"We need to at least try to get past this, for Mum and Dad."
Luc drummed his fingertips against the laptop lid. "I offered to move out."
"That won't help." Well, it would, but there was no way they would be able to explain Luc's departure to their parents.
"At least we wouldn't be in each other's faces all the time."
"You'll be gone in a couple of weeks," Adam reminded him. "We need to try to forget about our... problem... until then."
Luc huffed out a breath. "Problem?"
Adam threw his hands up in frustration. "I'mtrying, Luc. This is really hard for me."
"And you think it isn't hard for me? That wanting to be with you hasn't made my life hell since I was fourteen years old?" Luc spat the words out, obviously trying to keep quiet despite the anger oozing from his voice. He closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a slow breath.
Adam watched as a little of the tension slipped out of his brother's shoulders, making them drop a fraction. He found his gaze snagging on Luc's T-shirt, where the fabric met his long neck. Another detail he shouldn't be noticing. Nor should his mind have wondered, even for a fraction of a second, to what it would be like to kiss his brother's throat. He still couldn't understand why Luc's admission had sparked such thoughts which now ran riot in his head. He knew he had to find a way to get rid of them; they were driving him crazy.
"What are we going to do?" Luc asked miserably.
"I don't know," Adam admitted. "Pretend everything's okay? It would only be for another week."
"Yeah," Luc said. "I can do that. I've been pretending for a long time." He opened his eyes and stared directly into Adam's eyes. "The question is, can you? Because you're the one who's been freaking out the past few days."
Adam ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah, I know." He couldn't drag his gaze away from Luc's. Fuck, his brother had beautiful eyes: dark and intense. "I'm trying really hard not to." Not to what? Freak out? Or find a new detail about Luc to obsess over? He got up and stood behind his chair, gripping the seat back with his hands. "I might go and see Mason for a few days. Would that help?" It would definitely help him.
"Mason?" Luc's eyes grew wider, which only made them more attractive. "I didn't know you guys were still in touch with each other."
"He's one of my closest friends."
"And yourex," Luc said. "I don't have a good enough relationship with any of my exes to want to go and spend time with them."
"Mason's different." Adam couldn't imagine ever hating Mason enough to not want to keep in touch. Luc must have had some really messy breakups.
"Do you... still have feelings for him?" Luc asked.
Adam stiffened. He wanted to snap out a response. How he did or didn't feel about Mason was none of Luc's business. He knew why Luc was curious: he was wondering if Mason was an obstacle to Adam's affection. Never mind the fact they werestepbrothersprovided a fucking massive hurdle that was too big for either of them to jump.
He folded his arms. "No. We're just friends."
Luc flopped back a little in his chair. "Won't Mum and Dad miss you at the dance school?"
"The schools are on half term next week," Adam told him. "There are always tons of kids missing, so we tend not to run normal lessons. Some of the extra exam coaching sessions carry on, but Mum and Dad can handle those without me."
Luc nodded thoughtfully. "It might be a good idea then," he said, although he didn't look or sound convinced. "What's Mason doing these days?"
"Dancing," Adam said, feeling himself becoming even more rigid. "He got accepted into a touring company."
Which Luc would have known, if hadn't estranged himself. Luc would have known exactly when and why Adam and Mason had broken up.
"Jealous?" Luc asked.
Adam clenched his teeth. "No. I keep telling you, I'm happy being a teacher."
Luc scrunched up his lips but remained silent, although his chin did dip a little.
Adam was officially done with the conversation. He was done with being judged by Luc, who had no right at all to do so. So what if he hadn't followed his dream? He'd stayed to help their parents. Teaching was a valuable career and it wasn't like he'd stopped dancing.
"I'll get in touch with Mason," he muttered, backing away towards the door. "See if I can go stay with him for a bit." He'd have to sleep on a hotel floor somewhere, but he could handle that. It was better than being around Luc.
