She's Still The One: A Brother's Best Friend, Rockstar Romance by Kaci Rose (websites to read books for free txt) 📕

her packing. Opening yourself up raw to someone and asking them to love all of you, is the scariest thing a person can do. To give yourself to someone on a silver platter.

Austin isn't just someone, though. She’s the one. The girl I want to spend the rest of my life with. The one I will fight for, until my last breath. The one I can't live without and don't even want to think about trying, too.

I start running over in my head again what I’ll tell her. I want to make sure I lay it all out on the line and hold nothing back.

Chapter 25

Austin

I can't believe I fell asleep, before Dallas got home last night. We have been waiting for a week for my brother to leave, and I was so excited for that time to ourselves. I remember him crawling into bed with me, and I guess, I drifted back off again shortly after that.

I smile and reach for him but find a cold bed. When I open my eyes, I see Dallas sitting by the window just staring outside. His chair is turned slightly towards the bed, like he might have been watching me at some point.

He's in sweatpants, and his hair is messy, like he’s been running his hands through it. His tattoos are on full display, and the ink next to his tan skin is always a huge turn on for me.

The look on his face isn't the happy to have me to himself look I was expecting. He appears sad and almost depressed. A sinking feeling hits me, as I sit up in bed. My movement catches his attention, and he turns his head to look at me. His eyes run over me for just a moment.

"Come here, baby girl." He holds a hand out to me, and my legs carry me to him almost against my will. Pulling me into his lap, he hugs me tight, like he needs the comfort. Then, he rests his head on my chest, and I rake my fingers through his hair, trying to offer him whatever comfort he needs.

"I know I have to be open with you. I want you to know all of me." He says without lifting his head. "Today, is the anniversary of the day my mom died."

I knew it was about this time frame, but couldn't remember the exact date, and I never asked him, because it made him so sad to talk about it. He would share things here and there about his mom, but it always brought a look of sorrow to his face. One I didn't like seeing there, so I never asked many questions about her.

"I'm so sorry, Dallas," I say and lean down to kiss the top of his head.

His mom was a single mom and raised him. She worked hard, and oftentimes, he spent the night at our place, while she picked up extra shifts at the bar. Every now and then, she would have Landon and me over, and then she would bake cookies with me. She’s the one who taught me to make the chocolate chip pecan cookies Dallas loves.

He was sixteen, when she passed, and his aunt moved to town, so he could finish school with us. She pushed him to pursue his singing career. I remember that much. I remember his mom’s funeral, and how he was shut down. He spent a lot of time with Landon that summer, and that was also the summer he started putting space between us.

"This day always hits me hard. Landon says I haven't dealt with it. I think it's just too hard to remember. Every year, I would spend it..." He trails off, and his entire body trembles.

I frame his face with my hands and force him to look up at me. His icy blue eyes find mine, and for a moment, I'm frozen in time. There’s so much pain and vulnerability in them. I would do anything right now to take that pain from him and make him feel better.

"There’s nothing you can tell me that’s going to stop me from wanting to be with you. No matter what you say next, I'm staying right here." I tell him.

His hold on me tightens, but he drops his head and buries it in my neck.

"Normally, I spend the day having nothing but mindless sex with whatever girl was available." He pauses, and I don't say anything. I'm not sure where he’s going with this.

"But you are different. I won't do that to you. You knew my mom; you knew me back then. I won't use you to forget."

I just hug him to me and run my hand through his hair, as we sit in comforting silence.

"Is this why you won't let us go any further, when I tried?" I ask, thinking about the times he stopped me in the cabin this last week. I wanted him so badly, and we'd get to that point, and he'd pull away and focus on me. Though, I enjoyed myself, I knew there was something bothering him.

"Yes. If I'm honest, I'm scared to sleep with you, because you mean so much more. I don't ever want you to feel like you aren't the most important person in the world to me."

"Dallas, you show me every day how much I mean to you. From little things like the way you look at me, to fighting my brother, to making sure I'm allowed to go out and not be trapped here. The biggest way is how much you make me cum versus how much you let me make you cum. That says a lot about a guy." I smirk.

He gives a dry chuckle, and then pulls me in even closer to him.

"I remember the first day I saw you. You were eight, your hair was in those pigtail braids, and you had on your dance recital outfit. While Landon and I played in the yard, you’d spend