Page 6 of So Close

There were deep furrows in her forehead. “Why would you do that?”

He raised his eyebrows at the lunacy of that question. “Because you need a better place to live.”

“I love where I live, Trey. The boys can walk into town. They can walk to school. When they get a little older they can walk to see Granddad. I love the character and the feel of my home. This place issterile. And way too big for us.”

When he’d decided to buy his sister a house, he’d expected some resistance, but he’d thought it would be more along the lines of empty protest. Like,You shouldn’t have. It’s too much. He hadn’t expected genuine anger and confusion.

“Your house is a disaster. All the siding on the south side needs replacing. You’re going to have to tear off the deck and rebuild it. The garage is falling down. It’s going to end up costing you a fortune.”

He could hear his own voice, cool and logical, and he knew: He wasn’t managing to say what he needed to say. Again.

Brynn threw up her arms. “Not everything is about money! Jesus, Trey! This is crazy! I know you need something to pour your money into now that Karina’s gone, but I can’t be that person!”

He didn’t move, but something inside him staggered at the blow, and she must have seen it in his face. “Oh God, Trey, I’m so sorry, that was low.”

“It’s fine. I’m over Karina’s leaving.”

“It’s not, and you’re not.” She reached out a hand, but dropped it before it touched his arm. He found himself wishing she’d completed the gesture and closed the gap between them.

He shook his head. “This isn’t about money. That place isn’t good for you. You’ll have to work yourself to death just to get by, and you won’t be able to get ahead because that thing’s a money pit.”

Brynn turned away from him. She stood looking at the house for a long time. When she turned back, he could see by the set of her jaw that he was in for a fight. “Look,” she said wearily. “For me, this is about getting back on my feet. I broke out of the shitty relationship with Chris, I got a good job that’s actually in my field, I bought a place for me and the boys. Is it perfect? Hell, no. But it’s ours. AndI did it. You can understand that, can’t you?”

He didn’t answer. He didn’thavean answer. He understood the words coming out of her mouth but not why she would turn down the gift he was offering.

The house stood before them like a reproach. One of five in a cluster of brand new lots tacked on the quiet end of Tierney Bay’s Brideview neighborhood. Peekaboo ocean views. Lots of yard space. Lawns. Two stories, three full baths. Big windows that flooded the interior with light. And she didn’t want it. She’d rather live in that rickety, squat little cottage where she and the boys were in each other’s hair all the time.

“You really want to help us? Spend time with us. That’s what we need from you.”

“I—”

She shook her head. Closed her eyes. Opened them again. They were a soft version of his own. “Jesus, Trey, look at you. You’re like a deer caught in the headlights.”

He tried to protest, but she waved him off.

“I know you’re busy. All I’m saying is, you want to help us? Really help us? You can show me and Jacob how to fix the siding and rebuild the deck. You can fly up here every couple weekends and work on it with us.”

I work on the weekends. He didn’t say it out loud, though; it would just start another argument about how the boys were growing up without getting to know their uncle. She didn’t know; she hadnoidea what it took to keep his business running. How he had to be always available, always on. And how even if he did everything right, made smart decisions, the rug could get pulled out from under him at any second, and he’d be right back where he started. His heart raced, something it had been doing ever since he’d learned about the bad investment.

He took a deep breath. No. He was not going to be right back where he’d started. He was not going to let it happen, not on his watch. He was going to do this deal, sell Home Base, and walk away unscathed. And in the meantime, he was going to make sure his sister and her kids were safe and cared for.

“Just let me buy you the house,” he said. “It will make your life so much easier. So much better, Brynn. I swear it. I’m not going to be able to spend the kind of time you’re picturing to teach you to fix things up at the other place. You have no idea what a time suck that is. An energy suck. It’s better this way. This place is ready-made for you and the boys.”

She shook her head. “I can’t.”

God, Brynn was as stubborn as he was. Determined, like their mother. They’d inherited the same genes, just taken different roads.

She crossed her arms. “I won’t accept it. You can withdraw the offer or buy the house and rent it or whatever you want to do. But it’s not for us.”

She didn’t have to say,and you can’t make methe way she would have when they were kids, playing together in the woods. They both knew it was true.

She’d won all their fights back then, too. Maybe because he’d worshipped the ground she walked on then. She was four years older and he’d thought she was a goddess.

Fine.He nodded tightly. “I’ll buy it and rent it. No skin off my teeth.”

What he meant was, he’d hold onto it until she was reasonable enough to change her mind. She would see. That other place would wear her down. She’d be ready to own this one within a couple of months.

He’d made the same mistake with Brynn as he had last night—he’d tried too hard. Trey Xavier didn’t beg for what he wanted. He made the deal impossible to resist, then hung back until people came to him. He could do that in this case, too.

---