Page 56 of Never Say Yes To Your Brother's Best Friend

“Goodness! Talking about ant farms again! It’s becoming an obsession. You should probably just do it.” Aspen’s mom steps out through the patio door with Aspen close behind her. They have a plate of watermelon, a pitcher of juice, a stack of cups, and another plate of sandwiches, and they’re carrying it all effortlessly.

I leap up to help. There’s a coffee table out here made of the same wicker as the patio furniture. I set the plate of watermelon down, and the rest of the food joins.

“I think you’d be a great ant owner, Dad. Or worms. Worms are fun too.”

Aspen takes the seat next to me, smiling away. She’s not at all worried that her parents might still change their minds and produce medieval-style torture implements out of nowhere.

But no. They just all sit and stare at me without glowering. They’re so cheerful, inviting, open, and warm. All the things Jace was. And all the things I’m not.

Aspen’s mom is the first one to break the silence after we all have a tall, sweaty glass of lemonade in our hands. Homemade lemonade with freshly squeezed lemons and so much pulp floating around in there that it’s thick.

“Rick, why don’t you tell us about yourself?” Aspen’s mom starts.

Aspen groans. “Mom, you already know everything. We’re not doing this. You can get to know him the regular way, not have him eject all the answers you want when I’ve already given youhalf of them.” She stands and walks behind my chair. Then, she puts one hand on my shoulder. Her touch. Her touch is so fucking powerful.

Right from the start, I think Aspen might have known we’d end up here. Okay, so she probably didn’t. It was never part of her plan—not that there was much of one—but maybe it was in her head all along that I wouldn’t be okay until I was feeling again. Until I was learning to feel everything I’d blocked out for so long and all the stuff I never had half a chance to learn at all. Anyway, here we are now. It feels like a road that extends across the whole country, and we’ve traveled the road in such a short time. We made each other promises, and as soon as we did, there was no going back.

There’s no going back now.

“The only thing you need to know about Rick that I haven’t told you both yet is that he’s mine.”

Gah!I watch her parents tense, and they share glances with each other. Now it starts. The trapdoor opens, and I’m slid into the basement for a few nights of epic questioning that isn’t going to be gentle. This is where all the shotguns finally make an appearance. And knives. Those too. Maybe even swords. If not, I’m sure a broom could be made to do some real damage. It’s very likely an angry mother trying to protect her daughter could whip that up in no time.

What does she mean by I’m hers? We haven’t…we haven’t gotten to that part yet.

“He’s my friend,” Aspen clarifies, but her hand tightens on my shoulder. “He’s the man Jace wanted me to look after, and he’s the man Jace picked out for me to look after me. We’re always going to be connected through him and our memories of him. I want him to be a part of all of us, but he’s always going to be in my life now. Whatever we decide that looks like. Maybe as friends, maybe as something more one day when we’re ready toput a title on it. But I want to say it. I want to say it so he can hear it because he feels like he’s never belonged anywhere or to anyone. He belongs to me.” She circles around and drops down to her knees on the deck.

I’m going to die. I’m going to die in all the ways.

“To this family,” her dad adds softly. “I’ve already welcomed him.”

“Yes.” Her mom blinks back more tears. “You’re always welcome with us. We’d like it if you would stay.”

“We might have things to deal with in San Jose,” Aspen whispers. “But we’ll do what we can.”

I never would have imagined that I’d be publicly claimed. Her parents have done what my own flesh and blood couldn’t do. They’ve welcomed me. They want me. There might be a great deal to sort out, but they’ve made it easy. No, they made itlookeasy. Opening their hearts like this isn’t easy. It costs a person to do this. It’s painful. It’s so damn real.

Right now, my throat is so damn thick and closed up.

Aspen sets her cup down and puts both hands on her knees. She looks me right in the eyes, and hers are so deep and gentle. They’re always full. Full of all the emotions she feels and welcomes and lives. She’s not afraid of life. There was a time when I wasn’t afraid of anything life could throw at me either because the worst was already behind me. I knew there was never going to be this in front of me, so what did I have to lose?

“You’re always welcome back here, even if you have to go or wherever you choose to go. We hope you’ll stay in touch. Daily.Aspen.”

She laughs, launches herself onto my lap, and kisses my forehead. “Yes, Mom. We will.”

Jesus, this woman. She’s so bold and so unafraid. She’s got courage the likes I’ve never seen before and I’ve known men who have faced down bullets and hostile situations on the daily. It’snot just her parents that she has to face. It’s the weight of life and the expectations of a brother who isn’t here with us, who we loved so much. She has to stare down life while attached to me, and what does she do? She doesn’t just handle it like a darned champ. She out and out claims me.

Rick is mine.

“We will,” I echo, finally feeling brave enough to look her parents in the eyes. “I’ll take care of her. You have my word. I’ll do everything I can to be the man Jace wanted me to be.”

Aspen presses her hands on my shoulders. “We’ll take you just the way you are, but we’d be happy to grow with you. And don’t go off on me about how self-helpish that sounds.”

“Never,” I say.

Aspen’s mom and dad reach for each other and hold hands. They share a meaningful look.

“We didn’t get a chance to have a celebration of life for Jace. We just had his regular funeral, and by regular, I mean it was an honorable funeral for a man who served his country. But I’d like to do something that’s just for family and close friends. Just for all of us who knew him and loved him as more than that,” Aspen’s mom says.

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