My home was a reflection of my weird life choices too. Instead of buying a nice house with nature as my backyard, like my brothers had, I’d opted for a brownstone loft with high ceilings and a shitty elevator that didn’t always work. I’d gone for marble and stainless steel instead of oak and a fireplace.
Maybe I should?—
The doorbell rang, and I took a breath and shut my closet. My kid brother was here.
I could question my whole damn life later.
I crossed my bedroom and the living room, then opened the door for him in the hallway.
He was holding two takeout boxes, and he lifted his brows at me. “When you said you had a date, I assumed you were gonna cancel… Now I’m seein’ you in sweatpants? I don’t think my brain can handle that shock, bro.”
I refrained from rolling my eyes and opened the door wider. “Nice to see you too, Lias.”
He smirked and entered. “Disgusting gyros for you, no bread, no fries, no sauce, extra lettuce.”
I accepted the takeout container and closed the door again.
Lias didn’t shy away from wearing his flannel shirts. Then again, nobody in our family did, aside from me. We were definitely a flannel and jeans family.
The game was about to start, so I’d prepared the coffee table in the living room with napkins, utensils, and beverages. Coke for him, water for me. ’Cause God forbid I had a fucking soda every now and then.
While I sat down on the couch and flipped the lid of my gyro salad, Lias did the same with his container. Except, he’d ordered a chicken kebab with all the fixings. Crunchy fries, pita bread, garlic sauce, and spicy sauce.
“How’s work?” I asked. I worried about him up there sometimes. Lias had grown up as the family clown who lovedto be around people, but ever since his girlfriend had broken up with him, he’d become a hermit. He lived and breathed the campground he’d opened a few years ago up near Coho Pass. Ma had to bribe or threaten him to come down for family dinners.
“It’s steady.” He bobbed his head and opened his soda. “Shit usually slows down this month, but so far, so good.”
Nice. I bet it helped that they were predicting a fairly warm September.
Even I went up there sometimes. He had both cabins and tents for rent—and a few old silver bullets he’d fixed up. Plus, the area was stunning, packed with hiking trails and activities. I kept my kayak and climbing gear at his place.
If it didn’t take so long to get there, I might’ve shown Natalie around. If one of the easy trails didn’t do it for her, she could try bouldering, kayaking, orienteering, or?—
“So, the date was a bust?” Lias asked.
“Yup.” I stuck my fork into my salad and regretted not ordering the pita. “She didn’t even deserve an Ethan Quinn signature kiss.”
“Urgh.” Lias grimaced. “You should speak less.”
I shot him a glare. “Kid, you’re the one who wanted to come here tonight. Ain’t my fault your TV doesn’t work.”
“Where am I supposed to go?” he demanded. “Ryan’s not in town, Ma worries too much, Willow’s busy, Elise and Avery are having a goddamn board game night, and Darius is too happy these days. He smiles like every fucking day now. It’s sick.”
The annoyance kind of drained out of me, and I chuckled and returned to my food instead. In other words, he’d come to the brother who was miserable and alone like he was.
“It is kinda sick,” I admitted. “But don’t give him shit. He’s happy for the first time in ages.”
Darius had been a happy punk when we’d been young, not much unlike me, but his work had dragged him down over the years. I was happy he’d gotten together with Gray Nolan.
Nolan.
They weren’t actually related, were they? I understood Gray and his brothers didn’t sound Southern—they’d been born and raised here in town—but Chloe? Maybe she had a hint of a Southern accent, though nothing that could compare to Natalie. Besides, the type of South was different too. Natalie reminded me of an old college buddy from Georgia.
“Let’s just watch the game,” Lias muttered. “I’ll apologize for bein’ a dick once I have food in my stomach.”
I snorted under my breath.
“But I’m not completely out there,” he added. “I’m not the first to say you have some serious douchebag tendencies.”
