Don't Kiss Your Brother's Sworn Enemy (Don't Kiss! Series Book 1) Read online

  Don't Kiss Your Brother's Sworn Enemy

  Don't Kiss! Series, Book 1

  Elle Gonzales

  Copyright © 2020 Elle Gonzales

  All rights reserved

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Coming Soon

  About The Author

  Chapter 1

  Harper is running late again.

  She's probably behind the bleachers making out with her current boyfriend Kirby Johnston—again. She's been missing most of lunch time since they got together three weeks ago.

  I wish I could say this never happened before she started seeing him, but that would be a total lie. Truth is she does this whenever she has a boyfriend. It can be pretty annoying, especially when she promises to be in a particular place at a particular time, but I'm used to it by now.

  So I wasn't surprised when she texted me that she'd be late for lunch. If anything, I was surprised she remembered to text at all. She usually just apologizes afterward for bailing on me.

  Which is why whenever that happens, I make it a point to sit with our friends to avoid having lunch alone. But today, I made the mistake of joining my twin brother and his friends. It's not the ideal place to be, considering he's spent most of the time grumbling about Jake Wilson, captain of the soccer team—and his sworn enemy since middle school.

  "Look at him. He thinks he's some God's gift to women," Cole scoffs. "What a show-off."

  Jake's most recent offense? Flirting with Zoe Reynolds, the girl Cole has been crushing on for months. Cole's been glaring daggers in his direction for the past ten minutes.

  Not that Jake notices. But even if he does, I don't think he'll care. He's too busy charming the heck out of Zoe a few tables away. And she's eating up all the attention he's giving her, giggling and flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder.

  Why wouldn't she? Jake Wilson is one of the most popular guys in school. He's a West Grove High golden boy. Everyone loves to be around him.

  It doesn't hurt that his easygoing charm has the looks to back it up—pale blue eyes, sandy blond hair and tall, lean build. To say that he's nice to stare at is putting it mildly. Girls go out of their way just to get a smidge of his attention.

  Cole doesn't know this, but I'm not an exception. I had a crush on Jake back in freshman year after he had his growth spurt over the summer. I'd been gobsmacked by how he managed to transform from a lanky, unappealing boy to a real head-turner. Luckily, it didn't last long. Otherwise, my brother would have found out about it and completely freaked. I surely would've gotten an earful.

  But it isn't always this way. Cole's hostility toward him started back in eighth grade when he and Jake went after Addison Lake and Addison chose Jake over him. Thus started the latter's "list of offenses" against my brother. Offenses that Jake never considers a big deal, pissing off Cole even more.

  At first, it amused me that my twin had his own sworn enemy. I seriously never thought that it happened in real life. But then, the one-sided hatred started to get old. And here we are four years later—it's still a never-ending cycle. Cole should've put it to rest a long time ago. But it seems like every day, he finds something to be pissed about.

  Sometimes, I think Jake is doing these things just to get a rise out of my brother.

  "Sorry, I'm late." Harper slides in next to me, accidentally bumping my tray with hers in the process.

  "Oh, thank God," I mutter around my ham and bacon sandwich. "I thought you'd never show up."

  Harper smirks, shoving some fries into her mouth. "Cole still ranting about Jake?" She knows him too well.

  I crinkle my nose. "What else is new?"

  Brushing locks of platinum blonde hair off her face, she glances over her shoulder to where Jake is seated. "Wow, he sure is relentless. I won't be surprised if she spends the rest of the day staring after him with hearts in her eyes."

  Trying not to laugh, I elbow her when I notice Cole's angry glare across the table.

  "Sorry." Harper grins at him sheepishly, making the motion of zipping her mouth. Then turns to me and whispers, "Probably shouldn't have said that out loud, huh?"

  I bite back another laugh. "You think?"

  Although I'm pretty sure Cole is painfully aware of that. Harper just voiced out what he was thinking. But what she didn't say? By the end of the week, Jake and Zoe are already dating. Heck, Jake has probably asked her out.

  Wincing inwardly, I shoot my brother a sympathetic look.

  It's not like Cole isn't good-looking—and I'm not saying this because I'm his twin and we look practically identical.

  Not really.

  We have the same reddish-brown hair that we got from Mom. But while his hair looks straight out of a shampoo commercial, my shoulder-length one constantly needs conditioner and smoothing serum to even feel soft and look shiny. We also have the same chocolate brown eyes that we got from our father, along with his long, thick eyelashes. No need for fake eyelashes on this girl—thanks Dad.

  Although Cole's almost a foot taller than me. He's six-four, I stand at merely five-five. I'd been unfortunate enough to not inherit my parents' impressive height. Which he'd used against me when he had his growth spurt and left me behind. He'd always teased me for being adopted, the jerk. I may or may not have cried the first time he taunted me.

  Don't get me wrong—I never felt inferior compared to my brother. I never had major insecurities in the physical appearance department. It's just, sometimes, I hate his flawless features.

  “So, I just broke up with Kirby,” Harper brings up casually—too casual that I almost spit my Coke.

  Wiping the sides of my mouth, I widen my eyes at her. “You did? But you just started dating him three weeks ago.”

  She just shrugs her shoulders. “When you know, you know.”

  “But you were still super late. What, did you make out with him before you dumped him?”

  A sheepish smile is her response. “He’s a pretty good kisser. I couldn’t help it.”

  “Of course,” I snort.

  Poor Kirby. He probably had no idea Harper was already planning to break up with him. Then again, he should’ve known better. It’s no secret that my best friend isn’t a fan of long relationships. The last one she ever had only lasted for three months. And that only happened because the boy contracted chickenpox, and she thought it was heartless to break up with him while he was dealing with it. She didn’t want to add to his misery.

  I bet she didn’t just make out with Kirby, she also gave him the whole “it’s not you, it’s me” speech. As much as Harper is notorious for “breaking” guys’ hearts, she’s also known to break up with them gently. None of the guys she dated ever harbored resentment toward her. She’s even friends with some of them.

  Crazy—but it works, doesn't it?
<
br />   *******

  When lunch ends, Harper and I make our way to class. We find our seats among our friends, and Harper wastes no time informing them about what happened with Kirby.

  Since I already know the details, I tune their conversation out, deciding instead to take out my kindle and catch up on some reading. I’m already halfway through the dystopian novel I started a couple nights ago. The suspense is starting to pick up—my absolute favorite part in a book.

  I don’t bother raising my head when the seat on my left gets occupied.

  “Reading another bodice ripper, Mouse?”

  Of course, he’d say that. He always says that whenever he catches me reading. Ever since he caught me reading a Historical romance and peeked at a particularly steamy chapter, he’s been teasing me about it.

  With a scowl, I look up to see a smirking Jake Wilson. Did I mention he’s in this class too and sits next to me? “You perfectly know it only happened that one time.”

  Since then, I’ve made it a point not to read a steamy book in class or anywhere at school, not wanting to risk getting caught by Jake a second time. I’m not even going to try to address the “Mouse” part. He’s been calling me that since sixth grade—all because of a stupid play where I took the part of a mouse. While everyone else has moved on, he hasn’t. And giving me a nickname is his stark reminder of that.

  His eyes glint with amusement. “But I don’t really know that, do I? I’m not with you 24/7, after all.”

  I give him a sweet smile. “I don’t need to prove anything to you.”

  The teacher, Mr. Harrison, is now walking into class, so he simply responds with a soft chuckle and angles his body toward the front.

  World Lit is my favorite subject, so I spend the whole class listening intently to the lecture. Learning literary works from different times and various parts of the world will never be uninteresting to me. I guess it comes with the territory of being a bookworm.

  A few minutes before the class ends, Mr. Harrison instructs us to pair up and work together for an assignment. I expect to be partnered with Harper, like in previous assignments. But for some disappointing reason, I get assigned to Jake.

  "Guess we're partners now, Mouse," he snickers as he rises from his chair, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "This should be fun."

  I blow out a breath. Yeah, fun.

  Especially when Cole finds out about it.

  Unlike my twin, I have no problem with Jake. He likes to tease me sometimes, sure. But he's like that with a lot of girls, so I usually just banter back playfully.

  Besides, I have a strong feeling that he only does that to piss Cole off. He's not as blasé as he appears to be about my brother's resentment toward him. It gets to him somehow.

  “You know he has a thing for you, right?”

  I jump in surprise. I was watching Jake walk away so I failed to notice Harper appearing next to me.

  Wait. Did she just say Jake has a thing for me? The Jake Wilson?

  She must be joking.

  Swinging my eyes to her, I shoot her an incredulous look. "Did you bump your head or something?"

  She rolls her eyes. "Fine. Don't believe me. But when you finally do, don't tell me I didn't warn you."

  Now, she's the one I'm watching walk away with a perplexed expression.

  Yeah. She definitely bumped her head.

  Chapter 2

  "What's this, Mom?" Cole is giving the dinner dish on the table a suspicious look.

  I can't blame him because I'm doing the same.

  Whatever's in front of us looks like a weird European cuisine that's featured in some obscure Youtube channel.

  Truth is this isn't the first time Mom has prepared a suspicious-looking dish. She's a food blogger with quite a number of followers all over social media. As a former chef in upscale restaurants, she loves to try out different recipes and doesn't shy away from the unconventional ones.

  Most of the time, we love what she puts in front of us. But in times like this—well—not so much. She's a great chef, but some of her more unique dishes just can't satisfy our palate.

  "I found it from one of my old recipe books from culinary school." She frowns at us when we just keep staring. "What are you two waiting for? Dive in."

  Grimacing, Cole scoops out a glob of the weird-looking dish into his plate. Then hesitantly shovels a spoonful into his mouth.

  "Well?" I ask impatiently.

  He gives a shrug as he chews his food.

  That's not very reassuring.

  But Mom is still eyeing me so I follow my brother's lead. And guess what? He's right. It doesn't taste bad, just...gooey. But it doesn't mean I'll get another helping.

  Mom gives us a smug look, as if to say, told you you'd like it. She does that whenever we make the wrong assumption. To which Cole and I always respond with an eye roll, while Dad just smiles.

  And he'd do just that if he was here right now. But he's currently in The Bahamas for a business trip. Usually, he takes us with him when he goes out of town. But this one lasts for a week, and Mom doesn't want us to miss school for so many days. School is a lot more important than leisure, she always tells us.

  Not like we can argue with her there.

  "So how was your day?"

  I shrug. "Uneventful."

  "How about you, hon?" Mom prods Cole.

  My brother scowls. "It sucked—thanks to Jake freaking Wilson."

  Mom exchanges a look with me.

  This isn't the first time Cole has brought up Jake's name during dinner. That boy has never set foot into our house, but my parents know so much about him—like I said, it's been years—they might as well have already met him.

  "Because of a girl. Again," I supply dryly.

  Mom gives me a look, as if to say isn't it always?

  I nod. Good point.

  Cole casts an irritated glare my way. "You'd understand if some girl tried to go after the guy you liked."

  "Considering I'm not crushing on anyone at the moment—and the fact that, unlike you, I don't have a sworn enemy—the chances of that ever happening are slim to none."

  And I don't think I'll ever have one. I don't hold grudges. If I'm pissed today, I'll get over it tomorrow. I don't see why I should stress myself just because someone is being a jerk. I don't want to waste more time thinking about them or what they did to me.

  Sadly, Cole doesn't share the same sentiment.

  Case in point: his scowl deepens at my flippant remark. "Oh, it'll happen to you. Just wait."

  I give him a sweet smile. "Doubt it. But here's a thought. Why don't you just stop whining and go after Zoe?"

  It's not like he's doing something about his crush on Zoe. He hasn't even made a single move. For some reason, he doesn't have the confidence to pursue her. It's a first for him. He usually doesn't hesitate asking out any girl he likes.

  Whatever. It's his problem, not mine.

  "Shut up. You don't know what you're talking about."

  "Oh, get over yourself, Cole."

  "Enough!" Mom snaps authoritatively. "How many times do I have to tell you not to argue in front of dinner?"

  "Sorry," I mutter, glaring at my brother.

  It's his fault. I'm putting all the blame on him.

  She sighs. "Go finish your food, then help me clean up."

  That's exactly what Cole and I do after dinner, helping Mom clean up—with him shooting glares my way the whole time. I just ignore him, not wanting to anger Mom again. We're no longer children that need to be told twice. We're seventeen year olds—eighteen in a few months—who should know better.

  But I still mean what I said to my brother. He seriously needs to get over himself. His resentment toward Jake has gone on for too long. He needs to move on and devote his energy somewhere else.

  Jake doesn't even care about him. But I guess that's what pisses him off more. That the former doesn't see him as a threat whatsoever. That secretly, he wants Jake to hate him too.

  Th
ank God I don't have that kind of drama in my life.

  Chapter 3

  "Kirby is flirting with Jenna Simmons." Harper approaches me at my locker, looking pissed off, her gaze focused at something behind me.

  I turn to take a look, but she grabs my shoulders to stop me.

  "What are you doing? Don't look at them!"

  I roll my eyes at her dramatics and resume getting my things for next period. "I don't know what's the big deal here. You broke up with him, remember?"

  When Harper dumps a guy, she's done with him for good. She always moves on fast. Not the next day, exactly. But sometimes it doesn't even take a week. So why is she acting this way toward Kirby? Does she still secretly want him? If so, then why the heck did she break up with him?

  I don't understand her sometimes.

  "Yeah, yesterday! He's not supposed to move on that fast. I'm not even thinking about dating another guy just yet." She narrows her eyes, still staring in the same direction.

  Before she can stop me, I do the same.

  Sure enough, Kirby is standing right next to Jenna at her locker. He has a huge grin on his face, which is mirrored on her own.

  My eyes widen. "Oh."

  "Oh? What does that mean?" Harper demands, sounding a little panicky.

  I quickly turn back to my locker, closing it. "Nothing."

  "It didn't sound like nothing." When I don't respond, she persists. "Callie, tell me."

  Pulling my bottom lip between my teeth, I finally turn to her. "Okay, here's the thing. That dopey look on his face?"

  "Yeah? What about it?"

  "I've seen that look before."

  "When?"

  "Whenever he was staring at you."

  She blinks at me a few times until it dawns on her. Pain crosses her features for a moment before she gives me a tight smile. "So, he really has moved on."

  Or maybe he's just making her jealous. I've always thought that Kirby liked Harper more than she liked him. The whole time they were together, he didn't dare to show any interest in other girls. Not even to look at them twice. His eyes remained fixed on my best friend.