Page 58 of Only Ever Yours
He silenced me with a kiss. “We won’t have to give anything up. I promise you that.”
With all my heart, I hoped that was true.
Sometime later, I heard the front door bang open and shut, waking me from a fractious sleep. Elbowing Jase in the ribs, I woke him, too, and we both sat up, expectantly staring at the living room door.
“There’s a welcome party I wasn’t expecting.” Finn stood in the open doorway, still in his suit from the wedding, hair mussed up and looking more than a little dishevelled.
“Where have you been?” I demanded. “You’ve had us worried all night.”
“Really? Looks like it.” He snorted.
“Fully clothed, Finn. Nothing happened.” I pulled the duvet back, exposing Jase and me in our casual clothes. “We were waiting for you to come back.”
“Well, I’m back.” His voice was monotone.
“Can we talk? I know you spoke to Jase at the wedding, but you need to hear my side, too.”
He lifted a shoulder. “I do. But not now. I need some sleep first.” Before I could say anything else, he’d left the room and gone upstairs.
I turned to Jase. “What do you think? Is he going to be okay about this?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I guess we’ll have to wait until tomorrow to find out.”
Neither Jase nor I slept particularly well in the end. After Finn had returned, we went up to my room and settled down there, snuggled up together in our underwear, enjoying the closeness. Having had to keep our distance, it felt like we were still doing something wrong even though everything was now out in the open. I lay awake, Jase’s arm casually around me, wondering what Finn would say. Just as I was finally drifting off, I heard Finn going downstairs. Realising this would be the best time for me to share how I felt about Jase, I carefully extracted myself from his embrace and slid out of bed. Pulling on leggings and a hoodie, I shoved my feet into a pair of slippers and wound my hair back into a ponytail. Somehow, that felt like I meant business and wouldn’t take any nonsense.
Finn sat at the kitchen table, his head resting in his hands, a small groan escaping him.
“What’s up, bro? Too much to drink last night?” I triedto keep things light and went to the cupboard to get some mugs to make us tea.
“If that was the only thing,” I thought I heard him murmur. Then he lifted his head and stared straight at me, dark circles ringing his eyes. “You making tea?”
I nodded and busied myself with boiling the kettle and putting tea bags in the mugs. Looking at the state of Finn, I added a heaped teaspoon of sugar. He looked like he needed the boost this morning. Once I’d made the drinks, I placed Finn’s down and sat at the end of the table, not across from him, so it didn’t look too confrontational.
“Where did you get to last night?”
He paused, lifting his cup to his mouth and blowing on the contents before clearing his throat. “Ella’s.”
I almost dropped my own tea into my lap. If that was the case, why hadn’t Ella replied sooner to tell me Finn had been there? Unless…had something happened between them last night?My brain went into overdrive until I remembered why we were really there. To talk about me and Jase, not about how my brother and Ella might have got back together. Although, I was more than intrigued by that prospect. Before I bombarded him with a million questions, I simply nodded.
“Good. We were worried about you.”
Finn fixed me with a look. “I’m sure you and Jase had more important things to do than worry about me.”
“You’re my brother, Finn. Of course, I worry about you.”
He grunted and mumbled something under his breath, which sounded a lot like,Didn’t seem to matter when you were hooking up with my best mate.
Taking a deep inhale, I ignored it and then started to talk, the words tumbling out so fast I couldn’t stop them. “Remember that summer we stayed at Barney’s and Liam’s grandparents’ place? When I had that stupid crush on Neil Bradley, and you went all protective big brother on him? Well, it was Jase who found me and looked after me then. He helped me get back into the house and stayed with me until Kirsty got back. That was years ago, and he’s never been anything but caring ever since. When I came back here, and we went to the Live Lounge, I got so drunk, I puked in the ladies’ toilets. Who was there to make sure I didn’t choke? Jase. And when you sent him to London with me to get my stuff, who looked out for me when Gil made an appearance? Jase. He’s always been there for me, Finn. Always.” Pausing for breath, I sipped my tea, wishing I’d put sugar in mine, too.
Finn scrubbed a hand down his face. “Fuck, Hollis. I know that. Jase is one of the good guys. But even after everything, I didn’t expect the two of you to fall for each other. It just never entered my head because Jase has always been about the one-night stands and the flings. I never expected it to be because of how he felt about you all this time.”
I allowed myself a small smile. Deep down, I knew that, too. “So, you’re okay with us seeing each other?”
“How can I stand in the way of true love?” He gave me a lopsided grin.
“He makes me happy, Finn. Something that I’d forgotten how to be when I was with Gil.” My heart contracted as I said the words, knowing how true they were. Pushing my chair back, I went around the table to Finn and engulfed him in an awkward hug.
“I’m glad to hear that.” Jase’s voice came from the doorway. “Am I too late to join in the group hug?”
