Letting My Brother's Best Friend Take My V-Card (Jessie and Luke)

LUKE

Once that scrawny blond prick was out of the picture, I didn't waste any time. I pulled Jess away from the crowd, finding a hidden corner in the club behind some purple curtains.

Privacy was all I wanted, enough of it to ask her what the hell she was thinking letting a stranger touch her like that! Not after Bryan... She should know better, and be on guard. I wasn't about to let her get caught up in any more

bullshit tonight. Last time I should have stopped it and didn't, then look what happened. Not tonight. But as I tried to yank the damn curtain closed, it got stuck on something. I tugged again, harder this time, but it wouldn't budge. I was about to rip it right off the railings wher I heard a chuckle behind me and found Jessica stifling a laugh and folding her arms across her chest with a smirk. "I mean, curtain one and Luke zero..." Jessica shrugged and it infuriated

1. me.

I didn't see what was so funny but for some reason, I wanted to smile... I turned on her, closing the space between us in a single step. She was so close that her nose almost brushed my chest. "What the hell are you doing with that guy?" I demanded.

Jess crossed her arms over her chest, huffing like I was the one being ridiculous. "I should be asking what the hell that was out

07:55

there?" Jessicà stood her ground and a part of me liked her like this, all feisty.

I stepped back a little, "Saving you from that excuse of a man, it seems," I said, biting back the urge to tell her that he could be another Bryan. She did not need reminding of that night.

She glared up at me, and I could tell she was annoyed, but I didn't care. "You weren't going to kiss him. Relax, I just helped you get away without hurting his ego," I said, but it obviously ticked her off.noveldrama

Her eyes narrowed, and she squared her shoulders like she was ready to go toe-to-toe with me. "I was," she countered, her tone sharp enough to cut.

"You weren't," I repeated, my voice flat and certain. But Jess stood her ground, defiance sparking in her eyes.

"I was," she insisted, her tone full of stubbornness.

I groaned, feeling the frustration build. "Fine, you were," I conceded, but the second the words left my mouth, she bit right back.

"I wasn't," she snapped.

I couldn't help but smile, feeling satisfied that I just won that little debate. "I know you weren't," I said, letting my voice drop to a lower, more confident tone. "Like I said."

I watched as confusion flickered across her face, her brows knitting together as she processed what just happened. That small moment of victory? Yeah, I was going to savor it.

07 55

Jess shook her head, clearly fed up, and made a move to push past me. But I wasn't about to let her go that easily. I stuck out my arm, blocking her path. "Wait," I said firmly, my tone leaving no room for argument.

She stepped back, eyes blazing with that fire that infuriated and invited me. Jessica had somehow become more alive this last year than ever before and it was... distracting. "What, Luke?" she snapped, her voice biting, cutting right through even though the music was so l We just stared at each other, tension crackling in the air like a live wire. It felt like hours, though it was probably only seconds.

"Fuck it," I groaned, closing the distance between us in one swift motion. My hand slid behind her neck, fingers threading through her hair as I pulled her to me. Her breath hitched, and before either of us could'think twice, my mouth found hers, crashing into a kiss. I half ex I walked us back, guiding her until she hit the wall behind the curtain. I pressed her into it, the need to feel every inch of her against me driving me in-fucking-sane. Her mouth responded

to mine, parting as if it were the most natural thing in the world. My tongue explored hers, savoring the taste of her, and for a few blissful seconds, I let myself forget everything else.

Forget that I couldn't have this.

That I couldn't have her.

I pulled away, staring at her mouth, still slightly parted from the kiss. Her flushed cheeks, the way her chest rose and fell with

CHAPTER H

every deep breath, that sorry excuse of a dress hiked up her legs-everything about her was driving me insane. Something inside me snapped, and whatever little restraint I had left vanished....