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He thinks he heard me wrong? Oh, no. This could get worse than I thought. "Uh, huh." I nod, wincing when his burger goes down with a hefty thud, and I can almost make out the gears churning in his brain by his forehead wrinkles alone.
"Like... Hayden's dad's company?"
I nod again, my heart somersaulting into my throat.
"I mean..." He grabs his napkin, a little too rough for my liking. "Congratulations, Sis, but... I'm just curious"—he scratches the back of his head, caution swirling behind his stare—"how did you go about landing that? Did they have tryouts or something?"
Tryouts. Oh, Lord help me. I'd laugh, if any part of this situation was the least bit funny.
"They did, kinda... And I did present my game, but umm..." I swallow, breaking our gaze. "Hayden and I, we've been..." Come on, Juliana, out with it. Just do it. "Hanging out."
Jeremy straightens. His lips part. And those eyes, they're stuck in some sort of trance, hazing over enough that I question if he even sees me.
Okay... he's not screaming... Maybe this won't turn disastrous, after all? Except... Okay, he's still not blinking. "Jer?" I wave a hand. "Jer—"
"What. Do you mean. Hanging. Out?" he clips, and—oh no, is he shaking? I narrow in on his hands, watching them tremble and clench into fists.
"U-uhmm... j-just, uhhh..." Fuck. What can I even say? The truth must be written all over my face, every dirty little detail.
Redness creeps up his neck, roaming over veins that flare with anger. "Have you two..." He looks away, smacking his lips, before whipping his gaze back onto me. "Has he...?"
Touched you? my mind finishes his question, prompting an onslaught of unwelcome images. I push them away and speak as calmly as humanly possible, holding out my hands toward him. "Okay, Jer—"
He bolts from his chair, sending it crashing behind him. "That motherFUCKER."
Even though none of his anger is directed at me, I stand on shaky knees. "Jeremy—"
He laughs a brutal sound, running a hand across his jaw. "So, that's why he's been avoiding me?" he asks, but doesn't, lost in his own thoughts. "He's too busy preying on my little sister?" Another chuckle escapes him, and it's straight from a serial killer's mouth.
"Won't you just listen—"
"Where is he?" he asks, void of emotion.
Adrenaline spikes through me.
"Juliana. Where. Is. He?"
"I-I don't—"
His fingers tremble violently as he swipes them through his hair, flicking his eyes through the crowd, searching for his target. He bounds in a random direction. "When I get my fucking hands on him—"
"Jeremy, please." I catch him by the shoulder, unable to stop the wobble in my voice. Only then, does he look down at me, his gaze softening. "Without Hayden, I wouldn't have landed a feature," I lie, sprinkling in a bit of truth. "He's the only one who vouched for my game. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have gotten considered for their sponsorship."
Anticipation winds tightly inside my chest as I watch Jeremy gnaw on his lip.
"I mean it." I shake him.
"I know you do. But it isn't you I don't trust around Hayden—I don't trust him with you."
I can't help the smile that creeps onto my lips, or the wall of emotions catching in my throat. I squeeze his shoulder, easing a teensy bit of that tension. Oh, Jeremy. My big brother. No longer my defender on the playground, but my loyal Doberman, who's ready to send a billionaire's son to the ER.
"Please, Jer. Today's already stressful enough."
The rest of his rage slinks off his back like running water. "I know it is... I'll let him off the hook—for now."
THIRTY-EIGHT
JULIANA
