"Maybe tomorrow," he says. "I'm supposed to help Toby with something this afternoon."
"How is Toby?"
"Basically living at the bar now. Which is good—he's happy, Knox adores him." Robin shrugs, but there's a tightness around his eyes. "Apartment's pretty quiet these days."
Robin finishes his croissant and looks around the kitchen, then through the doorway to the living room. Taking inthe space—the high ceilings, the empty walls, the dining table that's never been used.
"You know you've got a huge house for just you, right? Four bedrooms. For one person. Who's not even here half the time because he's at his boyfriend's place."
"Yeah." I shrug. "Too bad I hate roommates."
"Yeah." Robin shrugs back. "Too bad."
The silence stretches. Robin's looking at the empty dining table, the bare walls, the living room that still doesn't have enough furniture because I never bothered to buy more than the basics. This house was an investment, not a home. Somewhere to put my stuff while I figured out what I wanted.
I'm starting to figure it out.
"But," I say slowly, "I do really like living with my little brother."
Robin's head snaps toward me. "Yeah?"
"Yeah. I mean, if he wanted. There'd be ground rules."
"Like what?"
"No sex in public places. I do not need to be wondering why the couch is sticky."
Robin snorts.
"And I do not want to ever walk in on you. Ever. The bathroom door locks for a reason. Use it. And you have to have some standards in the guys you bring back here. Don't make me want to punch them."
Robin's smirking now, that knowing look he gets when he's about to call me on my bullshit. "You can just admit you're lonely and worried about me since Toby's so wrapped up in his lion. You don't have to pretend it's about ground rules."
"Fine." I meet his eyes. "The house is quiet. I don't like quiet. And yeah, I worry about you, alone in that apartment. Toby's basically living at the bar now, and you're paying rent on a place you barely use. It doesn't make sense. And I—" I stop,take a breath. "I missed you. The five years I was gone. I missed you every day, and now I'm back and we're both here and it seems stupid to live separately when we don't have to."
Robin's quiet for a moment, the smirk fading into something more real. More vulnerable.
"Toby's pretty much Knox's now," he says quietly. "Which is good—great, I'm happy for him—but I go back to the apartment and it's just... stuff. Furniture we picked out together, dishes that are half his, and none of it means anything anymore. It's expensive storage for a life I don't have."
"So move out."
"I can't afford anything else in this area. Not on what I make."
"You wouldn't be paying rent here." When he starts to protest, I hold up a hand. "You can contribute to groceries, utilities, whatever makes you feel better. But I own this house outright and I don't need your money. I need my brother."
Robin's eyes go bright. He blinks hard, looks away.
"So... yes?" His voice is rough. "If you're really okay having your little brother around. Even though I'll eat all your food and leave dishes in the sink and probably drive you crazy within a week?"
"Even then."
Robin's smile breaks through, bright and genuine, the way he used to smile when we were kids and something actually good happened. "Okay. Yeah. Let's do it."
"Good." I reach over and ruffle his hair, which he immediately bats away with a noise of protest. "Now stop looking at me like that. It's just a room."
"It's not just a room and you know it." He throws his napkin at me. "You're going soft, Ash Martinez. Jason's turning you into a person with feelings. An actual human being who admits he loves people and wants them around. It's disgusting."
"I've always had feelings."
