Page 54 of The Older Brother
I’ve got this.
My gaze hits my brother’s first, then shifts to Allison. The two of them are talking at Allison’s desk right outside my father’s office, and given the way both of their spines instantlystraighten, and their mouths shut, I’d guess they were talking about me.
“Oh look, you’re working today instead of floating down the river with a keg of beer.” I figure I may as well beat Caleb to the insults.
He chuckles and stretches his back as if he’s yawning and bored of me.
“It’s easier taking days off when you’re on track to make a shitload of money. But I guess money isn’t important to you, huh? I mean, you took the day off too. Saw you at the lake, with Saylor.” He drops that bit just to hook Allison’s attention. He doesn’t know that she’s already tuned in and staring at me with lasers.
“Well, money isn’t everything,” I say, punctuating it with a smug grin that makes his eyes narrow. I’d love to walk away and let him stew on that, but I also need to do what I can not to completely piss Allison off. I shift my focus to her and fish out the parking ticket.
“Despite what my brother may have you think, I’m here to get my father’s expertise on a few things. Money might not be everything, but I wouldn’t mind having more of it, and I thought maybe I could get a little savvier on investments.”
Allison studies me for a whole second that seems to drag on for an hour. Her deep red lipstick puckers as she chews at the end of her gold pen. She finally slides my parking ticket along her desk and stamps it with the company’s logo.
“Here’s your get out of jail free card,” she says, sliding it back with her own smug smirk in place. Okay, so maybe she’s a little pissed off. I might not be able to charm her the way I did when I was younger, but I’m not going to let her pull a power trip on me either. I know what this is about. I’m not good enough for her daughter. Well, she’s not either. And if she pushes me too far, I might just let everyone know my reasons for feeling that way.
“Believe me. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that jail isn’t free,” I say, meeting her gaze. I hold it hostage while I slip the parking validation into my wallet for safekeeping. “Is the big guy in?”
Allison breathes in slowly and glances at Caleb.
“Get in line,” she says, nodding toward my brother.
My brother rolls his eyes, which only makes me chuckle. I follow my brother to the pair of leather chairs outside my father’s office. His eyes keep shifting from me to anything else, and after sitting next to him in pure silence for five minutes, I finally start to laugh.
“It bugs you that much that Saylor’s into me.”
His eyes dim, and his head tilts as he shakes with a single silent laugh.
“She’s not into you. You’re a rebound. A distraction before college.” He almost sounds convinced.
“Maybe,” I say, leaving it at that.
Who knows, maybe I am simply filler before Saylor takes off to begin the rest of her life. But also, there’s something bigger going on between us. I can feel it. When I’m with her, I like the man reflected in her eyes. I forget all the failures that led up to this point in my life. I’m suddenly a guy who’s making smart choices, who’s venturing out and being his own man. It’s how I’d like to think of myself, but for some reason, it’s always been hard to believe those characteristics until now.
I think perhaps I’m inspiring Saylor to go her own way, too. And sure, there’s a chance that whatever direction she chooses won’t have me in it. But I’m in it now, and it feels damn good to be wanted in whatever way this is. Comfort, I guess?
Our dad’s office door swings open, saving my brother and I from having to fill more time with grunts and awkward glares. I get to my feet before Caleb, and it amuses me that my brother scrambles to make sure he reaches our father before I do.
“I don’t think you two have been this excited to see me since Christmas morning when I bought you that new gaming console.” My dad slings an arm around Caleb and guides him into his office while nodding for me to follow. It’s a good reminder of my place in this world.
“We were the only kids at school who had the Firefly 2000,” Caleb proclaims.
I open my mouth to point out that the console ended up catching on fire after two weeks and was quickly discontinued for massive patent fraud, but I decide saying so would be antithetical to my spy mission and snap it shut.
“So, what’s the occasion?” My dad sits behind his desk, propping his feet up and folding his hands behind his neck as Caleb and I plunk down on another set of leather chairs. These are much harder than the ones in the lobby. Nobody is allowed to be too comfortable in here.
My brother glances my way, so I clear my throat and lean forward. Asshole wants to put me on the hotspot. Fine. I’ll own it.
My hands clasped, elbows on my knees as I sit forward, I force myself to ignore the squeeze from the band around my chest. This mic has been hot since I got in my car, time to make it capture something worthwhile.
“Well, you’ve always told me that if I was going to get something out of my business, I needed to look beyond the cars and focus on long-term investments, right?”
My father’s mouth ticks up on one side, and his eyes haze, probably with skepticism.
I clear my throat.
“Well, we’ve had a good couple of months. And I was hoping that you could show me the ropes a little, maybe help me invest in some of the things you’ve got going on?”
