He punches my shoulder on his way to the kitchen while I take a left to my bedroom, Logan’s quietassholehitting my ears as I pull fresh clothes from the closet.
“That’s one!” I shout back. “Why don’t you take five minutes to remember what it was like when you were in my shoes.”
“I wouldn’t fucking fit in your shoes, bro,” he snaps, annoyed but nowhere near as angry as I expected. “Shut up, let me think, and get a move on. We’re late.”
“It’syourparty. The guys won’t leave without you.”
“If you don’t start moving, I’ll leave withoutyou.”
Ever since Blair crawled into my bed, I’ve imagined my brothers’ reaction if they found out about us. I wondered how much shouting I’d have to endure, how pissed they’d be on a scale of one to ten, and how long Nico would growl, snap, and avoid me.
How hard would he punch? Would he break my nose or rein his temper enough that I’d only end up with a black eye?
I was jittery and restless when these thoughts overwhelmed me, my stomach tied into elaborate knots, anxiety chewing at the edge of my mind.
But now that Blair’s mine, my head is quiet.
Logan just caught me red-handed. I should think of the best way to lie my way out of this, but I don’t. No matter what he might say, or if he demands I come clean today, I’m not nervous. I know what I want.
I’m ready to face the consequences.
Once I step back into the kitchen, showered, dressed, and wheeling my small suitcase, the atmosphere makes my skin crawl.
Fine, maybe I am a littlenervous after all.
“So?” Logan prompts, handing me a cup. “Are we just gonna pretend nothing happened, or will you start talking?” He leans against the counter, sipping his steaming americano. “I know who lives across the hall, so tell me... what were you thinking?”
“I found her,” I say simply, looking him dead in the eye.
“Was she lost in her condo? Cody, I’m a patient person. I have two kids, so patience is necessary, but if you don’t start explaining, I can’t promise I won’t fucking hit you.” He sets the cup aside, grinding his teeth, the reaction he’s kept in check thus far blowing up in my face.
He’s fifteen feet away, but his shoulders tense so hard I can fucking see it. His posture changes from careless to a statue, and along with his posture, the atmosphere shifts, the air heavy, loaded with tension.
“Fuck, Cody,” he clips, starting off resigned, but his voice grows sharper with every word. “Blair? Seriously? What the hell were you thinking?”
“I wasn’t,” I admit, plopping down on the couch. We’re not going anywhere until this conversation is over. “I didn’t expect it would go this far. There’s more to Blair than meets the eye, Logan. She told me about her past, the bullying, why she was doing it, and—”
“She burned Mia’s hair! You have any idea how pissed Nico was when he found out? How long it took to calm the fucker down? and you...” He massages his temples with both hands. “You were going out of your way last year to keep Nico from hurting Mia. Now you’re fucking around with the girl who did nothing else? That’s...” He trails off, clearly at a loss for words.
“We’re not fucking around. Not anymore. She’s my Cass, Logan.” I pump my fists, clenching and unclenching to rid the inferno behind my ribs. He has every right to ask questions. I’m sure it’s a walk in the park compared to what Nico will put me through, but thatfucking aroundcomment just rubs me the wrong way. “She’s my Thalia, Mia, Vee...mygirl,” I add to clarify. “I know it’s complicated.”
“No shit,” he huffs, but his tone is gentler as he runs a hand down his face. “Fuck. If this is how you see her... it changes things.” He stares at me over his coffee, taking another long sip.
Logan and I have grown closer since I became Noah’s favorite uncle. Or maybe it’s because I’m no longer an annoying teenager that we get along better.
My dynamic with all four of my older brothers has changed over the past two years, but Logan and I are similar on more levels than we realized.
He gets me. Sometimes pulls thoughts straight from my head like Colt and Conor do.
“Love is always complicated. Name one of us who had it easy?” he challenges but doesn’t wait for an answer. “We’ve all been through shit to get our happy ever after.”
“This is as close to you and Cass as it gets, so you’re my best hope for support.”
“That’s why you were happy I caught you sneaking out of her condo, not one of the others, right?”
“Yeah. You’re least likely to bite my head off.” I crack my knuckles and straighten my spine, setting my empty cup on the coffee table. “Tell me what I’m supposed to do.”
“You wantme totell you what to do? Don’t get me wrong, bro...” he pauses, pulling a dumb fucking face.
