“Same,” she said. “It’s just about done. Come on in, I’ll get it.”
I glanced toward Roland’s cottage, slightly afraid I’d see him peeking out the front door, looking for me. But I didn’t see any sign of him. I went in and shut the door behind me, then ran to the bathroom.
When I came out, I sat on the couch. Brynn brought me a mug of black coffee.
“Thanks,” I said and took a sip. My stomach was still not happy with me, but I was pretty sure I could handle the coffee.
She sat down with her mug. “Sure. Although I can’t decide if I love you or hate you right now.”
“Sorry,” I said. “But let’s be honest, tequila and good choices don’t exactly go together. And we had fun, right?”
“True, and yeah, we did,” she said. “When should I try to eat?”
“How much did you puke last night?” I asked.
“A lot.”
“You poor thing,” I said. “I’m sorry. Drink some coffee and we’ll go from there.”
“It’s fine,” she said. “Maybe this is dumb, but I’m glad you didn’t stop me last night. You’re the only person around here who doesn’t treat me like a child. It’s kind of cool that you let me be stupid.”
I smiled. “I guess… you’re welcome? I don’t know, sometimes I think I’m too old to be stupid like that anymore.”
“You’re not old,” she said.
“I’m going to be thirty-one soon,” I said. “Maybe not old, but I can’t keep pretending my twenty-first birthday was just a few years ago.”
“Well, maybe you’re just living it up now because when you were twenty-one, you were already married and stuff.”
I took another sip. “I lived it up a lot then, too. I think you were just too little to notice.”
She laughed. “Even with Roland?”
“Especially with Roland,” I said.
“No way,” she said. “Roland is the world’s biggest stick-in-the-mud ever.”
“He wasn’t back then,” I said. “Have I really never told you any of the crazy shit we did?”
“No,” she said. “But I’ve always avoided asking you about Roland. I didn’t want to make it awkward. But you better tell me now. That’s your payment for this brutal hangover I’m suffering through.”
“Aw, poor baby Brynn,” I said, patting her cheek. “Let’s see, crazy stuff I did with Roland. Where do I even begin? When we were in high school, I got us fake IDs. We’d drive over to Tilikum and party with all the college kids at the bars.”
“That sounds fun,” she said. “What else?”
“The principal caught us making out under the bleachers one day when we were supposed to be in class,” I said. “We both got detention. To get back at him, we broke into his office and had sex on his desk during school hours. But at some point, my ass hit the intercom and turned it on, so the entire school heard us.”
“Holy shit, that was you?” Brynn asked. She clutched her head. “Ow, that hurts. But oh my god, Zoe, that was you and Roland? People were still talking about that when I went to high school there. It’s a school legend.”
I laughed. “Yeah, that was us.”
“I always swore it couldn’t be true,” she said. “Did you get caught?”
“No,” I said. “The intercom thing happened right as we were finishing. Then we escaped out the window.”
“That’s insane,” she said. “I can’t believe Roland would ever do that.”
“Oh, we had sex in all kinds of messed up places,” I said. “We’d been about to go at it under the bleachers when we got caught.”
“Where else?” she asked.
“Um… I don’t know, bathrooms, dressing rooms. The boys’ locker room during a football game. We broke into the Lodge once and did it in the hot tub. Probably about half the rooms in your parents’ house. They caught us once, but we were a little older, and they just pretended like they hadn’t seen anything.”
“Oh god, that’s mortifying,” she said.
I shrugged. “I guess. It didn’t really bother me back then. I don’t think I’d feel the same if your mom walked in on me now.”
“I would die,” she said. “I don’t even want my mom to know I’ve ever had sex.”
“I don’t blame you,” I said. “Although your mom is so awesome, you know she’d be cool about it. My mom, however… not so much. My poor mother had no idea what to do with me.”
Brynn laughed. “Well, if you were having sex on the principal’s desk, I can see why.”
“Yeah, my older brother was always this really mellow guy,” I said. “He never got in trouble. Then I came along. I was an oops baby, so my parents didn’t see me coming from the beginning. I’m surprised they survived my teenage years.”
“Did they like Roland?” she asked.
“Yeah, they loved him,” I said. “I think they hoped he’d calm me down. Which he kind of did, eventually. Or maybe I calmed down on my own, I don’t know. I’m surprised your parents still speak to me after all the trouble I got Roland into.”
“My mom loves you,” she said. “You’re just one of her kids, now.”
I looked down into my coffee and smiled. It was true. I’d always felt like Shannon had adopted me into their family. And my gratitude that it hadn’t changed in the last four years was deeper than I could properly express.
“So, since we’re sharing,” Brynn said, “where did you sleep last night?”
I groaned. “Next door.”
“You mean, next door with my brother?” she asked.
“Yep.”
“On the couch, or in bed?” she asked.
“Nosy bitch,” I said, elbowing her. “In bed. Dressed. He did it to fuck with me, but the joke’s on him because I didn’t wake up and flip out like he thought I would.”
“Wait, Roland played a joke on you?” she asked. “I don’t think that’s actually my brother. He must be someone else who looks like him.”
I laughed, but it made me sad to hear her say that. She didn’t know Roland at all. Or maybe she did, and the Roland I’d known had been nothing but a phase.
“How’s that coffee treating you?” I asked. “Ready to try food?”
“Maybe?”
I patted her leg. “Let’s give it a shot. I know just the place.”
12
Roland
Damn it, she was gone.
I’d gone to sleep looking forward to what’d she’d do this morning when she woke up with me. But she’d crept out while I was still asleep. I’d woken to the sound of her closing the front door. She’d been quiet—obviously trying to leave without waking me up—but I’d heard her.
Where did she have to go in such a hurry? It wasn’t like I was some stranger. I hadn’t taken her clothes off, just her shoes. She’d fucking puked in my bathroom while I held her hair, and she couldn’t even stay to thank me?
I wondered if it had anything to do with her douchebag not-boyfriend.
I glanced at the time. It was odd to have slept so late. I was always up early, even on weekends. But I’d slept better than I had in a long time. I didn’t want to think about why. It must have been having a warm body next to me. These guest cottages got cold at night.
I rolled over and caught a whiff of Zoe on my sheets. Instant erection. Fuck. I hated the way she still did that to me. I was not a horny teenager with no control over his dick. Those days were long over. As were my days of being turned on by Zoe.
Ex-wife, Roland. She’s your ex-wife. Emphasis on the ex part.
My phone buzzed on the nightstand. A text from Cooper.
Cooper: OMG so hungover. Need sustenance. Wanna come?
Me: Where?
Cooper: Ray’s Diner
Me: That place is still open?
Cooper: Ya. Best breakfast ever.
Cooper: Come with me. Chase being a dick and won’t.
Cooper: I need a breakfast buddy.
I shook my head. A breakfast buddy? Was he twel
ve? Although Ray’s Diner did have great breakfast, especially when you were hungover. Zoe and I had—
Nope. Didn’t matter who I’d been there with in the past. But their breakfast did sound good, so I texted Cooper that I’d meet him there.
Coop looked rough when I got to the diner. He wore a pair of aviator sunglasses and his hair was messier than usual.
“You look awful,” I said as I sat in the booth across from him.
“Shh. You don’t have to yell.”
“I’m not yelling,” I said. “I’m talking in a normal voice.”
“Oh my god, stop talking,” Cooper said, touching his temples.
“Have too much fun last night?” I asked, practically whispering.
“You could say that,” Cooper said. “That is the last time I play Never Have I Ever with hard liquor. But those assholes had it in for me. The game was rigged.”
“How do you rig Never Have I Ever?” I asked.
“By asking questions they know I’ll have to drink to. Every. Single. Fucking. Time.”
“Who were you with?” I asked.
“Just some friends,” he said. “No, wait. Ex-friends. Fuck those guys.”
The waitress came to our table holding a glass coffee pot. She looked to be in her fifties, with smile lines around her eyes and gray roots showing in her bleached blond hair. She looked familiar, and I wondered if she was the same waitress who’d worked here ten years ago when I’d been more of a regular.
Cooper grinned up at her as she filled our coffee mugs.
“Hey, Jo,” he said, whipping off his sunglasses. “You’re looking especially beautiful this morning.”
Jo grinned at him. “Thank you, sugarplum. You look like hell, but I’d still take you home with me.”
“Of course you would,” he said. “And it would be mind-blowing. We should really take our flirtation to the next level someday.”
“As if you could handle this much woman,” she said with a wink. “What can I get you, baby?”
“Jo, I feel like death warmed over and the only cure is your Sunday special,” he said.
“It’s not Sunday,” she said.
“Isn’t it? I lost track,” he said. “But please, Jo. If I ask really nice? What if I give you a back rub? It could be a sexy back rub. I’ll grind your ass while I do it. Trust me, it will be worth it. I give amazing back rubs.”
Jo appeared to be trying very hard to keep a straight face.
“Please, Jo,” Cooper said, sliding off the bench seat and dropping to his knees in front of her. “Do you want me to beg? I’m not too proud. I need what only you can give me.”
“Get up,” she said, a laugh finally escaping her lips. “One Sunday special.”
“You are a goddess,” Cooper said, getting back into the booth. “The sun rises and sets at your command, O gorgeous one.”
Jo rolled her eyes and looked at me. “Sunday special for you too, honey?”
“Sounds great,” I said, and she left to take our orders to the kitchen.
“Where’s Chase?” I asked.
Cooper slumped and slipped his glasses back on. “Home. He didn’t want to get up. I think his exact words were, let me die in peace, you asshole.”
The bell jingled as the door opened behind me. Cooper sat up straight and pulled his sunglasses off again, his face lighting up with a smile.
“Brynncess!”
I glanced over my shoulder. Our little sister Brynn came in, followed closely by Zoe. I should have known. They’d been drinking last night. Of course Zoe would have brought her here for a morning-after breakfast.
Zoe met my eyes and I regretted my decision to have her sleep at my place. Now it just felt awkward and weird. I should have let Ben take her home.
“Hey, Coop,” Brynn said. She looked as bad as Cooper.
“Brynncess, my baby sister,” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me you were in town?”
She rolled her eyes, hesitating at the booth behind us. I really hoped she and Zoe would sit there instead of with us.
“I only got here yesterday,” she said. “I was going to text you later. I’m just… not feeling great.”
Zoe slid into the booth. She was right behind me, but that was fine. Better than next to me. Or worse, across the table where I’d have to avoid looking at her.
“What’s the matter?” Cooper asked. “You sick?”
“Um, no.” Brynn sat with Zoe. “I’m fine, Coop. I just need some breakfast.”
Cooper’s eyebrows drew in and he glanced at me, then back at the girls. “What are you doing way over there? Come sit.”
“I love you, Coop, but you’re a little much for me this morning,” she said. “Let me eat first.”
He slumped in his seat again and crossed his arms.
“Quit pouting,” I said. “She’s fine.”
“My best friend won’t get out of bed to have breakfast with me,” he said. “And my baby sister doesn’t want to sit with me. This is the most depressing day ever.”
I didn’t blame Brynn for wanting to sit behind us. Cooper was a lot to handle, and Brynn must have felt like shit after her night with Zo.
Jo brought our breakfasts—two huge plates piled high with eggs, hash browns, French toast, sausage links, and bacon—and Cooper gushed at her again, promising to marry her when he decided to settle down. Thankfully, the food seemed to distract Cooper from his pouting.
I ate in silence for a while. There wasn’t much need for me to talk—Cooper did enough of it by himself. He babbled between bites about everything—the winery, his vineyards, a movie he’d seen last week, the game of basketball he’d played with some friends. Apparently he still had it. I just nodded occasionally. I wasn’t used to this much Cooper-time.
Brynn’s voice behind me caught my attention. She was speaking softly, but I could still hear her.
“I just feel stupid, you know?” she said.
“Don’t,” Zoe said. “None of this is your fault. You need to get that through your head right now. Do not blame yourself for Austin being a douchebag.”
“I know,” Brynn said. “But how am I going to face everyone back at school? They’re all going to know.”
“Fuck them,” Zoe said. “All of them. If they judge you because of this, they’re shitty people and don’t deserve your time.”
I wasn’t trying to listen, but Cooper had miraculously quieted down, so it was impossible not to hear them. Austin must have been the guy who cheated on Brynn. God, I hated the idea of her having a boyfriend at school. And one who cheated on her? The idea of it made my blood run hot.
No one deserved to be cheated on—ever—but Brynn was so young. How old was she, now? Nineteen? Twenty? She must have turned twenty on her last birthday. Holy shit, that’s how old Zoe had been when we’d gotten married. Had we really been that young?
“Look,” Zoe said, “obviously Austin was not the love of your life. Think of him as a learning experience. We all have them.”
“Yeah, I guess,” Brynn said.
Was that what I was to Zoe? A learning experience?
“You’re young,” Zoe said. “You should be having fun right now. There’s no need for serious. Go back to school and have a fling or something. Get that jackass out of your system.”
Have a fling? That was the advice Zoe had for my little sister?
I shifted in my seat so I was partially turned around. “A fling?”
Brynn raised her eyebrows, and Zoe glanced back at me.
“What about a fling?” Zoe asked.
“That’s what you’re telling her to do?” I asked.
“Why not?” Zoe asked. “She’s a twenty-year-old woman who just suffered a breakup. A fling is a great way to get over someone.”
“Breakup?” Cooper asked, as if he’d suddenly realized the rest of us were still here. “Brynncess, did someone break up with you?”
“Cooper, it’s fine,” she said. “Don’t.”
Cooper got up and sli
d into the booth next to Brynn, but I wasn’t paying attention to them.
“How is that good advice?” I asked Zoe.
She turned so she was facing me, her eyes blazing. “Excuse me?”
“It’s a fair question,” I said. “You’re telling an impressionable girl—who has always looked up to you like you’re a rock star—to go be some guy’s fuck buddy for a while?”
“Okay, first, you said fuck buddy, not me,” she said. “Second, she’s a woman, not a girl.”
Cooper’s voice rose. “Brynncess, I will beat the shit out of that sniveling little punk.”
“Cooper, stop,” Brynn said.
I ignored Cooper, my eyes still on Zoe. “Regardless, just because you have some guy who gets in your pants without any commitment doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for Brynn.”
“Is that what this is about?” she asked. “I’ve already told you, Van is none of your business.”
“No, who you sleep with is definitely none of my business,” I said. “We are in complete agreement there. But it is my business when you start putting shitty ideas in my sister’s head.”
“Seriously?” she asked. “You haven’t seen Brynn in a year and a half, and suddenly you think you get to worry about her?”
“She’s my fucking sister, Zoe.”
“And she’s not mine?” Zoe asked. “I’m not a Miles anymore, so I don’t get to be the one to help her through a crisis? That’s bullshit, Roland. You can’t waltz in here and act like you have all the answers when you don’t even give a shit.”
Her words stung—a lot. A hot ball of anger coiled in my gut.
“How the fuck would you know what I care about?” I asked. “This is my family. Of course I give a shit.”
“Could have fooled me,” she said.
What the hell had just happened? How did we go from my sister having a fling to Zoe throwing my relationship with my family in my face?
“This isn’t about me,” I said.
“I thought everything was about you,” she said.
“Why the fuck are we fighting about this?” I pulled out my wallet and tossed some money on the table. I needed to get out of here. “Don’t tell my sister to do stupid shit.”
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