Page 13 of Make Me Unwind

“Drinking and public masturbation.”

“You’re an ass.”

Claire, the resort clerk’s face turns red as a valentine’s heart, and she looks everywhere but at my brother and me. For her sake, I probably shouldn’t have smarted off, but my brother’s condescending attitude always gets me going. He’s the perfect older brother, and I’m the screwed-up little brother.

For a minute, when I was in the military, I didn’t feel that way, but when I got injured, all those old insecurities crept back up on me. The ones that forced me to shut out Piper. I rotate my shoulders and straighten my back. Why did I walk away?

“Thank you.” I force myself not to bow because my anger isn’t directed at him; it’s at myself. “I was at the parking lot securing the bicycles before the storm set in. When the rain came, I helped one of the guests who had a panic attack.”

My chest tightens at the image of Piper’s white face. There was no way I could’ve walked away and left her when she looked so alone and frightened. I’ll never forget waking up in the hospital after the convoy attack. I was strapped to a bed in another country, outside a makeshift hospital made of canvas.

The tent was erected for meals but became an emergency triage area. When I glanced down and saw the blood soaking through the white bandages, the brown and red bandages, I’d balked. But it was the divots where I knew chunks of flesh were missing that had me rolling my head to the side and vomiting. “I waited it out with her family until the rain stopped.”

“Oh….” The anger in his face eases as his eyes rove over me. As if he approves of the color of my skin and the fact I’m out of our parent’s basement, he nods toward his office. “Can we talk?”

Isn’t that what we’re doing? I refrain from saying the words, opting to ditch my attitude and follow him. “Sure.”

His office is the proverbial corner office with floor-to-ceiling windows. Only it’s not on the top floor of a skyrise. The main resort is only three floors, but his office has the perfect beach view.

Once he moves around the enormous oak wood desk, I sit opposite him on one of the formal visitor’s chairs and rest my forearms and palms on the smooth wooden armrests. “Are you doing okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.” I frown inwardly. It’s the truth. I’m so used to telling people I’m fine and not meaning it that it knocks me off my axis for a second. It feels good to be outside giving lessons and doing something productive with my time.

I pop my neck to the right and then to the left, causing him to cringe. It might not be my life’s work, but I’m tired of wallowing in the dark. “Thank you for pushing me to get out of the house. I’ve enjoyed teaching both paddleboarding and kayaking. It’s good to do something that’s second nature.”

We started learning to do the former when we could barely walk and the latter not much later. Once we were in junior high, there wasn’t a summer that went by when we weren’t out on the water teaching something.

“I’m glad.” His face softens as he adjusts to the cushions. “What are your plans?”

Going back to Piper’s cabin and asking her to give me a chance. To give us a chance. Desire curls inside of me, leaving my body feeling hot and weak.

That’s not what he’s talking about. I inhale deeply and exhale. “I’m not sure. After the injury, my world was upside down, and I let circumstances keep me there.” I study the whitecaps as the remaining wind whips at the water, causing it to crash onto the surf. I clear my throat and meet my brother’s gaze. “I’m ready to start figuring it out.”

“Asher.” My brother’s voice is rough. “You don’t have to go anywhere. You know you always have a place here.”

“Yes….” I shrug, brace my hands on the chair, and shove upward. “But this is your dream, not mine. I’ll figure something out.”

“Fine.” He returns his attention to the piles of papers on his desk. “I won’t pry.”

I bite back a chuckle. When has my brother ever not had his nose in my business? Never. Even when I was in the service, he’d found ways to discover who my friends were, and when I didn’t get in touch with him or my parents, he was pestering them with letters.

My tennis shoes are silent on the tile flooring as I return through the lobby and give Claire a smile. “Sorry.”

The older woman waves her hand dismissively in my direction. “You always were a smartass.”

I laugh and shove the door open, stepping into the light. I haven’t felt this good since before my injury. Damn meddling family members and my therapist for being right. Get out and do something. Be productive. Quit sitting on your ass feeling sorry for yourself. Bastards. I grin despite myself.

Chapter Eight

Piper

For over twenty-four hours, I didn’t step outside of our cabin. I don’t want to see Asher. Not that it’s his fault. He was mature about it. I’m acting like a pouting child who didn’t get the toy she wanted. It’s not like he said anything, but I felt the shift in him. One second, he was laughing and having a good time, and the next, his face shut down.

The second he left the cabin, Charlotte grabbed my upper arms. “The man is gorgeous and clearly into you.”

“Please.” I rolled my eyes. “He’s not. He helped me deal with a panic attack, and you know how pathetic I am when one of those hits. I’m sure the only thing he felt was sorry for me.”

“Don’t.” Charlotte’s face was tight as her eyes sparked with anger. “You’re not pathetic, and you rarely have panic attacks unless something serious happens.”

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