Page 18 of Whatever You Need

He set everything to the side and sat down. “I don’t envy you, brother. I hope you catch these dirtbags soon.”

“You and me both.”

He broke off a piece of bread and spoke in a hushed tone. “So, what exactly did I walk in on a few minutes ago?”

“I decided to stop acting like an idiot. I told Mom not to worry about inviting Aunt Connie and her family over for Christmas. I assured her that I was okay with it.” We both glanced over our shoulders as she pulled a tray of cookies out of the oven. “She needs this.”

He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. I expected him to gloat, but he surprised me when he patted my leg and said, “I’m proud of you, little brother.”

“I guess I have to grow up sometime.” I smirked, but he only stared.

Matteo placed his clasped hands on the table and scrutinized me from head to toe. “You’re doing the right thing. I know this won’t be easy on you, so you don’t have to pretend with me.”

I fidgeted in my seat, weighing the pros and cons to this conversation. “I’m over Sienna. I have been for a long time. I’ll be fine.”

He titled his head to the side, eyeing me carefully. “You seem different.”

“Do I?” I wanted to be annoyed, but I had to admit my brother was on to me.

“Yeah, you’ve been smiling nonstop.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Matteo was always observant. He would make a good detective. Or maybe he just knew me better than anybody.

“You’ve got this starry look in your eyes.”

I scoffed and wadded my napkin up and threw it on the table. “Will you knock it off. You’ve been watching too many Disney movies with your kids.”

He smirked like he knew something I didn’t. “Nice try, but you are forgetting that I’ve known you your entire life. Something is up with you, because you’re not acting like the miserable bastard that I’ve grown to love.”

I glanced at my mom, who was rinsing a dish off in the sink. “It’s a good thing you met your wife when you were fifteen. With lines like that, you would probably still be a virgin playing Call of Duty in Mom’s basement.”

He gave me a suspicious once-over and pursed his lips. “You’re trying too hard to throw me off track. Now I know you’re hiding something.”

Mom strode over and draped her arms along both our shoulders. “What do you say when you’re done eating that you boys get the boxes out of the basement and help me decorate the house for Christmas?”

I glanced at my brother. “Of course.” I stood up quickly before he could grill me any further.

He gave me a look that said we weren’t done with this conversation.

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