Page 89 of Messing With My Brother's Best Friends

“There’s enough for everyone,” Van said. “As long as we’re nice. Can you be nice to your sister?”

Crisis averted. A little nod from Benny meant he could be allowed down and rather than dive for the M&M’s, Benny went to the bowl of Cheezels, laughing as he put the rings of snacks on each of his fingers like they were jewellery. He crunched one, then another as Cheryl lowered the M&M bowl down.

“Kids…” She sighed. “Don’t ever have any or…” She looked speculatively at Van as he tossed Cheezels in the air and caught them with his mouth, something that had both kids laughing. “Or join me in the trenches. Yeah, do that.” My sister-in-law turned to face me. “That’s a possibility now, right?”

“The gossip mill has been going into overdrive?” I asked as I grabbed bottles of water out of the fridge, handing her one.

“In a way.” She frowned slightly. “I mean my husband comes home with a black eye, grumbling about the fact he’s being kicked out of a company that he helped build. I mean…” She shrugged. “I’ve got questions.”

“OK, shoot.”

As Van got the kids all ready to get into the pool, we went into the lounge room, watching the lot of them through the big, glass door.

“What…?” Her hand moved restlessly. “What happened? The guys seemed to be resolutely single, and while they had their ups and downs, the company seemed to be doing well. We didn’t see a lot of you, Kendall, but you seemed happy when we did.”

As I sank down onto the couch, a long sigh followed.

“If you really want to know, I need to go right back to the start.”

“OK.” She shot me a nervous smile. “I mean Finn doesn’t know I’m here. He thinks I went to a playgroup. Every time I try to ask what’s going on, he just grumbles some bullshit. Hit me, Kendall. Tell me everything.”

So I did.

“He did what?” I’d never heard Cheryl raise her voice before, but she did right now, staring at me intently, and somehow, that was validating. “I knew you guys were never close but…” She glanced over at Benny and Kate. “But to bully you for all those years.”

“He doesn’t treat you like that, right?” I asked.

It was something I’d always wondered about my brother’s relationship with his wife.

“I’d cut his balls off if he tried.” I snorted at that mental image, but her sharp tone went a long way to easing my fears. “But…”

“Muuuum!”

Kate had a pair of lungs on her, but she’d had to develop them. Her little brother was a bit of a terror. He’d splashed Kate, and when she began to splutter, a gleeful smile spread across his face. He went back for more, splashing and splashing until Van loomed between them. Kate shot him a grateful look right as Van stared down at Benny.

“Ben, we don’t treat your sister like that.”

Van didn’t realise it, but that actually helped heal something inside me. It was like a small bone just snicking back into place, easing all the other associated pain.

“Katie likes it,” Benny insisted.

“No, I don’t!” Kate snapped.

“She’s just being a girl…”

Fuck, didn’t that bring memories back, to when my gender was somehow a slur. It had filled me with outrage then, but I didn’t expect my hands to start shaking now. I rose at the same time as Cheryl, the two of us moving to intercept.

“Of course she’s being a girl,” Van told Benny. “She is a girl. Girls are awesome.”

“Ew…” Benny made an ugly face.

“Your mum is a girl.” The expression softened as the little boy looked through the glass door at Cheryl. “So’s Auntie Kendall. Girls are freaking amazing, Benny, but that’s not the point. Splashing someone when they tell you to stop is not OK.” Van’s eyes found mine through the glass. “Trust me, mate, if you can learn that now, it’ll save you a lot of trouble in the future.”

Apparently that settled the matter. Van had the two of them playing a game of Marco Polo, and seconds later, they were both giggling as Van floundered around blindly, trying to find them. But Cheryl? Her calm didn’t return so easily.

“He’s good with kids.” My eyes flicked sideways at the slight shake in her voice, and she shot me a tremulous smile. “I might be organising a baby shower for you in a year or two.”

“Maybe,” I replied.

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