“Too much detail.” Still, I took the baby Brooks had wrapped up in a blanket like a burrito, and settled on the couch with him in my arms, a pillow underneath for support. I found the perfect forty-five-degree angle for the bottle without even trying—thanks to my great architect instincts.
The little guy blinked up, trusting me because of course, I was the Greatest Uncle.
“Look at him, like a little bean.” My nephew was adorable.
“Not so little anymore. We call him a ham now, with the way he’s growing.”
“Cannot even imagine we were this small once. Think Dad ever fed us like this?”
“Nope, the bastard left it all to Mom, without a doubt. Couldn’t have been easy with twins. She probably became really good at timing our feeding schedules just right.” Brooks settled across from me, and as if we had the ability to read each other’s thoughts, that was the end of speaking of our parents. We’d long ago dealt with the demise of our family unit and decided we were better off not dwelling on the past.
“I can’t get over how quiet it is around here. Our place with two kids, crazy loud. But this penthouse is like heaven.” He sat across from me, leaned back, his hands folded behind his head.
“Welcome to my world. Only I spent the past two weeks wandering around this place going stir crazy. You should have brought Everett over every day. I could have used a little emotional support bean.”
“Maybe you need a dog. Keep you company, loyal, loving.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
He studied me. “So what now, since you’ve had all this time on your hands to think?”
I shrugged. “I’ve been making lists of things to do around here. Adding built-in bookshelves. Knocking down a wall. Finally hanging up things on the walls that I meant to do four years ago. Real domestic stuff.”
He shot me a look. “I meant with your life, not your home.”
I exhaled. “Oh. Well. That’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it? Who am I if I’m not the guy working twenty hours a day?”
“Maybe the guy who finally lives a little.” He continued and talked about when he had made the decision to scale back and follow his passion for teaching at the university level, making time for Maisy and the kids.
I had to admit, slowing down had certain merit as each day went by and I didn’t have to put on a suit. “I could step back and take some time off from the office. Like you, chase something new. But I don’t know what.”
“Good. I’d support that. Take all the time in the world to explore what you want to do. Start by coming to my classes as a guest speaker. The students would love to have your real-world stories and insights.” He paused for a breath. “You know, we could even drop theBrothers.Let it be Bellamy Architecture, not a shrine to our burnout. Involved when we want to be, hands off more often, especially with good people in place running it.”
“Make more time for things that are important.” I gazed into the baby’s sweet face, a lump forming in my throat. Gettingemotional about random things was another part of my healing process, apparently.
“Forpeoplewho are important. Does Penny fit into that plan?”
I didn’t answer right away. He saw it anyway through our twin connection.
“Arch, you may be my brother, but you were a fucking idiot to her that first day in the hospital. What the hell happened between you two?”
I filled him in.
He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair when I was through. “At Friendsgiving, everyone saw how good she was for you. She pulled you out of Dark Mode, back to regular old Archer. I get you were hurt; she should have shared all with you, but I think her heart was in the right place.”
“I know.”
“And she’s not Brianne.”
“I know.”
“So what do you want, Arch?”
“What you have.”
“Then let yourself have it. Call her.”
“What if I make a mistake, or do something that pushes her away for good?”
