Page 110 of Brick

He breathed heavily but didn’t try to talk. She could tell he didn’t agree.

“There was nothing else you could have done. Nothing else anyone could have done.” She squeezed his shoulder. “You were there when I needed you most. I’ll never forget that. Neither should you.”

Iz slipped in the room and offered her a sympathetic look. Her sister understood Will as well as she did. He would never see himself as the hero he was. He’d always feel like he should have done more.

It was her brother’s way. He tried to slay dragons, protect the people he loved. He blamed himself for things he couldn’t control, and if his sisters needed it, he wouldn’t hesitate to drop himself in a hole so deep, he’d never see the sun.

It never made sense he’d committed a crime and risked a separation from his family. It not only cost him ten years of his life, it cost her and Izzy their big brother. It was a decade he should have spent having fun and building a life. Instead he spent all of his twenties trapped in a nightmare.

Clearing her throat, Izzy joined her family. “You scared me, big brother. Let’s never let it happen again.”

He lifted the hand with the IV attached and flipped her off. It made her smile, which was probably the entire reason he did it.

Izzy caught the ball and ran with it. “Silent communication? Does this mean you’re a captive audience?”

Pulling up a chair, Iz laughed. “You know this means he can’t argue, right?”

She met her sister’s grin with one of her own. “This is our opportunity to say anything we want, and he can’t talk back.” She hoped her light tone hid the tremor in her voice as she turned back to Will. “Actually, I was telling him thank you.”

She ruffled his hair. “You’re the best brother a girl could ask for. On a totally different note, though, maybe now is the best time to tell you…I’m in love with Jonathan.”

Will’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t try to speak.

“He’s starting his life over without all the crazy shit he was mixed up in before, and I’m going to be there with him every step of the way.” She hesitated before going on. “You’ve always supported me in everything. I hope you can support me in this too.”

He nodded soberly.

“Okay,” Iz said briskly. “Out with you. Go spend some time with your man while I hang out with Mr. Target Practice here.”

It was supposed to be funny, but she didn’t know if she’d ever be able to laugh about this. “I will. But I need a few more minutes to make sure my big brother is okay.”

A man cleared his throat from the doorway. She’d never seen him before.

He had wavy, black hair. It had a few wisps of silver in it, which made it more striking. Just like his face. He possessed Greek heritage, with olive skin, a proud nose and full, dark, eyebrows to complement what appeared to be hazel eyes.

Izzy squirmed in her seat, scanning the man appreciatively, and Liv almost groaned aloud at her reaction. The man was certainly attractive, but her brother was in the hospital for Chrissakes. This was hardly the time to be twitterpated.

“—don’t need to worry about rushing back to work,” the man was saying to Will. “Your job is safe. I want you to focus on getting better, okay?”

Will pulled down his mask. “Thanks, Xander.”

The gravel in his voice propelled Izzy forward. Handsome or not, Will’s visitor needed to let him get his rest. “Stop trying to talk and let your throat heal.” She held her hand out to the man her brother had called Xander. “I’m Isobel, Will’s sister.”

He accepted the handshake. “Xander Karras. I’m the foreman on Will’s construction crew.”

Izzy hummed in acknowledgement but didn’t release her grasp.

Liv cleared her throat, and her sister dropped his hand like a hot potato. “It’s really nice of you to come check on Will, but the doctor says he needs some rest.”

“Yes, of course.” He glanced first at Izzy, then turned back to Will. “I won’t keep you any longer. Don’t even call me for a few weeks, Will. We’re all pulling for you to get better.”

He didn’t look at Izzy again as he walked out the door, but she never took her eyes off him.

When Will made an exasperated noise, she finally stopped staring at the empty doorframe. A blush crept over her cheeks, as she returned to his bedside and picked up the crossword puzzle on the table beside him as if nothing had happened.

It wasn’t often Izzy Turner showed interest in a man, but her reaction to Will’s boss was hard to ignore. Liv decided to file the knowledge away and think about it again…if her life ever got back to normal.

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