Page 21 of Resilient Rhythms
“Yeah,” he agrees, nodding. He rolls his glass between his hands. “I Facetimed with her today, too.”
I grin. “Mom gives good advice.”
“And she doesn’t judge,” he murmurs, his tone darker. Then, he meets my gaze and lifts his eyebrows. “Your date?”
“I won’t lose her again, Jameson.”
He’s quiet for a long beat. “Good for you, Maverick.”
“Now you have to decide, for once and for all, are you going to fight for Amelia and fix things, or has this thing between y’all finally run its course?”
His eyes are glassy as they hold mine. “Amelia and I are done. For good. It’s over.”
“All right,” I say softly, knowing that even though I’ll never understand my brother’s connection to Amelia, it meant something real to him. Treading carefully, I blow out a breath. “Then, you’ve gotta pick yourself up and start a new chapter.” I smirk, reaching out to take away his tumbler.
“Hey.”
“We run at six a.m., Jameson,” I say, standing to toss the amber liquid down the drain. I hold my breath as I run the water from the tap, erasing the scent of the alcohol. “Get a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow you’re turning over a new leaf. And it’s not gonna be easy. In fact, some days, it’s going to feel like hell. But I promise you, it gets easier. I’ve been there, man. And I’ll do it with you, every damn step. You’ll be a better man for it.”
Jameson stares at me, his gaze hard and unyielding. “Don’t I get some time to process shit? To lick my wounds, so to speak?”
“I gave you a few weeks. You don’t want to bury yourself too deep, brother. It becomes harder to pull yourself out. Trust me on that one.” I point at him as I move toward the stairs. “Six a.m.”
Then, I relocate upstairs, take a cold shower, throw up a prayer that I’m capable of everything coming my way, and pass the hell out.
SIX
MCKENNA
The early morningknock on my door surprises me.
I pad to the front door, my slippers quiet on the hardwood floors, and peek out the side window.
Disbelief rolls through me as I pull open the door. “Mav?”
“Morning, beauty.” He holds up two paper coffee cups from Java House.
“What are you doing here?” I step back and usher him into the brownstone.
“Was in the area.”
I laugh.
He grins. “I was. Went for an early morning run with Jameson and had some errands to do nearby.”
“Errands.” I’m skeptical.
His eyes glitter. They’re clear and open and just how I remember them. “Errands,” he repeats, giving me a long, lingering look. Then, he lifts his hand and takes a sip of his coffee.
“Are we friends now?”
“We’ll never be just friends, Mckenna.” He passes me the second coffee cup.
I bite the corner of my lip, tipping my coffee in his direction. “Are you going to randomly drop by unannounced?”
“Does it bother you?”
I consider his question for a long moment. “No.”
