Who was this man?
We sat down together and busied ourselves with the menus and specials and ordering drinks. Once the table was clear between us except for a plate of bread and olive oil, things got quiet.
Dallas leaned back in his chair.
“What?” I asked, feeling as if I was under inspection. I hated it when people did that.
“Nothing. Just taking you in. I feel like I haven’t seen you in a long, long time. You’re all grown now.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’ve been grown for years, Dallas.”
He nodded, resting one of his forearms on the table. “I know. And that’s one of the reasons I wanted to see you while I’m in town. I wanted to apologize. For not being the brother I should have been for so many years.”
I almost fell out of my chair. Lea was right. He didn’t want something from me. At least, not yet.
“I’ve been thinking about you for so long and wanting to reach out, but I didn’t know if I should, or how to do it. And then I got the wedding invitation and it seemed like I’d have an opportunity.”
He inhaled and leaned forward. “I’m sorry for being a shitty brother, Vail. It’s one of my biggest regrets.”
I just stared at him for a few seconds. Waiting for the other shoe to drop. Waiting for him to say he was just joking. Waiting for the switch, the rug pull. I always expected it.
When he didn’t say any more and seemed to be waiting for me to respond, I didn’t know how to.
I was about to open my mouth and hope that something filled the silence when our server came with our drinks. A quick respite.
I nearly drained my Aperol spritz. I was going to need a second one immediately.
“I don’t know what to say.” At least that was the truth.
Dallas nodded. “I understand. This probably seems like it’s coming out of nowhere. But I’ve been working on myself for the past two years and making amends with you was one of the last things on my list. One of the hardest.” I wondered if this self-improvement kick had anything to do with the woman he’d been seeing. It would make sense.
“What else have you been working on?” I asked. Keep the spotlight on him to give me time to compose myself and figure out what was going on.
“New job. I went back to school and I’m a respiratory therapist now.” For the second time, I almost fell off my chair.
“What?”
He laughed. “I know. It doesn’t sound like something I’d do at all, does it?” Last I knew he was working for some terrible tech company. Our mother had been thrilled. The only way she would have been prouder was if he’d gotten into politics.
“But I love it. I go to work every day and help people breathe. I can’t explain it. I feel like I’m finally making use of myself. Instead of just making more and more money and spending it.”
“Does she know?”
He grinned. “She doesn’t. I’ve been lying to her about a lot of things.”
My eyes flew wide. Who was this man sitting across from me?
“What other things?”
He did something I’d never seen him do before. He blushed and rubbed the back of his neck.
Then he opened his mouth and then closed it, reaching to pull out his phone, unlocking it and pushing it across the table to me.
What was he doing?
Confused, I picked up the phone and looked at the screen. It was just the home with all his apps on it. What was I missing?
Then I focused more on his wallpaper.
