Brett and Hannah (Soul Mates 101 Series) (20 page)

Two Months Later

Hannah put on h
er black, Badgley Mischka dress.

“Baby, you look hot,” Brett
said as he stood behind her with his hands on her hips, kissing her neck. The dress only crossed one shoulder, and she noticed he was having trouble keeping his lips off her exposed neck. She matched it with her favorite Louboutin heels.

“Thanks, you look hot, too.”
Brett wore khaki’s with a crisp maroon button up shirt that hugged his biceps just right and a blazer.

“Babe
, you don’t have to wear that jacket. Don’t you think it’ll be too warm in the house?” she asked.

“I want to wear it,” he answered. She thought Brett seemed nervous all day and worried it was because
he was still uncomfortable living in a house he wasn’t paying for.

She
was excited about the housewarming party they were throwing that evening. It felt like a new beginning for her and Brett. Aside from the deep love they felt for each other, there hadn’t been any more bumps in the road, and they were determined to keep it that way.

“It’
s just us!” Chelsea yelled as her and Austin entered the new home. Hannah went running to greet them.

“
Thanks for coming,” she said giving them hugs.

Her girlfriends had seen the inside of the house, but the guys had waited.
The Masons had spared no expense to furnish the home. When Hannah would insist on Brett’s opinion about decorating, he would answer, but otherwise, he left most of it up to her, Chelsea and Lorna.

There was only one room he wanted a say s
o in, and that was a rec room they could use for hanging out with their friends. It was equipped with a seventy inch TV and leather furniture. There was also a bar and pool table.

“Are you all ready to leave? We’ve been waiting two months to see this house, so let’s go,” Matt said, groaning. He loaded up in the car with Cody and Dylan and drove to Brett and Hannah’s house. Matt rang the doorbell when they arrived.

“Brett’s definitely a douche ba
g. That’s OK though, because one of these days I’ll have Taylor,” Dylan said.

“Good luck with that. T
hat woman’s made of ice,” Matt said.

Hannah answered the door.

“Guys, come on in.”

“
You look amazing, Hannah,” Matt said.

“
Thank you.” She was quite shocked to hear that from Matt. He spoke to her a lot more than he did before her assault, but he’d never given her a compliment.

“Dylan
, Cody, oh my gosh!” Hannah was in shock.

“
I know. Don’t make a big deal out of it,” Dylan said.

“Oh yes, I’
m going to make a big deal out of this. You two look awesome. I mean it, really handsome.”

Dylan and Cody
were wearing dress pants and button up shirts. They didn’t have their ball cap on, so Hannah was able to see their hair. She thought Cody’s short blonde hair shined, and she loved seeing Dylan’s thick brown hair that had a natural wave to it. She’d only seen them without ball caps a few times.

Jasmine and Morgan showed up
while Hannah and the guys were still at the door.

“Dang, Cody. You look hot,” Jasmine said after she walked into the house.

“You always look hot, Jasmine,” he whispered in her ear while giving her a hug.

A few of their other friends including Taylor had arrived and
were mingling with everyone.

B
rett’s parents, sister and brother-in-law were present, having come into town for a couple of days. Hannah couldn’t understand why his family insisted on staying in a hotel when their home had so many bedrooms. Lorna and Todd were back on tour but had flown in for the party, too.

Dylan was the only one in the kitchen when Taylor walked in. “Hi, Taylor. How are you this evening?” Dylan smiled at her as he leaned against the counter before taking a drink of his beer.

“Good, and you?”
she asked while getting a beer out of the refrigerator.

“
I’m great. You look hot in that dress, by the way.” Taylor was wearing a silky, black dress that made a deep V in the front and the back that she paired with black high heels. He was surprised when he noticed part of a tattoo showing out from her dress on the back of her shoulder. He wished he could see all of it.

Taylor rolled her eyes.

“Don’t start with me, Dylan.”

“I’
m not trying to start anything. I paid you a compliment, but I see we still can’t have a normal conversation without you treating me like I have an STD or something.”

“
How am I supposed to know you’re giving me a compliment when you always have that grin on your face, and everything that exit’s your mouth is a big joke?”

“
So, I’m penalized now for smiling? That’s one I hadn’t heard yet. I guess I’m royally screwed on finding a woman if guys aren’t allowed to smile anymore.”

“
That, right there. That sarcastic thing you do,” she said, pointing at him and making circles with her finger.

I swear this woman should just let me fuck her. She’d feel so much better.

Dylan walked up to her and leaned in inches from her face, gazing into her dark brown eyes. The sexual tension rose between them.

“I’
ve been trying for over two months to get to know you, but I’m done wasting my time. It’s obvious you don’t know me, or you would know there’s definitely more to me than my sarcasm, but you won’t give any of us a chance to show you who we are,” Dylan said indignantly. He walked out, leaving her alone.

A few minutes later, Hannah walked into the kitchen.

“Taylor, I’m so glad you’re here tonight. What’s wrong? You look upset,” Hannah said, giving her another hug.

“I wouldn’t miss your party
, but I have to admit, I just can’t relate to the guys. I don’t know what I keep doing wrong.”

Hannah grabbed Taylor’s shoulders.
“You need to let your guard down and not be so defensive. I swear they are great if you’d give them a chance to show you. I know it’s always been hard for you to be around people who haven’t grown up our way, but they treat me like any other girl, and they would do the same for you if you’d let them.”

“
It’s hard for me because of Dad, and they’re nothing like the guys I grew up around.”

“You mean they
’re not conceited assholes? I’ve went through a lot of the same things with Mom as you have with your dad. I know your father being the most famous rock guitarist hasn’t made life easy for you, but I’m telling you that you can trust these guys.

“
They wouldn’t care if we were all dirt poor. They’re not around us for the money or fame, and they don’t treat us like we have either one. They’re just perfect to me,” Hannah said, smiling.

“I’ll try harder. If they’
re like Brett, then I know you’re right,” Taylor said.

“Good, now I need to find Brett,” Hannah said as she walked out of the kitchen.

Dylan saw her approach Brett in the great room, so he went to speak to them. They were kissing by the time he approached them.

“Don’t you all get enoug
h kissy face time now that you’re alone together every day? Can you not refrain for five minutes?” he asked, smirking.

“You just wait, Dylan. I’
m going to harass the piss out of you and your girlfriend when you ever get one. Full—on—harassment. Payback’s a bitch.”

“I think it’
s going to be a while before you get a chance at that,” Dylan said as he glanced to Taylor across the room.

“
You’ll find a great girl when you quit sleeping with all the trashy ones from The Stables,” Hannah said.

“Come on now, what’s the fun in that?” he asked
, grinning.

Jasmine and a few of Hannah
’s other friends from college walked over to them. Jasmine looked at Brett and Hannah. “Will you two go with me to show them the awesome rec room?”

“Sure,”
Hannah said as she waved her arm for them to follow her and Brett.

Dylan was now standing alone when he saw Taylor approaching him
.

“What do you want
, Taylor?” Dylan asked with irritation.

“I umm
... I want to say I’m sorry about earlier. Thank you for complimenting me on my dress,” Taylor said timidly before she turned to walk away.

Dylan
grabbed her arm and turned her back around. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her to his chest. Even though she drove him absolutely insane, he wanted her. She was all he could think about most days, so he was not about to let the opportunity pass him by.

Dylan’s
light green eyes that burned with desire gazed down at her. He cupped her face and ran his thumb across her bottom lip. “You’re welcome, Taylor,” he whispered seductively.

He heard her swallow hard.

“Um … I better go.” She pulled away and quickly left the room. Dylan smirked.

There’
s still hope for her. I might break through that shield after all.

Brett gave his parents and friends a tour of the house and the backyard. The yard was spacious with a covered deck, a bar and an in ground pool.

Everyone was going
back inside when Matt called out to Brett. “Can I talk to you out here for a minute?”

“What’
s up?”

“Are you doing alright, bro
?” Matt asked.

“Yes
, why?”

“I know this has
to be killing you. I know because it would be killing me, and we’re not that different.”

“It’
s extremely uncomfortable, but it’s not killing me. It’s going to take some time to accept what is. I want Hannah, and this is part of the package. I have to admit that I can see myself getting use to some of it. It’s better than the alternatives.

“
Once I have my career it won’t sting so badly. I don’t know why we’re discussing it because we both know I don’t have a choice, and do I need to remind you that if you and Morgan stay together, you’ll be dealing with some of the same issues? Her family is pretty wealthy.”

“We aren’
t that serious, Brett.”

“You two spend a ton of time together, and
I know you love her.”

Matt’s dark eyes flicked away.
Brett could see how uncomfortable he’d made him.

“
You have told her, right?”

“No I haven’
t told her because I don’t love her.”

Brett
hung his head and shook it.

“You’re going to lose her sooner rather than later. You’ve been with her for like five months now. I can’t believe she’s stuck around this long without you saying it. You need to let her go if you really don’t love her or plan on staying with her. She’s a sweetheart.”

“Enough about me, I know this is what you have to do to be with Hannah, and ... I think she’s worth it. I just wanted to tell you that, and tell you that when you need to bitch about all this …” Matt said, holding his beer up toward the house and the rest of the backyard.

“Y
ou know where to find me. It really sucks having to referee the guys by myself, so it would be nice to have you around some.”

“Damn, the estrogen’
s getting to you, too,” Brett said, smirking.

“Shut up, asshole.” Matt punched
Brett in the arm.

“Seriously, th
anks for being a good friend, now let’s get inside. I don’t want Hannah mad at me tonight. I have a big surprise planned,” Brett said.

“Do I even want to know?”

“No, probably not. I didn’t tell you because you’ll definitely declare me certifiably nuts for this one.”

Brett l
ocked eyes with Hannah as soon as he walked inside. He was wrapping his arms around her in seconds, soaking up her warmth.

She flashed him an alluring smile.

“You’re so sexy. I love everyone being here, but for some reason, I can’t stop thinking about you kissing my neck again and removing this dress from me.”

“I
like the way you’re thinking,” Brett said, whispering in her ear and nibbling on it. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Br
ett went upstairs to their bedroom. He reached in his blazer pocket and pulled out the ring box. After inhaling two big breaths, he got the nerve to open it. He’d purchased it two weeks prior and had not looked at it since.

It was a stunning two ct. cushion cut, round pave, platinum ring. Looking at it again
, he realized he had no doubts about what he was going to do. His hands started shaking as he dropped the box back into his pocket.