Rebounding (11 page)

“You’re telling me you were nice?”

“Yep.”

“And how did he respond?”

“To be honest, he was a little frustrated. I don’t think he speaks Spanish.”

“Son of a bitch, Trev. Next time just get to the point.”

He laughs. “But then it wouldn’t be as fun.”

I seriously wonder how he made it to adulthood without ever getting beat up. Actually, I don’t have to wonder. He has me to thank for that. I remember saving his ass several times in high school.

“So why’d he stick around?”

Trevor shrugs. “Probably recognized her Infiniti.”

I continue watching the two of them from the window, noticing that they’ve both calmed down. He even goes as far as hugging Charlotte. For all his anger, it seems like he really cares about her. He even looks relieved. I feel a twinge in my chest at the sight of them. More than anything, I wish I could feel that sense of relief. I’d give anything to have that moment.

Instead I have to worry about my sister every damn day of my life.

FIFTEEN

Char

“Is it disabled?” I ask, hoping Lucas doesn’t change his mind again. He finally agreed not to tell Mom and Dad where I’m living, but grudgingly.

“Yeah,” he says, shutting my car door. “Just keep your OnStar turned off, okay?”

I still can’t believe that’s how they found me. Through my car. I shake my head. This is what I get for underestimating my parents. They watch way too many crime shows to let it slip by. I was practically asking to be caught.

“You should get a new phone too. Are they still paying the bill?”

Whoops.
“I’ll get it switched over to my own account on Monday,” I promise him.

He nods, still frowning. The Lucas I know is usually happy and animated. I can’t stand seeing him this upset with me. “Hey, it’s just until the end of the semester, Luke. By then, no one will care whether or not I’m in Gainesville.”

“You know damn well they’ll be expecting you to move back home.”

I tilt my head to the side. Now that I think about it, my mom did mention something about being able to spend more time with me after graduation. It hadn’t occurred to me that she was still expecting me to move back to Savannah.

“You moved away from home,” I point out to Lucas. “Why can’t I?”

“Because you’re the baby girl. I’m the outcast. It’s different.”

I wish I could tell him that he’s wrong, but we both know I’d be lying. Daddy never got on board with Lucas’s sexual choices, and although he never came out and said he was ashamed of his son, all of us feel the awkward tension when the two of them get together.

“Well now
I’m
the outcast,” I say, trying to lighten the mood. “Especially after the argument I had with Daddy. You should’ve heard him, Luke. He was livid. You’ve definitely moved up a slot on the favorites list.”

Lucas doesn’t laugh like I’d hoped. Instead he winces, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. “They’re gonna fuckin’ kill me, Char.”

“I promise no one will ever find out. We’ll say I came down here to visit you, and after I left, you assumed I went back to Gainesville. No one will be the wiser.”

“Have you met our family? They’re a pack of bloodthirsty detectives. They find out everyone’s secrets. How do you think you got so good at it?”

He’s got a point there. From an early age, we were raised to believe everyone was hiding something. It’s no wonder I fell into journalism. Trying to find the truth is an ingrained habit.

“Then we have to stay two steps ahead of them,” I say, determined. I can tell by his face he thinks I’m in over my head. Considering how easily I forgot about the GPS tracker in my car, I can’t blame him. “Look, all I’m asking is for you to hold out until May. Then you can tell them whatever you like. Can you do that for me, Luke?”

He leans against the car door, folding his arms over his chest. “Just until May?” he repeats.

I nod.

“Fine,” he says with a relenting sigh. “I suppose I can do that.”

I hug him again, squeezing him tightly. “I owe you.”

“Big time,” he agrees.

I continue hugging him, breathing him in, and sighing at the familiarity. Chocolate and tea leaves. It reminds me of home.

“There is a bright side to this, you know.”

He looks down at me, arching a golden brow. “And that would be?”

“Now that we live in the same city, we can visit each other more often.”

“True.” An infectious grin pulls at his lips as he takes in the surroundings. “Nice pad, by the way. Wanna tell me who the gorgeous man was that you showed up with?”

I knew there would be no escaping that question.

“His name is Max.”

“So you traded in a Miles for a Max,” he says, contemplative. “Do you have a fascination with the letter M?”

“They’re nothing alike, I assure you. And I’m not dating Max.”

“Sure you’re not,” Lucas drawls dramatically.

“I’m serious. We’re just friends.”

He rolls his eyes. “That man looked at me like he was prepared to smash my face in if I yelled at you one more time—not that you didn’t deserve it. Are any of your other friends that protective of you?”

“Well, no. But it was probably because you were yelling like a crazy person, and he doesn’t know you as well as I do.”

“I doubt it.”

I let out an exasperated breath. There’s no changing Lucas’s mind once he’s made it up. “Max and I met under strange circumstances,” I explain, leaning against the car beside him. “Our friendship was formed out of protecting one another. It’s become our dynamic.”

“I don’t like it.” He gives me a long, hard look. “You just got out of a long relationship, Char. You need time to figure out who you are.”

“That’s exactly what I’m trying to do.”

Deep down, I remind myself that all of this is coming from a good place. Lucas and I were close up until I hit my teenage years. That was around the same time he left home, and coincidentally around the same time I started dating Miles. Out of everyone in our family, Lucas was the only one who claimed Miles wasn’t the right guy. He said we were too alike. I never understood that. How could being too alike be a bad thing? We’d always have similar interests, things to talk about, the same hobbies, and so on. But in the end, Lucas was right. Apparently being too alike equated to boredom.

Lucas takes my hand, holding it in his. “I just want the best for you, Char. You know that right?”

I nod. “Of course.”

“And I’m all for rebounds, but you can’t
live
with your rebound. That’s not how it works.”

I stare at him pointedly. “For the last time, Max and I are just friends. It’s not like that between us.”

“Yet,” Lucas adds, annoyingly.

“Talk to Max if you don’t believe me. Even if I wanted more, he would never be interested.”

“Aha, but you
do
want more?” he asks—like he’s caught me.

He stares me down for about five seconds before I cave.

“Okay, fine. I might be a little bit attracted to him.”

“A little bit?”

I scowl at Lucas, letting him know he’s pushing it. “It doesn’t matter because he’s not interested in anything more than friendship, and he barely wants that.”

“Charlotte, did the guy
say
he wasn’t interested or are you assuming that he’s not?”

“Well…”

I think back to the moment we kissed. He didn’t act completely uninterested.

You have no idea how tempting you are.

Those words thrilled me. Kissing him thrilled me. The way he tasted, the way he felt, all of it, intoxicating. Everything about that moment took me to a level of desire I didn’t know existed. But still…I threw myself at him, wearing nothing more than a wet bra and panties. If he could resist me at that moment, then whatever attraction he felt couldn’t have been all that powerful.

Of course I can’t tell any of this to Lucas, because then I’d have to explain myself, and I really don’t want to tell him about that day on the beach.

“No.” I shake my head. “He’s not interested. I’m sure.”

Lucas eyes me skeptically. “Somehow I don’t fully believe you.”

“Maybe because I don’t want to believe myself. Because if he is, he has some impressive willpower.”

His eyes round on me suddenly. “What, little sister, is that supposed to be in reference to?”

“Nothing,” I say too quickly. “I’m just telling you what I think.”

It’s clear he doesn’t believe me, but none of this really matters to Lucas anyway. He’s just being a good brother in that he doesn’t want me to jump into anything too soon. All he wants to be sure of is that nothing is going to happen between Max and me.

“If it bothers you, I could always move in with you,” I say, knowing exactly what he’ll think of that.

“In the crash pad? I don’t think so. Better to deal with one guy than a mob of horny pilots and flight staff.”

Lucas works as a flight attendant for American Airlines, Miami being his home base. The people in his apartment are always changing depending on flight schedules. From what I’ve seen and heard, his crash pad can be crazier than a frat house.

“Char, if you need help getting your own place, I can lend you the money,” he tells me, and I love him for it, because I know he doesn’t make that much money to begin with.

“No, it’s okay. Really.”

“But I feel like I’m leaving you stranded.”

“You’re not. Besides,” I gesture to the house. “Look at this place. Who wouldn’t want to live here?”

We both turn to look at the house, taking in its ethereal beauty. The sun is setting behind us, its soft glow casting warm amber hues on the picturesque, fairytale setting.

“It is like another world out here,” Lucas allows.

“It sounds crazy, but I feel like I’m meant to be here. I feel…at peace.”

We both know he’ll just have to take my word for it. Nothing I can say will make him happy about this situation, but he knows nothing he can say will make me change my mind.

He turns to face me again. “I’ve got to run, Char, but before I go, just promise me that you’ll take care of yourself.”

“I will.”

“Whether or not this guy likes you, go with what he’s saying. If you’re really here to start over, focus on that.”

“
Okay
, Luke.” My words are less than appreciative of his advice, but deep down I’m glad that he cares. I think he finally gets that I’m human, that I bleed, and I need to heal just like everyone else. I hate feeling like I need to live up to his and everyone else’s high expectations.

I give my brother another long hug before he leaves, and we make promises to have lunch together next week. It’s kind of nice, knowing he’s right around the corner. After only being able to spend time with him on holidays and special occasions for the last few years, it makes me happy to be near him again.

Once his car pulls away, I head back inside the house. Max and Trevor are both there waiting, catching me by surprise. Max wasn’t lying when he said he’d stay within earshot.

“Everything okay?” he asks the second I shut the door.

“We’re fine now,” I assure him. “Luke just needed to let off some steam.”

He looks me up and down as if he’s inspecting me for bruises. “That doesn’t excuse the way he yelled at you, Charlotte.”

“If you think his temper was bad, you should meet the rest of my family. My other brothers make Luke look like an enlightened monk.”

“Then I wouldn’t want to meet them.” His gaze is hard, and his voice is deadly serious. It catches Trevor’s attention too, but neither of us remark on it.

Thankfully Stephanie distracts us all, ending the conversation. “I’m starving!” she yells. I look up to see her bouncing down the staircase two steps at a time. When she notices me, a huge smile appears. “Charlotte, will you have dinner with us?”

I’m not that hungry, but I don’t want to turn down her invitation either. “I’d love to.”

“Great! Come on.” She grabs me by the arm. “I need you to help me cook. The men in this house are only good for ordering pizza.”

“What’s wrong with pizza?” Trevor asks.

Stephanie ignores him, pulling me alongside her. “Can you cook?”

“Somewhat.”

“Somewhat works for me. You’re in charge of potatoes and any veggie of your choice. I’ll take care of the meat.”

Trevor snickers. “That’s what
she
said.”

Stephanie levels a dark glare at him. “Trev, hon, if you want to eat, you need to shut the hell up.”

He goes back to typing on his laptop, doing as he was told.

“I’m happy to help, if you need me,” Max offers.

“But you never help me with dinner,” Stephanie says, sounding suspicious.

He rubs the back of his neck, shrugging. “Figured I’d be nice.”

“Thanks, but I think Charlotte and I have it covered. You and Trev can do the dishes.” She steers me toward the kitchen, but before we’re out of the room, I catch Trevor giving Max a strange look.

Max tosses one of the sofa pillows at him. “Shut up,” he grumbles.

“Didn’t say anything,” Trevor insists.

Once we’re out of earshot, Stephanie releases my hand. “I know that sounded kinda mean. I wasn’t trying to be,” she tells me. “Max has many talents, but cooking is not one of them.”

I head toward the sink, turning on the faucet to wash my hands. “It’s okay. I get it. My mom doesn’t let my oldest brother near the kitchen. He set the fire alarm off so many times, she finally had to ban him.”

She laughs at that. “So then you do understand.”

“Yes, but come to think of it, Max did make me a mean egg sandwich this morning. Are you sure you’re not giving him enough credit?”

“He can make simple things,” she allows. “But God help him if he has to measure anything out. Just ask him about the Blueberry Muffin Incident.”