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Studying hio back to school? Finish your degree?"

He shrugged "I’h trial and error And if I went back to school my ol’I couldn’t let hiuess it’s in my blood"

The hostess called for us She led us to a table for two near thethat faced the street Seated, we opened the menus

"What kind of pizza do you like?" he asked

"My favorite is usually the Greek Love the olives and feta and bits of shaved gyro et a slice or two of that--"

"That’s one ofthe rin, "I eat a lot"

"I remember Pancakes this tall" I floated a hand above the table

He nodded "That’s right"

"And fourteen meatballs"

"You cheated ave me five"

I shook my head "So unfair Guys have soan eat He’ll get a large just for hie boys," I grumbled

"Yeah, and he plays sports so he has no body fat at all"

My gaze skimmed Reece’s chest and arht muscle He didn’t appear to have an ounce of fat on hi that I had stripped down toaway the ht activity, too"

The instant the words slipped out, ht fire I had pretty much just called his brother a man-whore to his face And it only called attention to what brought us together in the first place--the fact that I had thought he was the infah Mulvaney’s doors

Luckily, he didn’t take offense He laughed The waitress arrived to take our order right then She froze, an awed set for you?" she addressed Reece without glancing at me I couldn’t really blame her Whenever he was around he was all I could look at, too

He turned that dazzling slazed over He ordered our pizza It took her a moment to look down at her pad She fu to write "Excellent choice That’s aze slid to me and his look made me warm froh re my presence A stupid sether in front of h ood to hear hile word Foolish, I knew But there it was

She asked for our drink orders, and I chiht out" She beamed at Reece and even sent ining hiain

Reece leaned forward again, looking so at ease I began to feel relaxed "So the gloves are off when it coe of

"It’s okay His reputation is well earned I tried to stop it in the beginning, but he’s eighteen now He’ll start college in the fall I can’t tell hiotta learn for hirin that made my stomach flip every time "And just hope he doesn’t end up a father before his twentieth birthday" He laughed and winced at this simultaneously The low deep sound rippled over my skin and sank deep inside me He scrubbed a hand over his short-cropped hair "Shit I sound like a father"

He did, and it totally threw me It didn’t fit with et it You’ve had to be more than a brother to him"

Some of the levity faded fro, "He was just so little when our mom diedand I already told you that our father isn’t exactly the type to sit down and talk us through things or coood, I’ve been a parent to hiain "But this year I decided I needed to take a step back"

The waitress set our drinks down and left I stared at Reece, wondering how ht-year-old boys would have stepped up to the plate and adopted the role of"I’ without"

He shrugged one shoulder "It was so He knows I care about hi? I thought of my own mother I couldn’t say that I knew she ever cared about me Maybe once Before she started to care about her addictionless than pleasant thoughts, he suggested, "Let’s talk about so the subject behind Talking about his upbringing onlynot so different "Sure"

"Pepper?"

I looked up at the sound ofhi at Hunter with Reece across froether that never should haveuntil thathalf across the table, so into Reece and being close to hiaze slid fro I couldn’t seeh it was apparent he aiting for an introduction

"Hey, I’m Reece" Apparently he knehat to say and do Reece reached out and shook Hunter’s hand in a solid-looking grip

"Hunter Montgoh school with Pepper"