Strung (Rock & Romance I.)

Chapter 42. - Holding Back

A/N: Alright. I realize I promised this would be out earlier in the week, but prepping for our NYC trip messed up my timeline. I hope you can forgive me. Please enjoy!

This one is dedicated to ruiningmypretending! Thank you for the support!

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*Lukas*

"She loves me."

"What?" Ash snapped, attracting the attention of the three groupies who sat at the table a few feet away from us. We were at a small cookout at Brian and Nikki's house, surrounded by our closest friends and the few random chicks Ash always had hanging around. "Oh fuck, Lukas. I don't have time for this gay shit again!" He groaned.

I grinned. "Well, you're going to hear it anyways! She told me she loved me last night."

He huffed, sounding frustrated. "Of course she does. Anyone with a working pair of eyes could see the way she's been ogling you since the first time she ran you over with her hot coffee. I don't see what the big fucking deal is!"

"The big deal is-" I explained, leaning forward. "-that she's never said it before."

"I don't say to these chicks that we're going to have a foursome later." Ash nodded toward the groupies, who giggled and waved back. "Doesn't mean it's not true."

I rolled my eyes. "Can't you just get your head out of the gutter for once and be happy for me?"

"I'm ecstatic," Ash noted, with the enthusiasm of a corpse. "You being off the market just means that there's more left for me." He winked at one of the girls, who blushed a bright shade of red. "You think her tits are natural?"

I frowned. "Doubtful. But I thought you liked them a little busty."

My best friend shrugged. "Eh. I'm tired of the feel of plastic in my hands. It's like fucking a blow-up doll - I've had enough of pocket pussies in high school."

"Asher!" Natalie Wolfhart, Ash and Jesse's mom scolded her son as she walked up to us, holding a plate filled with delicious meat in each hand. "You need to watch that mouth of yours, or I'll wash it out with soap!"

I laughed as Ash rolled his eyes. "Thanks, mom." He accepted his plate of food and moved over to make some room for his mother, the woman who basically raised me as well as the Wolfhart brothers.

"Your girlfriend seems like a very nice girl, Lukas." She smiled, turning to me. "You should bring her around next time you come to visit us. I'd love to get to know her better."

"Mom, I'm sure she doesn't want to be interrogated by you." Ash snorted through a mouthful of food, but my attention was on the small, dark-haired girl across the yard. She was chopping up vegetables with her redhead friend, smiling widely at something the other girl said, and my heart skipped a beat.

She was in love with me.

"I'd love to. I'm sure London is curious to meet the woman who got stuck with the three of us."

Natalie's expression was warm and open as I glanced back over at her, her dark eyes smiling with so much love. "I was lucky to have the three of you. I still am." She sighed wistfully. "Now I can only hope that I'll be fortunate enough to be a grandmother in the very near future." She all but nudged Ash, who looked less than thrilled about that idea.

"I'm sure you already have thousands of grandkids out there- Ow!" He chuckled as she landed one on the back of his head. "Calm down, woman! I know how to wrap it up."