Page 115 of Vegas with my Brother’s Best Friends

“We’re sorry to be talking to you about this in the middle of your reception, but we’re running out of time,” Marcus says from around the corner behind a cluster of palm trees.

“Running out of time to do what?” Ryan asks.

“To prove how much Cassidy means to the three of us,” Jackson replies.

“Seriously?” Ryan questions them. “I’ve told you how I feel about this.”

“You didn’t truly hear us out,” Tyler tells him. “We love Cassidy. Not in a casual way or a friendly way. Romantically.”

“Like how you love Sarah,” Marcus says.

My heart stops, my breathing ceasing. Did he really just say that?

“We shouldn’t have snuck around behind your back, but things were different then. We were just having fun and seeing where things took us, but everything has changed,” Jackson tells him. “She’s not just your sister to us. She’s her own person. She’s smart and ambitious and funny. There’s so much that we love about her.”

I swallow hard. I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone speak so highly of me.

Ryan sighs. “I love Cass. I just don’t see how a relationship between you and her works. How would that not overwhelm her? Or confuse her? What if you just end up hurting her?”

“That’s the last thing we want to do,” Marcus assures him. “There’s risk with any relationship, but we’re all in if she is. We’re leaving the decision with her.”

“Why find me then?” Ryan questions them.

“Because you’re our brother,” Tyler replies. “We value our friendship with you too, and we want you on board.”

“Your opinion matters. Not just to us but to Cassidy too. We respect that,” Jackson says.

My eyebrows lift. Can’t Ryan see how hard they’re trying?

“I didn’t like the lying. It broke my trust in you.”

“We’ll earn it back,” Marcus promises him. “But just know that your sister is safe with us. She’ll be loved and so will your niece or nephew.”

“I want her to be happy,” Ryan says after a few moments of silence. “If she wants to be with you, I’ll accept that. You’re right. She’s her own person. She should choose her own life. It’s not up to me.”

“You pretty much raised her. Of course, your instinct is to be protective,” Jackson replies.

“It’s a hard instinct to shake,” Ryan admits. “But I don’t want her to hate me. And I’m tired of fighting and being angry. It has just made me miserable.”

Tears brim my eyes. Sarah said Ryan was hurting, and it stings to imagine him like that. He might’ve raised me, but I want to look after him and protect him too.

“Can we just start over?” Tyler asks Ryan.

“No,” he says, making my stomach drop at first. “There’s no need. I know you’re good guys. I shouldn’t have acted like such an ass because the thought of you being with her made me feel weird.”

“It’s understandable,” Marcus replies with a little humor in his voice.

Ryan laughs a little. “So, what now? Do you talk to her?”

“That’s what we plan to do next,” Jackson says. “How she answers is going to change everything.”

“Good luck.”

I hear them slap hands and embrace, and despite the urge I feel to run out to them and tell them that I love them too, I stop myself.

Jackson is right. What I say to them is going to change everything. Not just for me but for them and the baby too.

If things go awry and we all break up, where does that leave us?