Page 37 of Falling for my Brother's Best Friend

Eleven

Liam

The morning after doomsday, I’m home and working on my bike. I plan on going on a long ride today in order to avoid Savannah, although she didn’t come home last night. Not that I blame her. I keep replaying what I said over and over. It was callous and insensitive and if I wanted a cold shower to tamp down my attraction for her, I succeeded.

Austin’s Jeep pulls down my driveway, followed by Rome’s minivan. Never thought I’d see the day my buddy drove a dadmobil. Denver gets out of the back of Rome’s van and helps Calista jump out of the car. “Baby Shark” is playing on his cell phone.

Guess he decided to stay away from this place last night too.

They all make their way over to me.

“Harley has clients. You cool if I put on a movie for her in your family room?” Rome has a bag of food in one hand and Dion’s car seat in the other.

“Sure.” My guilt stops me from lecturing him about eating in my family room.

He disappears into the house, Calista chattering away with Denver as they follow Rome inside.

Austin slides a stool over, watching me work on the bike. “You going on a ride today?”

“Yeah.” I put the tools back and stand to open my fridge in the garage. I grab a water and offer Austin one.

“Sure,” he says.

I toss him one. “Looking forward to finally being able to take your honeymoon?” I don’t know why I’m making small talk when we both know why he’s here.

“I’m counting the days, trust me.”

I pick at the label of my water for a minute before I meet his gaze. “I’m sorry, Austin.”

My apology comes from a place of respect. I looked up to the guy for being the rock star baseball player in high school, but even more so after his parents died, and he returned home to raise his siblings instead of pursuing a career in baseball. I’m not naïve. I know my words to Savannah last night hurt all of the Baileys, because a little bit of each of them was buried the day their parents died.

“Thanks.” He cracks open the bottle of water. “We came here to talk.”

I nod. That was clear when the whole brigade showed up. They’ve talked amongst themselves before coming here to see me.

“She won’t give me the phone back,” Denver whines as he and Rome rejoin us.

“She will when she’s done,” Rome says. “I have about ten minutes.” He’s wearing Dion around his chest again.

“What’s Harley doing today?” Denver asks.

“I already said she’s working, dumbass.”

Denver sits on the counter attached to the one side of the garage wall.

“Listen, guys”—I raise my hand to cut them off at the pass—“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said what I did, and I regret it. I plan on apologizing to Savannah as soon as she comes home.”

Denver cringes. “She’s not coming back here. She’s moving in with Juno until her place is ready.”

My chin falls to my chest. I really blew this one. “Well then, I’ll apologize when she picks her stuff up.”

“She said she’d be sure to come by when you were working,” Rome says.

Fuck me.

“Listen, we know you didn’t mean it. That’s what we’re here to talk about.” Rome sways back and forth, patting Dion’s back, and it’s making me nauseous.

The thing is, I did mean it, I’m just sorry for the cruel way it came out. She was always neurotic and organized, but it’s to the extreme now. I rarely see her laugh and let loose and enjoy herself. Telling anyone in her family no is a real problem for her. I think they’re all so accustomed to it that they’re blind to the person she’s become. I never realized how much until Austin was going to leave for California a few years ago and leave the family and business in Savannah’s hands. The problem is that it’s not my place to tell them this.

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