. His eyes meet mine. “Imighthave overstepped a little bit over the years in the area of my family’s lovelives—well, their lives in general, honestly—and now my chickens are coming home to roost.”

I don’t know what it is about this moment, whether it’s just how damn cute the past five minutes have been, how endearing I find his pink-cheeked embarrassment, how funny it is to think of Viggo being all holier-than-thou with his romance-novel wisdom, and now finally, he’s getting a taste of his own medicine, but I feel it, bubbling up from deep inside me, the unfamiliar tug of a wide, delighted smile.

I throw my head back and laugh.

ELEVEN

Viggo

Playlist: “Wish I Knew You,” The Revivalists

For a second, I’m too annoyed that I’m being laughed at to process what’s happening.

Tallulah Clarke isn’t just laughing, and I mean, really laughing—she’ssmiling.

And holy hell, does it transform her. Those dimples pop in her round cheeks, even deeper and more luscious than the dimples that my thumbs found at her elbows. Smiling lifts the rosy apples of her cheeks, brightens her wide, dark-lashed eyes like sunlight spilling through amber.

And suddenly, my brothers and Seb wholeheartedly embarrassing me, Tallulah’s schadenfreude showing in the face of my confession that I’m reaping what I’ve sown, doesn’t matter.

All that matters is that Tallulah Clarke is standing in my living room, laughing straight from the heart of her, smiling from ear to ear.

My heart thuds inside my chest. I’m not sure what’s happening, why it’s doing that. Maybe it’s the victory that, even at my expense, I made her smile. Maybe it’s that it was unexpected, earning her unadulterated delight, and I fucking love surprises.

It’s so damn confusing. This woman, what she makes me feel, issodamn confusing. It isn’t butterflies in my stomach, more likeants under my skin. It’s not that light-headed, delirious magic I’ve been holding out for, but instead a tightness in my chest, a knot in my gut.

Considering everything I know about love from what I’ve read in romance novels, what I’ve seen in my family, I’m not falling for Tallulah Clarke. But I’m certainly not unaffected by her either.

Is it just the lust talking? I know I’m physically drawn to Tallulah, but I’ve been physically drawn to people before. This feels different. This feelsmore, not a fleeting itch I can scratch, but a bone-deep, grating, naggingsomethingI can’t put my finger on.

I just don’t know what it is. But maybe I don’t have to. Maybe I can just... enjoy it. Tallulah certainly seems to be enjoying herself, considering she’sstilllaughing.

“Okay, pipsqueak.” I fold my arms across my chest. “It’s notthatfunny.”