“I think he’d be disappointed in me if he were still alive,” I manage after a long moment.
Mom clicks her tongue. “Nonsense. Why on earth do you think that?”
The weight of that broken promise presses down again. I swallow hard, shame and grief tangling in my throat. “I made him a promise when he was sick… and I think I broke it last night.”
Her eyebrow flicks upward, but she doesn’t speak. Just waits.
I rake my hands through my hair. “He told me to stop screwing around with women who didn’t mean anything to me. Said I was wasting time I coudn’t get back. He wanted me to take things more seriously.”
Mom’s lips press into a thin line. “Is that why you haven’t been dating like you used to?”
I shrug. “I kept that promise, Mom. For five years, I did. But last night...” I drag my hand down my face. “I don’t know.”
Mom slides a plate of bacon and eggs onto the table in front of me and sits down.
“That’s why you think he’d be disappointed in you?”
I nod, not sure if my voice will hold out if I use it right now.
Mom reaches out, her fingers brushing my arm. “Sweetheart, just because he was dying doesn’t mean he had all the answers. Don’t give his words more weight than they deserve.”
My brow furrows. “What are you saying?”
“Do you really think your father didn’t have a time in his life when he was screwing around just as much as you were?”
I clear my throat. “Uh, yeah. That’s exactly what I thought.”
She smirks. “He was just as wild as you were in his early twenties. I know because I’m the one who had to wrangle him and tie him down.” She winks. “Make your own path in life, Tripp. You always have before, and you’ve been happier for it.”
The weight on my chest eases, and I take a bite of my bacon.
“Now, tell me,” she says lightly. “Does this have anything to do with Quinn Dawson?”
I freeze mid-chew and my gaze snaps to hers. “Why would you ask that?”
She laughs at whatever expression I’m making. “Well, I heard something about you carrying her out of Herds the other night.”
Shit.
This town’s a rumor mill, and if Mom’s already hearing whispers, it’s only a matter of time before Wes does too.
“I was just making sure she got home safe, that’s all. She had too much to drink.”
“How chivalrous.” She gives me a knowing look but doesn’t push it—she’s good like that.
I finish the rest of my breakfast in silence, letting Mom’s words roll around in my head.
She’s right. I’ve been living in the shadow of that promise for so long, I forgot what it felt like to allow myself towantsomeone.
And God help me, I want Quinn.
But wanting her and actuallyhavingher aren’t the same thing. Not when it’s Wes’ little sister.
By the time I leave the house, the guilt’s shifted. It’s not just about Dad’s promise anymore—it’s about Wes. About crossing a line we’d both always known was there.
I would be a complete idiot not to take Quinn up on her offer. But as Wes rides toward me on Luci, I can’t ignore the obvious. This would, without a doubt, be breaking bro code.
Thou shalt not fuck thy bro’s sister.
