“And where is that?” I ask, unable to hold my smile.
“Fire pants hell,” Ollie grunts the last piece.
“Crikey, if you sing, youwilldefinitely be the worst man at my wedding,” Lori taunts him, ending the video when my brother flips him off.
My closed-mouth smile is short-lived as Ollie looks at me next, his eyes turning intense.
“What’s wrong?”
I frown. Sometimes I think Ollie has a sixth sense connected to my emotions. He can feel when I’m not alright, even if I give my best performance.
“You’re half smiling, Sully. Usually, my dance apology makes you laugh with tears.”
“While screaming inside,” Lori finishes. “You have ten seconds to confess.”
“Lor,” my brother scolds him.
But it’s too late. “Nine, eight.”
“Stop.”
“Seven, six.”
“I have…” I say at the same time he keeps counting down.
“Five.”
“…nothing to say.”
“Four. You know you’ll get cursed by Krampus if you lie to me.”
“Again with this nonsense,” I hear Ollie grumble.
“Okay! Okay,” I exclaim, exasperated by Lori’s theatrics. “I didn’t want to annoy you.”
“Too late,” he states shamelessly. “You are so transparent.”
“And you are not?” I counter, a little irritated by his forcefulness.
“But what a piece of…glass, right?” He makes a look-at-me pose. His brown curls are perfectly styled, and the makeup is light today. The burgundy velvet shorts and cable-knit cropped sweater under the long beige coat give him a classy look with an edge of slutty, thanks to the high boots on his feet. As always, Lori is stunning.
“Glass? Shut it, or I’ll shatter you,” my brother tells him, not even a little impressed.
“Why this bitchy? Oh, right, must be a full moon tonight,” Lori snipes.
Ollie glares at him, but Lori is kind of right; my brother could pass for a werewolf. He’s not tall, but he’s gained more muscles since he started training with Rague—who is built like a giant bear.
He focuses his attention back on me. “Look, I can imagine how tough all of this is right now. But you don’t need to have it all together. Nobody does, I can assure you. Don’t rush it. Trust the process. One breath at a time, one step at a time,” he reminds me of Meg’s mantra. Repeating it in my head has been helping me when I turn anxious or fearful. When dark memories rush back.
“You can always, always talk to us,” Lori adds.
I appreciate it, and I want to do it, but not with Ollie. He already has a lot on his plate with his job and the bar he opened with Rague. I’ll ask Lori for advice another time.
“If you’re here against your will, just say banana,” he whispers loudly, leaning over me. “I’ll come running. Well, one member of the sausage fest will. We all have your back.”
“Why banana?” I hear myself ask.
“It’s my favorite fruit.” He winks as he suggestively recreates the long, thick shape of the fruit in the air.
