Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother Chapter 74

I don’t know what time it is. Late, probably. The fair’s finally winding down, the air cooler now, heavy with the scent of fried dough and spun sugar and something that might be burned plastic. We’ve done everything—every game, every ride, even the ridiculous haunted house with animatronic skeletons that nearly made Penny scream out loud and clutch my arm like we were under attack. She was all nerves and wide eyes and laughter after that, bouncing from one thrill to the next like a sparkplug that doesn’t know how to power down.

She even convinced me to get on the Ferris wheel.

The cabin was too damn small. The girl at the booth eyed me like I might snap the bar in half just by sitting down, but she let us through. Penny ended up pressed against my side, both of us crammed in, shoulders touching, knees bumping. She talked the whole time—about how beautiful the town looks from above, about how peaceful it feels up here, about whether Navy guys ever fly helicopters and see landscapes like this. I said yes. She looked at me like I’d just handed her a piece of the universe.

I didn’t want the ride to end.

But eventually, the wheel slowed, the world shrank again, and we stepped back onto solid ground. I told her it was time to go, and though she pouted a little, she nodded.

“You’re right. It’s late.”

Now we’re walking through the half-lit parking lot, her steps slower, her hand tugging slightly at the hem of her shirt, her arms tight around that ridiculous teddy bear I won for her hours ago. The one wearing a tutu and tiara. She’s tired, but the kind of tired that settles in soft and slow, not like collapse, more like… contentment.

Then I glance over.

Her collarbones are covered in goosebumps. Her neck too. And her lips—barely—are tinged with blue.

I stop walking. “Hey.”

She blinks up at me, eyes wide and sleepy. “Hm?”

Without a word, I pull off my hoodie. She starts to protest.

“I’m fine,” she says.

“No, you’re not. Your lips are blue,” I say, already taking the teddy from her hands. I guide her arms up gently with my hands, her breath catching, and slide the hoodie over her head. It’s oversized on her, swallowing her frame, but she lets it happen. Doesn’t say a word until I pull it all the way down and step back.

She stands there, blinking, her cheeks flushed. From the cold or something else, I don’t know.

“Let’s go,” I say, already turning toward the car.

Behind me, she asks, “Aren’t you freezing?”

“I don’t really get cold,” I answer.

She mutters, “Because you’re a furnace.”

I pause. “What?”

She repeats it louder. “You’re a furnace. I can always feel the heat coming off of you from like, feet away.”

I stare at her. “You didn’t know?”

“No.”

She grins. “You’re like a walking radiator.”

I shake my head, but I’m smiling.

In the car, she sinks into the seat, holding the teddy in her lap, a small smile on her lips. I glance over at her once we’re back on the road.

“Thanks again,” she says quietly. “For everything. This was the best night I’ve had in… I don’t even know how long.”

I keep my eyes on the road. “Glad you had fun.”

“I hope you got something out of it too.”

I glance at her again. Her voice is soft, unsure.

Yes and no.

Yes, because watching her laugh and jump and spin and beam like that felt like sunlight in my chest. No, because I’m driving her back to someone else. No, because I wish this night didn’t have to end. No, because I don’t know what to do with this feeling that’s clawing deeper every time she looks at me.

“I had a good time,” I say. It’s true. Just not the whole truth.

When we pull up to the house, she’s half-asleep. Her head slumped against the window, one hand still curled around the teddy’s tiny leg.

I don’t wake her right away.

I sit there for a minute, watching her face in the soft glow of the dashboard. Peaceful. Her lashes long against her cheek. Her lips now tinged pink now from the heat of the car. She looks so damn young like this. Not childish. Not fragile exactly, but—untouched by the world. Like no one’s broken her yet.

I reach out and gently tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

Then I rub circles on her shoulder lightly. “Penny.”

She blinks, groggy. “Oh, sorry…”

I help her out of the car. She stumbles a bit, and I grab her elbow instinctively. Inside, the house is warm and dimly lit. Tyler’s on the couch, scrolling on his phone, the TV flashing something behind him he’s not even watching.

He looks up when we walk in.

“Where were you guys?”

Penny doesn’t answer him. She looks at him for a beat, something unreadable in her expression, and says, “I’m tired. I’m gonna go to sleep.” She disappears upstairs.

Tyler looks at me. I sit next to him.

“I took her to the fair,” I say.

His brows lift. “Oh. Damn. Thanks, bro. She really wanted to go. It sucked I had plans.”

I look at him. “Doesn’t it bother you?”

“What?”

“That I took your girlfriend to do something she wanted to do instead of you?”

He laughs like I’ve told a joke. “Of course not. I’m busy. It’s cool if someone else helps with stuff.”

“Don’t you want to be the one to make her that happy?”

He shrugs. “Yeah, but also… I don’t know, it’s nice when people help. Takes the pressure off.”

I stare at him for a long second. I don’t understand this kid at all.

“I’m going to bed,” I say finally. I leave him on the couch and head upstairs.

I shower quickly, water hot, almost scalding. When I come back into the room, the lights are dim. She’s already in bed, facing the wall. Her legs are tucked up under her, her blonde hair fanned across the pillow. She’s still wearing my hoodie. Clutching the ballerina bear to her chest like a shield.

I take a few steps closer.

Her legs are bare—she’s wearing her usual tiny shorts—and I pause. Then, gently, I pull the blanket up over her, so she’s covered. Warm. Safe.

Then I turn to my mattress and stop.

Sergeant Snuggles is sitting right there. Tucked into the pillow.

I look back at her. Then the bear. Then back.

I shake my head and smile, something deep and painful and weirdly beautiful blooming in my chest.

This fucking girl.