A Crush on Her Best Friend's Brother: Complete Box Set (11 page)

“
What
the hell was that?” he snapped.

“
What
the hell happened to your neck? Mom you have to see this,” she
yelled.

Brad's
mom was off the couch and at the door in seconds. She reached up and
pulled his shirt collar to the side. Her eyes widened and she gasped.

“
I
know you're twenty-one, son, but that is ridiculous. That thing is
huge. There are teeth marks. Where were you?” she asked.

“
I
stayed at a hotel with the guys. There may have been some women
there. I can't help it if I'm delicious and she couldn't get enough
of me,” he said with a laugh.

Rachel
laughed from the living room. Brad's mom turned to look at her.

“
It
is not funny Brad, and Rachel, I can hear you laughing in there. Come
and look at this right now,” his mom yelled out. “This is
not acceptable. Do you three hear me? Nobody needs to have a mark
like that on them. I can't believe you let that happen.”

Rachel
stood up and walked over toward the door. His mom pulled his collar
back for Rachel to see. Her eyes widened, and she put on as serious a
face as she could.

“
I
can't believe you let some girl do that to you,” Rachel said.

“
She
wasn't just some girl,” he said. “She was absolutely
beautiful. I couldn't tell her no. When she got a taste of me, she
couldn't control herself.”

Rachel
looked down at the ground with her bottom lip between her teeth.

“
It's
not funny. Was she some kind of slut? Who does something like that?”
his mom asked.

Rachel
hurried back to sit on the couch. Her own mother was looking right at
her. She looked up at her mom with a confused look.

“
She's
not a slut. Don't say that. You don't know her. Just because she
marked my neck doesn't mean anything. What if I love her? What if
she's the woman I'm going to marry one day? We didn't notice it until
it was too late. It's no big deal. I'm a grown man. Can we just enjoy
the day?” he snapped.

His
mom turned around and walked back into the living room to sit down.
Brad walked toward his bedroom. Rachel pulled her phone out.

Rachel:
I'm so sorry. I can't believe she said that. She thinks I'm a slut.

Brad:
No she doesn't. If she knew it was you, she'd kick your ass and lock
you up. It was worth it. I want to wrap my arms around you and hug
you. This is hard.

Rachel:
I can't believe it's hard already.

Brad:
Smart-ass.

Dinner
went by without any more comments about his neck. Rachel and her mom
stayed for a couple of hours. When they went home, Rachel went to her
room. She called Brad once she was ready for bed. It was going to be
hard to leave the next day. He was leaving before her. She wouldn't
be able to see him before he left in the morning.

They
talked for over an hour. She tried to hold back her emotion when it
was time to let him go. Tears fell from her eyes, and she knew he
heard her sniffle.

“
We'll
talk every day. It's three months. We can wait three months. I waited
for two years to see you. Everything will be fine. You'll see. Call
me as soon as your plane lands. I need to know you're safe. I love
you,” he said.

“
I
will,” she answered. “I love you too.”

As
soon as they hung up the phone, she ran sick to her stomach for the
bathroom. What the hell was going on, she wondered? It was the second
time in just over a week that she had gotten sick. It was probably
just the stress of school and knowing she would have to leave him.

His
car was gone when she woke up the next morning. She quietly got
ready, hugged her mom goodbye, and got into the cab that was waiting
to take her to the airport.

She
checked in for her flight and walked through the steps on autopilot.

She
got on the plane and pulled out her phone to turn it off.

Brad:
Have a safe flight. It's only three months. It'll be fine, I promise.

Rachel sat on the
plane with her phone in her hand, as she read Brad's text again.

Brad:
Have a safe flight. It's only three months. It'll be fine, I promise.

How
did he know, she wondered? She had loved him since she was thirteen
when he kissed her late at night in his room. Once she started high
school and saw the real Brad, she knew she would never want to be
with him. It didn't change the feelings she had buried deep inside.
She was able to avoid seeing his arrogant, gorgeous ass. When he
opened the door a month before, everything changed.

When
she went back to college after Thanksgiving, she thought he would
leave her alone and they could go back to the way things were. He
never did. She was surprised when he began texting and calling each
night. They really were building a friendship. She couldn't wait for
the month to pass so she could see him again.

When
that time came, it flew by so quickly. She was so happy that they
were able to spend an entire day and night alone together. Her guard
was still up. She knew the man he was when he went off to college.
Could he have changed that much in two years, she wondered? Was it
really possible? When he asked her to be his girlfriend, she was
shocked. Maybe he was the same guy she had originally fallen for
years ago. He told her that he loved her, and she wanted to believe
him. Could they really last in a relationship being so far away from
each other? He was a star football player. Surely he would go on to
play professional after college. What would she do when he decided he
was done with her? She wasn't sure she would be able to handle it.
Brad was the one man that could tear her world apart.

It
would be three months before she would be able to see him again.
Would he really wait that long? All of his friends were partying and
moving from woman to woman. They had made it a month without seeing
each other, but she wasn't sure they could make it three. After that,
it would be another two months until summer. Who knew how they would
see each other then. Brad had his own apartment and wouldn't be
coming home. Would he want her around for the summer? How would their
families feel about that? She asked him to hide their relationship
from their families for the time being. Her best friend was his
sister. She didn't want to upset anyone if they weren't going to stay
together. Rachel wasn't sure how long Brad would stick around.

She
turned off her phone and closed her eyes. It would be okay. It had to
be. She was looking forward to starting new classes and getting back
to normal. Her nerves were going crazy, and she was stressed out. She
knew her stomach would settle down and the queasy feeling she had
been fighting would go away. Three months wasn't really that long,
was it? It would go by quickly, she thought. Everything would be
fine. It would be worth it to be able to spend time with the man she
knew she would love forever.

When
the plane landed, she grabbed her bags and got a cab back to school.
She fell onto her bed in her dorm and turned her phone back on. It
felt good to be back, but she was so tired. Why hadn't she rested
more when she was home, she thought? Before her phone powered up, she
had already fallen asleep.

She
woke to the loud ring of her phone. It was next to her on the bed.
She looked at the number and smiled as she answered it.

“
Hello,”
she said.

“
Are
you okay?” he asked. “Your plane should have landed hours
ago. I texted you a bunch of times, but you never answered. You
scared the shit out of me.”

Rachel
looked at the clock and gasped.

“
I'm
so sorry about that. I don't know what happened. I came straight to
the dorm and fell back onto my bed. I must have instantly fallen
asleep. I didn't mean to freak you out. I can't believe how tired I
am. I feel like I could sleep for a week.”

“
I
just wanted to make sure you got there okay,” he said. “I
miss your ass already. Do you want to go back to sleep?”

They
stayed on the phone and talked for over an hour. She missed him and
wanted to be wrapped in his arms while she slept. It had been the
best sleep that night they were together. She could definitely get
used to that. Hearing his voice made her feel better. When they hung
up the phone, she was surprised when he told her loved her. It was
like a dream come true. Could it get any better, she thought?

She
woke up the next day feeling sick again. What the fuck, she thought?
After a couple of hours, she felt better. The following day, it was
the same thing. She couldn't do it anymore. Something was wrong.
Classes were getting ready to start again, and she couldn't miss any
of them if she was going to keep her grades up. She was so tired and
could barely stay awake. The student clinic was open, and she decided
to go and see if they could give her something. She wanted to feel
better so badly.

The
waiting room was full. It was first come first serve. She leaned back
in the chair and closed her eyes. When they called her name, she
jumped. Rachel had forgotten where she was. They guided her back to a
room and had her wait for the doctor. Her phone buzzed with a text.

Brad:
Hope you're feeling better. I wish I could be there to hold you. Let
me know what they say at the doctor. Love you.

The
door opened and she threw her phone in the pile with her clothes.
They had checked her weight and height already. She had filled out a
huge sheet with tons of questions in the waiting room. The doctor
walked in and sat in front of her. She seemed like a nice person, but
Rachel wasn't a fan of doctors at all. The woman put her hand on
Rachel's knee to calm her down.

“
Just
relax,” the woman said. “We're just going to go over the
questions you answered and your symptoms. Tell me what's going on.”

Rachel
explained being tired and getting sick at home and then again at
school. The doctor looked over her questions and stood up.

“
I'm
going to have a couple of tests run. It will take a day to get some
of the results, but some I will have right away. I'll come back in
when the nurse is done with your tests.”

The
doctor left the room, and the nurse came back in right away. She
handed Rachel and cup and pointed her toward the bathroom. When she
came back, the nurse took blood from her. She sat alone for about ten
more minutes. All she wanted to do was go back to her room and sleep
some more. The doctor walked in, moved her stool close to Rachel, and
sat down.

“
I
have the results from one of the tests. We have to wait for the
other. You can call tomorrow, and they can give you the results over
the phone. Have you been to see an OBGYN?”

“
No,”
Rachel answered. “Why?”

“
Are
you sexually active?” the doctor asked. “You should go
when you turn eighteen or are sexually active.”

Rachel's
eyes widened and her mouth dropped slightly.

“
I've
been with only one man. Once at the end of November and again when I
was just home. Please tell me he did not give me something,”
Rachel said, as a tear escaped the corner of her eye.

The
doctor put her hands on Rachel's, which were on her lap.

“
Did
you use protection?” the doctor asked.

“
Not
the first time,” she said. “It was kind of unexpected. We
did while I was just home. Do I have something wrong?”

“
You're
pregnant,” the doctor said.

“
What?”
Rachel squeaked out.

The
doctor shook her head.

“
We
did it one time,” Rachel cried. “It must be a mistake.”

“
There's
no mistake. I'm thinking you are about five weeks along. We will be
able to tell more when we get the blood work back. I'm thinking you
will be due around the end of August.”

Rachel
dropped her head into her hands and cried.

“
You
should be just fine to finish out the school year,” the doctor
said. “You need to make an appointment with an OBGYN once we
have the other results. I can forward them over to the doctor you
choose. We can refer you to one if you would like.”

Rachel
shook her head.