Whatever Will Be: Brother's Best Friend Romance

by Cora Brent

  He rubs a hand over his face. He thinks in silence for a moment and then nods before meeting my eye once more. “Whatever else Liam Cassini is, he is their father. And it’s true that they won’t get another chance to see him. If we keep them away now then someday we’ll have to explain why we didn’t allow them to have this opportunity.”

  Danny’s words have the wise ring of truth. As much as I hate the thought of exposing Mara and Caitlin to the trauma of seeing Liam Cassini, especially in this condition, time is running out.

  There won’t be another chance.

  Liam’s wife has begun to cry again, deep wracking sobs that shake her shoulders. She flinches when I touch her arm but calms down as she waits for my verdict.

  “I’ll go get them,” I tell her. “Tell Liam his daughters are on their way.”

  Trent steps forward. “I’ll drive.” He glances back at Danny. “You coming?”

  Danny nods. Trent slides an arm around my waist and I lean tiredly into his strength as we exit the hospital.

  Dawn is still hours away and the night sky is peaceful as Trent steers toward Lake Stuart. There is no longer an orange glow where the brewery used to be so the main fire must have been extinguished.

  I swivel my upper body so I can see around the front seat and look at my brother in the back. He gives me a smile of reassurance that takes me back to another time, a different day.

  On that day Danny had just watched his best friend being taken away in handcuffs, his father was in prison and he was on a mission to bring his little sister to a mental health facility. Two months later, I would return to find that our mother had moved out, Trent Cassini had been sent away to reform school and Jules had given up her college dreams to watch over us. But that day, with Jules behind the wheel, Danny in the backseat and Abigail Fisher’s voice filling my ears, my brother gave me the same crooked grin of encouragement.

  “I love you, Dan-O,” I say to him because I do and because I worry that I didn’t say it often enough to Jules.

  “Love you too, Gretch,” he answers.

  Trent takes my hand while keeping the other on the steering wheel. He has yet to comment on our decision even though he must have some thoughts. After all it was Liam, motivated purely by cruelty, who deprived Trent of the chance to say goodbye to his father. I wouldn’t blame him for disapproving of the fact that I’m honoring his brother’s last wish. I hope he understands no one is doing this for Liam.

  Trent notices that I’m staring at him and lifts my hand to his lips. “Just because Liam did the wrong thing doesn’t mean everyone should,” he says, putting to rest my worries.

  “I love you, Trent.”

  He smiles and brakes for a stoplight. “I love you too, Gretchen Aaronson.”

  On the way, I send a brief text to Barbara Bianco and she waits for us with freshly brewed cups of coffee. The girls are sleepy and confused but they are thrilled to see their Uncle Danny and full of questions as I hurriedly help them on with their shoes.

  “But why are we going to the hospital?” Mara asks. “Who’s sick?”

  Telling them is nowhere near as painful as telling them of their mother’s death, however in the years ahead they will remember this night. The truth is best, terrible as it may be.

  I sit on the sofa bed and pull them both to me. “There was a fire tonight. A man was badly hurt. So badly hurt that the doctors will not be able to save him. The reason we are going to see him is because he is your father.”

  Immediately, they are puzzled. And they are upset. In the same minute they have been given their father and learned he will be taken away. They have already lost far too much in their young lives.

  The only bright point comes when Trent kneels in front of the girls. He smiles at them and says this news means that he is their uncle. And he is so very proud to be their uncle. He promises to forever love them and take care of them.

  Hearing this takes some of the sting out of being told their father has lived here in town the whole time and now he is dying. But we do need to go. We might already be too late.

  Whitney waits at Liam’s bedside. When she sees the girls, she covers her mouth with her hand and chokes back a sob. But then she takes her hand away and manages to smile. She tells them she is pleased to meet them.

  Liam’s face, which is not badly burned, is the only part of him we can see. His gruesome burns have been mercifully covered with a sheet, likely to spare the girls the trauma of seeing such a thing.

  Caitlin doesn’t need any prompting. She walks right up to her father and stares critically at his face. His breathing tube is back in his mouth but he is able to turn his head just enough to look at her.

  “I like cats,” Caitlin says. “And marshmallows. And now I like to have pineapple on my pizza. You should know that.”

  Apparently, she thinks this is enough of an introduction because she steps away from the bed and goes to Trent. He whispers to her that she did a good job. Her chin trembles and she holds her arms out as a sign she’d like to be picked up. Trent lifts her and her little arms circle his neck.

  Mara continues to hang back. She clutches her favorite stuffed dog and keeps looking over her shoulder to make sure I’m right behind her. I’m about to tell her she does not have to say anything if she doesn’t want to. However, she takes a tentative step forward and examines her father.

  “I hope you have nice dreams.” She looks at her stuffed dog, comes to a decision, and tucks the thing into the bed beside him.

  This is more than Whitney can take. She erupts into fresh tears, brushes past Danny, who waits in the hallway, and we don’t see her again before we leave.

  Machines beep and the nurse who had been standing by steps forward to check Liam’s vital signs. No one has to be told that he doesn’t have long.

  Trent chooses not to say any final words to his brother. Perhaps he doesn’t want to intrude on the girls’ moment or maybe he decides it’s an act of kindness to keep his thoughts to himself. He carries Caitlin out of the room as Mara and I follow.

  In the hallway, Caitlin asks to be set down. She runs to her Uncle Danny and seizes his hand. With her other hand, she reaches for Trent and the three of them proceed down the corridor toward the exit.

  “I have two uncles now!” Caitlin announces with pride to the world.

  Sweet little Mara sighs beside me. I pick her up and kiss her soft cheek. She rests her head on my shoulder and lets me carry her outside.

  Danny drove up here from the city in a rental car and he can’t leave it in the hospital parking lot. With a wave, he says he’ll meet us back at the house.

  “I’m tired,” Mara tells me as I buckle her seatbelt. On the other side, Trent snaps Caitlin’s seatbelt closed.

  I tug on the belt to make sure it’s secure. “You can go back to bed when we get home. I’m so proud of you girls. And if you have any questions or if there’s anything you want to talk about, just let us know.”

  Caitlin perks up. “Can we get donuts later?”

  I look to Trent. “What do you say, Uncle Trent? Are donuts in the future?”

  He grins. “I can make donuts happen.”

  “Uncle Trent!” Caitlin thinks this is hilarious. “We have to call you Uncle Trent now!”

  “I’m Uncle Trent now,” he agrees and winks.

  Exhaustion is beginning to catch up to me and I can’t stop yawning as Trent drives us home. The sky behind Rosebriar Hill is beginning to lighten as sunrise approaches, although the haze of fire smoke has yet to disperse.

  Trent switches on the radio and the host is in the middle of a news briefing.

  “The fire at Cassini Brewery in Lake Stuart is now under control, although the brewery itself has been completely destroyed by the blaze. And in entertainment news, celebrated singer Abigail Fisher has reportedly died at the age of seventy-nine. Fisher, known for such hits as Rose Nights and Whatever Will Be, began as a popular performer at various upstate summer venues and often headlined at the fam
ous Rosebriar Resort just outside Lake Stuart. In honor of her legacy, stay tuned for this weekend’s Abigail Fisher music marathon.”

  The loss hits me hard considering I’ve never met Abigail in person. Maybe I should have written to her more often and let her know how much I appreciated her for watching over our family. I miss her already now that she’s gone.

  Both girls are asleep when we pull into the driveway. Danny has already beaten us there. He and Trent each carry a sleeping twin up the stairs.

  I’d like to visit with my brother but we’re all too tired to do anything except sleep right now. Before Danny heads out to the carriage house, he says, “I heard on the radio that Abigail Fisher died.”

  “Yeah, we heard that too.”

  He takes off his hat and sighs. “Kind of feels like we lost our guardian angel, doesn’t it?”

  I hadn’t thought of it that way before but he’s right. “I’d like to believe she’s still going to be looking out for us, wherever she is. Both her and Jules.”

  Danny thinks this over. “In that case, we’re lucky.”

  Trent drapes one arm over my shoulders and agrees with him. “We are lucky.”

  Danny needs to get some rest if he’s going to make the long drive to catch his flight later. He’s welcome to sleep in one of the real bedrooms but he’d rather take his regular space in the carriage house.

  “I like jelly donuts,” he calls over his shoulder as he crosses the yard. “Just throwing that out there.”

  Trent responds with a salute and Danny disappears into the carriage house.

  I wrap my arms tightly around Trent. Nothing will ever feel as good as being close to him.

  “We both smell like smoke,” I notice.

  He rubs my back. “Let’s fix that. We’ve already proven your shower stall is big enough for two.”

  “Aren’t you tired?”

  “Never too tired to see you naked, Gretch.”

  My lips tease a line of kisses on his neck and my body stirs as he breathes harder and proves his arousal by pressing closer.

  I’m not too tired for this either. I’m never too tired to want him.

  “Show me,” I whisper and slip my hand under his shirt, hungry to feel more of his skin and abruptly eager to celebrate the joy of being alive.

  And in love.

  And happy.

  18

  Trent

  My brother died an hour after we left him at the hospital. Sometimes I wonder what was going through his mind at the end, if he was tortured by regret for all the shit he’d done, or if he was just pissed that karma finally came for him.

  Anyway, I’m not stewing in hatred for Liam any longer. There’s no point. He’s dead and I’m more interested in spending my energy on love rather than hate.

  By any standards, I’ve got plenty of love in my life to keep me busy.

  Gretchen stands out instantly as she waits with the girls beside the lake. She’s the picture of carefree spring today in a light blue dress with her hair loose. The boardwalk is crowded this afternoon as visitors have been drawn by the warmer weather. It will only grow more crowded as the season deepens and the summer people begin their migration.

  The twins are adorable in matching pink dresses, attracting attention from people who smile at the sight of them capering along the boardwalk together. Mara and Caitlin turn when Gretchen calls to them and I’m sure she’s warning them to stay back from the railing. With my mission to find refreshments a success, I decide I should go help their aunt keep them contained.

  “Uncle Trent!” Mara notices me first and waves ecstatically. Her sister does the same.

  A sudden breeze off the lake lifts Gretchen’s long hair and, as always, I’m smacked with amazement that she’s mine. Mine.

  Just like this family is mine.

  This morning we paid a visit to the Woodlawn Cemetery so the girls could leave flowers for Jules. While we were there, I stopped by the final resting place of Carolina Marino Cassini. I know she’d forgive me for staying away for so long. She would also be pleased to know where I’m at now.

  Not a day goes by without questions about whether or not I plan to rebuild the brewery. Maybe someday I’ll do that. But I’ve got another major project on the horizon and it will be a priority for a while.

  Gretch and the girls appear entertained by the fact that I’m weaving through joggers, bicyclists and kissing couples as I juggle three lemonades but I manage to join them without a mishap.

  “I didn’t tell you to get me one,” Gretch says as I hand her one of the lemonades.

  “I anticipated your needs.”

  She takes a suggestive sip from the straw while giving me the eye. I make an effort not to stare while filthy images careen through my head. She is impossibly sexy without even trying.

  The girls, meanwhile, have noticed something exciting on the lake.

  “The paddleboats are here!” Caitlin shouts, pointing to three giant paddleboats shaped like swans.

  “Can we do that?” Mara asks.

  “Another day,” Gretchen promises. “I have to start dinner soon and Uncle Danny’s game will be on.”

  Danny Aaronson is in the middle of an enviable season. If he keeps it up he’ll have a lot of playing time and a lucrative contract to look forward to. Watching my best friend’s lifelong goal come true has been an honor. He’ll be back here in the fall once baseball season is over. He can stay in my old house if he doesn’t want to sleep in the backyard shed. I still use the house for work and I have no plans to sell it but I’ve moved in with Gretch and the girls.

  The girls wave to the occupants of the paddleboats. They wave back.

  From here I can make out the shadows of my brother’s mammoth house on the lakefront. It’s empty now. Whitney has chosen to move to the city and I doubt she’ll return. She did ask Gretchen if she might receive updates on the girls every so often and perhaps see them again if she’s ever back in town. Gretch, forever generous, promised to send photos and told Whitney she’s welcome to visit.

  The twins continue to ooh and aah over the paddleboats and Gretch takes a break from sipping her lemonade.

  “Where are we at with the negotiations?”

  I stand behind her, my hands swallowing her waist. “Almost there.”

  Her slender neck is begging to be kissed. All I can do is obey.

  Gretchen smiles at the kiss and moves her head to look toward the east, at the cheerfully green mound called Rosebriar Hill.

  We’re buying it.

  Not the entire hill of course, but the private property where The Rosebriar Resort once thrived. Gretch was stunned to learn she was the sole beneficiary of Abigail Fisher’s estate. Abigail had no blood relatives, no one to challenge the terms, yet Gretchen felt guilty accepting her generosity. Just when she was mulling over how to make a plan that Abigail would approve of, word got out that the current owner of Rosebriar had decided to unload the place. Not cheaply, not cheaply at all. But with our combined assets we were able to extend an offer that was promptly accepted. All that remains is work for the lawyers hammering out the details and then we’ll sign on the dotted line as partners.

  The old concept of upstate resorts has become rather obsolete so we’re working on a new business plan. Gretch loves the idea of a musical summer camp for kids. Additionally, there will be plenty of opportunities to rent out the venue for events. The Lake Stuart Gazette already ran a story and a surge of interest followed.

  “I’m done.” Caitlin hands me her empty cup.

  “Me too. I’m done too.” Mara’s empty cup joins her sister’s.

  Never thought I wouldn’t mind being mistaken for a trash can.

  After taking a quick walk to the nearest garbage bin, we leave the boardwalk holding hands, the four of us, the twins in the middle.

  They still miss their mother terribly and they’ll miss her forever. But we will keep Jules’s memory alive. There’s no danger of Julianne Aaronson being forgotten. And every
day her daughters will know they are cherished by us.

  When we get home, Danny’s game is just starting. He hits a single in the first inning. His stats flash up on the screen below a close up of him standing on first base. The announcer sings his praises and declares at this pace, Danny Aaronson might very well wind up as the league MVP.

  Danny thinks speculation like that is always bad luck and would tell the guy to shut the fuck up if he heard. As for me, I’m going to secretly agree with the announcer.

  The girls get fidgety by the third inning and ask to go play in their rooms. Gretchen reminds them to put back whatever toys they fish out and they utter identical “Okay”s before scampering up the stairs.

  Gretch nudges my knee. “Roast chicken still okay for dinner?”

  “You know I’m always ready to eat anything you want to feed me.”

  She slaps my thigh, understanding I’m speaking in two languages right now. “You never stop.”

  “You wouldn’t want me to stop.”

  “True.” She stands and gives me a look. “After dark I’ll show you something more exciting than my chicken.”

  “I know you will.” My eyes stay glued to her body as she struts to the kitchen.

  Danny steals second base with an epic slide and I clap my hands loudly, as if he’s able to hear me cheering. The next batter delivers a base hit that brings Danny home.

  For Danny, that is home, out there showing the world what he can do.

  My home is right here, with Gretch and the twins.

  It’s a destination I never would have expected.

  It’s the one that was meant to be.

  Gretchen returns from the kitchen on the verge of saying something, but stops short when she gets a close look at my face.

  “Why are you grinning like that?”

  Because I’m going to marry you, Gretchen Aaronson.

  I drag her into my lap. “You’ll see.”

  Content with that answer, she bends into my kiss, believing in the promises that come with it.