ken

rouble the second

ned as I jammed the key in the lock, ignoring Justin’s honk in the long driveway behind me and the squeal of his tir

o g

out that night. But going out with the rude, douchey quarterback from the local college that night hadn’t been

he man — or, really, if I was even ready to admit to myself yet, t

thi

ted over a guy before. Actually, I’d barely ever been interested in any guys before. Because guys

the abov

fumbling awkward guys and just getting it out of the way so it wouldn’t be hanging over me like this big neon “virgin” sign. But I never did. I’d made out with

n’t had time to get all goo-goo over boys like other girls might’ve, because I was too busy making a counterfeit cafeteria card to get a second lunch to sneak home for dinner, or too bus

ated, and I was just about to turn eighteen when CPS had showed up with the cops and taken me away. I wasn’t sad to leave

ere. Stephanie had a brother, apparently, and he was apparently rich. The CPS lady hadn’t said much, aside

er B

the place we’d finally pulled up to eight hours later hadn’t helped my impression very much. I mean, it was beautiful— this castle-like stone man

g changed. Wilder Banks wasn’t some nerdy, pasty, a

and a chiseled jaw covered in dark scruff. His crisp white button-up shirt was open at the neck and rolled up ove

broad shoulders stretching that shirt tight. His eyes had trailed over me, his jaw had clenched, and his han

was gone, and he’d spent the next month pret

d I re

ngling with the very real, very adult feelings raging through me, I followed t

k of pure heat on his face the second I’d stepped into the living room. But then, just like with Wild

thick biceps that bulged at the corners of the plain black t-shirt he wore. Tattoo ink swirled down one arm, and

g in my guest quarters over the summer while they work on his house. Ms. Smith, I b

quickly as she fawned all over him and told him that yes, of course, CPS was alread

y s

cle, and the other his equally and absurdly good looking friend. An

-blooded eighteen year old girl was totally fine living with two extremely go

she’d gone, and suddenly, this was my world — living with two stagge

ve been so easy to just be normal around Wilder and Lincoln, or at least it should have been easy to. But somehow, it

n stride — I mean, I guess they both knew my backstory. And I guess we would have spent the next three months in that little sta