Page 51 of Wrapped Around My Heart
The room falls into a silence so painful, I resist the urge to speak up first. Ari clutches my hand in hers, shoulders stiff as a board while she holds a staring contest with her mom.
Katherine is the one who finally breaks it.
“You’re…” Then she squeals. Louder than she did before and higher than I would have thought possible. “I’m gonna be a grandma?”
She’s crossing the living room, practically falling into Arianna’s lap as she wraps her into a hug so tight, I wonder if it’s possible to cut off blood supply to the baby. While the two of them cry and hug, I look over at Theodore first.
He moved quickly, already standing behind his wife with his arms out and ready to catch her if she slips. When he looks at me, relief pours through my veins at a pace that leaves me dizzy.
With a hand still held out behind Katherine’s back, he pulls me into a half hug. “Congratulations, Son.”
It’s such a simple statement. Something he’s said to me countless times before when we’ve won a game or when I’ve gotten nominated for an award.
However, this time, the words hit completely different.
Katherine swoops in, silently trading off with Theodore so he can go hug his daughter and peppering me with all the things she gets to buy now.
I’m just about to check in on Ari when motion across the room catches my eye.
I watch Landon’s back disappear through the kitchen, frowning. When I turn back to Arianna to find her staring at the door her brother just left through, tears lining her eyes and a frown taking over the once happy moment, I follow him.
When I find the kitchen empty, I slip out the back door and find him stepping up to the waterfront. I don’t say anything as I approach, but there’s no doubt he heard me coming. Slipping upbeside him, we stand side by side in silence for a couple minutes, looking out over the calm of the bay.
“How mad are you?” I finally ask when the quiet becomes too much.
Landon sighs, dipping his hands in his pockets while mindlessly kicking at some of the pebbles. “I’m not mad.”
“Coulda fooled me.” I snort. “You hurt your sister’s feelings.”
“Yeah, because you know all about whatmysister is feeling,” he snaps and my eyebrows fly up and I almost take a step back.
Landon is a peacekeeper. He’s the guy in the locker room who can sense when a joke is about to be taken too far and pivots the conversation. He’s the one who can stand skate to skate with a man bigger than him screaming in his face and won’t even flinch. Landon doesn’t raise his voice or get upset.
Until now.
If this were any other situation, I’d probably be backtracking. I’d be bending over backward to help make things better. Because Landon being upset or angry just feels wrong.
In this moment, however, I refuse to let his anger get back to Arianna.
Straightening my shoulders, I turn my body toward him. “Yes, I do know all about her feelings. And I can tell you with one look at her back there, that you proved every single one of her fears right.”
He at least has the decency to flinch, but I can tell there’s still more he needs to get off his chest, and that I’m about to be his punching bag.
“She’ll be?—”
“I swear, if you’re about to say the word fine, I will shove you into the bay. Will she be okay? Absolutely. I’ll make sure of that.” I cross my arms, trying to ease the disappointment running through my veins. “Just because she’ll be okay, doesn’t give you the right to upset her.”
“So I’m supposed to get over the fact that my best friend has been sneaking around with my sister for…how long have you even been seeing her behind my back?”
“Kinda and just over two years.”
His eyes bulge so wide, I almost want to laugh.
“Two years?” Landon finally looks at me, his jaw working overtime as he grinds his teeth. “Bullshit. I’ve seen you flirt with women every time we go out. There’s no way?—”
“What you’ve seen is me being friendly, and in some cases, it was under the guise of distracting you when I thought for sure you caught me checking out Ari’s ass. Oh, don’t look at me like that.” I roll my eyes when his face turns red at my admission that I’ve checked out his sister.
Considering she’s having my baby, I’ve done more than just look at her.
