Tall, Dark and Irresistible (Tall, Dark and Sexy 2)

And since that wasn’t about to happen, it was time for her to finish packing up her things so her parents could take her to the airport.

Chapter Thirteen

Leo had no desire to meet his brother and Serena for breakfast the following morning, but when Dylan had texted him less than an hour ago to invite him along for the meal, Leo figured if it kept his mind off of Peyton and the fact that she was leaving for New York very soon, then he’d force himself into enduring his brother’s company. Because, really, what else was he going to do with himself now that he was done being Peyton’s fake boyfriend?

“Well, you certainly look like shit this morning,” Dylan said much too cheerfully as Leo slid into the booth across from him and Serena. “Did you drink too much at that wedding you went to last night with Peyton and you’re dealing with a hangover?”

Leo frowned. Jesus, did he really look that bad? And here he thought he just felt like crap on the inside. “No, I’m not hungover,” he snapped irritably, just as the waitress came by and filled his cup with coffee, thank God. Hopefully caffeine would help improve his mood. Or not.

“Someone’s a little testy this morning,” his brother said, his voice filled with humor. “And here I thought you’d be happy to be a free man again since today was your last day being Peyton’s fake boyfriend.”

Serena shot Dylan an incredulous look. “Why would you just assume that Leo would be happy about that?” she asked, a thread of annoyance in her tone that he’d just automatically jump to that conclusion.

“Because it was all fake, Serena,” Dylan replied, as if that was reason enough for Leo to be overjoyed that his duty to Peyton was done.

Serena sat back and crossed her arms over her chest in exasperation. “How do you know it was all fake?” she challenged.

“What makes you think it wasn’t?” Dylan shot back, the two of them bickering like two old friends . . . or an old married couple, Leo thought with his first glimmer of amusement since being with Peyton at the wedding the night before.

Serena rolled her eyes. “Did you not see, really see, your brother with Peyton at the gender reveal on Thursday?” She went on as if Leo wasn’t even sitting there and he just listened, still amused.

Dylan raised his brows at her. “Clearly, you saw something I didn’t.”

“That’s because you’re more than a little obtuse when it comes to men and women and what a real connection looks like.”

Oh, burn, Leo thought, scoring one for Serena. Because, yes, his brother was dense when it came to how Serena felt about him . . . and it wasn’t just friendship.

Dylan opened his mouth with a retort, but Leo cut him off, done listening to them bicker back and forth.

“Hello, I’m right here,” he said, waving a hand between them. “Jesus Christ. You’re talking about me like I’m not sitting right across from the two of you.”

They both turned their heads and stared at him, as if realizing that oh, yeah, they’d invited him along to their breakfast and he was sitting at the table with them.

Their server came back around to take their order, giving Leo a few moments’ reprieve from Dylan and Serena’s squabbling. Unfortunately, the woman left way too soon and Serena’s gaze landed on him again.

“Are you happy that your week with Peyton is over?” she asked.

Dylan looked at him expectantly, clearly anticipating Leo’s answer to be yes. But that would be a blatant lie, and Leo wasn’t going to pretend that he didn’t already feel like a part of him was missing without Peyton. “No, I can’t say I am.”

“Ha!” Serena smacked the table triumphantly and gloated at Dylan. “See? I knew it!”

“What do you think you know, Serena?” his brother asked in a stupid-ass mocking voice.

“That your brother is in love with Peyton.”

Dylan smirked. “That’s not possible. I mean, after what happened with Amanda . . . ” He glanced back at Leo for some kind of affirmation to back up his statement, but Leo couldn’t deny the truth.

“It’s more than possible,” Leo admitted, even though his feelings for Peyton changed nothing because she belonged in New York. And he belonged here in San Diego.

Dylan gaped at him as he sat back in the booth, clearly dumbfounded. “Are you fucking kidding me? How the hell did that happen?”

Leo shrugged. “It just did.” It was hard to explain all the reasons he’d fallen for Peyton, because there were so many of them. Her smile. Her quirky personality. The effortless way she made him laugh. And mostly how quickly and easily she made him forget that he’d sworn he’d never allow himself to fall in love again. Clearly, it had just taken the right woman to make it happen.

“Isn’t she flying to New York today?” Serena asked.

“Yes.” He glanced at his phone on the table and noted the time. “Her flight leaves in a little less than two hours.” Yes, he was counting the minutes, just to torture himself.

“Then what are you doing here?” Serena asked.