Page 24 of My Brother's Best Friends

And judging from Kellan and Alex’s excitement only moments ago, I suspect I’m a perfect fit for their tastes.

“Damn, I need to make this work,” I tell my reflection. “Alex and Kellan started this, but Oscar had better be there to finish it.”

I dither too long, until a knock at the door jolts me.

“Be there in just a minute!” I call out.

In a rush, I grab a pair of tight blue jeans and a red sweater. It’s warm and comfy, and it's cropped right at my midsection, so it does a fairly good job of showing off my assets. Glancing at myself in the mirror again, I offer a steady smile.

Arm yourself with patience and cunning, girl. You’ve got this.

10

KELLAN

Dressed in well-worn jeans and a high-end hoodie, I pull a soda from the fridge and pop the top. One glance at the balcony pulls me straight back to everything beautiful that happened in that tub. Makayla is turning out to be the best kind of surprise.

Oscar’s interference still irks me, but I’m confident it’ll play out the way it’s meant to. If it’s meant to be, it’ll happen, so there’s no point in worrying. I know Oscar better than he knows himself, and if he thinks he’s going to resist her for this entire vacation, he’s just lying to himself.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Alex asks, smoothing a pale blue shirt over his tan slacks.

“You know damn well where my thoughts are right now.”

“Ok, hand me one of those,” he says, pointing to my soda bottle.

I grab one, popping it open out of courtesy and hand it to him.

“Where did Oscar go?” Alex asks.

I shrug, caring less about where he could be right now.

“What are we going to do about him?” Alex asks.

“What do you mean?” I counter. “Oscar’s just being Oscar. He’ll loosen up after a few drinks and once he shakes the work stress. We should’ve kept this trip strictly pleasure; business is bleeding into our personal time.”

“Is that what you think happened?”

I arch a brow. “What? You’re saying you were spot-on back there—that you weren’t just trying to rile him up like you always do?”

“I was absolutely spot on. He’s always had a weakness for Makayla, ever since we were young. It irked him that he wasn’t here with us when we started this.”

“Don’t worry. Judging by how hot and heavy she got, I reckon she’ll sway him into the fold in no time,” I reply with a dry chuckle.

“Hmm.” Alex nods.

“How long do you think lunch with Bryan’s going to take?” Alex asks, swinging a leg over the back of the couch.

“I’m not sure.”

He settles in, feet on the coffee table. I’m too wound up to sit, and despite my let-it-be mentality I’m eager to get lunch over with.

“In the meantime, I think we can focus on making sure this trip turns out perfectly for Bryan,” I add. “He’s about to propose, man. Imagine how nervous he must be.”

Alex snorts and shakes his head. “We got carried away back there, didn’t we? We practically forgot about him and Callie altogether.”

“Turns out his sister has that effect on us. But it’s cool. We’ll handle it. We’ll tackle lunch first and be Bryan’s seamless wingmen.”

“Agreed. Whatever happens with Makayla next,” I say, “we will need to be careful.”

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