“She wants you and Kat there for the evening.”
That sounds fun. “Yeah, might give that a miss, bro.”
His scowl deepens. “It wasn’t a request.”
Fuck that. I wanted to hang out with Amelia. Does she spend the whole day with her family? I guess she does. Would she leave her mom on Christmas Day to come see me?
What. The. Fuck.I’m as pussy-whipped as my brother. It’s hard not to snort with laughter, but the mood Zach’s in, he’d probably give me a black eye.
“Something funny?” He sounds ready to launch at me whatever I respond.
“Just thinking.” Not that I’m going to share what I was thinking. I’m still trying to figure it out myself.
“It’s not for my benefit,” he says, eyes narrowed in warning. “I’d rather spend the day just me and her. It’s Grace. She thinks families should be together at Christmas.”
I can’t help myself. “Why isn’t she spending it with hers, then?”
Zach gives a shudder, and while he’s still glowering, he no longer looks as though he’d like to punch my brains out. “We are. Four hours of torture. Fuck, the things I do for that girl.”
Amelia could split the day between her family and me. I’m down for that. “Still can’t make it. I’ve plans.”
“You’ll be there.” It’s a threat, and I can’t help smirking. My big brother, led around by the dick by his girlfriend. “Bring the chick if you have to.”
My smirk freezes. He and Ty are best friends. Of course he knows about Amelia. Except he just invited her to a family thing. You don’t do that for random chicks. How does he know she’s more than that?
I grunt in response, not sure if I even care that he’s guessed Amelia is more than just a hookup. Doesn’t change things. Why the hell would she want to tag along to some boring family get together?
“I want to give Grace Mom’s ring.”
Shock punches through me, and finally he has my whole attention. So, this is the reason he came around. It had nothing to do with inviting me over for Christmas, because he could have done that in a text.
Not this, though. I don’t know what to say.
He shifts his weight and rolls his shoulders, obviously waiting for my response. “You sure?” I manage at last, my voice guarded. “You’ve only known her a month.”
“Nearly two.”
My point still stands but clearly not for my brother. And while I’ve known for weeks that he’s serious about Grace, we’ve never talked about it. Fuck, it’s not the kind of thing you talk about. ButMom’s ring?
Before she died, our mom gave Kat her grandmother’s engagement ring, which Mom had always worn, and the other two rings that Dad had bought her had passed on to Zach and me with the understanding they were for our old ladies.
I grip the back of my neck and let out a long breath. “You told Kat yet?”
“Nah. Wanted to let you know first.”
“Have you asked Grace?”
“We’ve talked about it.” He shrugs and avoids my eyes. I pour us both a coffee, mainly to give us both some space. As brothers go, we’re close, and we’ve been through a lot together. There’s no one else I’d trust more to have my back, but it’s all action with us, not emotional shit.
“Big church wedding?” It’s not necessary, but somehow I know marriage is what Zach wants when it comes to making Grace his old lady.
“If that’s what she wants.” He swallows half his coffee before placing the mug in the sink. “Catch you later.” He’s clearly relieved to have gotten this conversation out of the way, and as he strolls out, I frown.
While I’ve every intention of getting out of the family thing Grace is planning, it’s a reminder that Christmas is only a few days away. And I want to be with Amelia. Which means I need to get her something.
I’ve never bought a chick anything before, unless you count drinks or dope, and then it was only as a prelude to sex. I go into the living room, but the change of scene doesn’t give me a brainwave in the chick-gifts department.
It reminds me of last night, though, and a weird warmth fills my chest. I sprawl on a chair and search the web on my cell, but can’t pull up her name. Huh. Shouldn’t she be online if she’s selling ebooks?
