Page 169 of The Young & the Sinner

Mason

I pulledout the ingredients from the fridge to make spaghetti. I think I had perfected the art of making it since Max told me it was her favorite.

I liked that I was able to do these things for her, even if it meant something as simple as cooking. My eyes quickly moved upstairs, wondering what she was doing and what was taking her so long to come down. I had heard the ringing of a phone, so perhaps Lizzie called.

Turning back to all the food I had set down on the island, I started chopping onions.

It wasn’t until I got the pan out that I heard the front door unlocking before opening. I frowned. Surely Olivia wasn’t leaving.

No, she wasn’t leaving. Someone was coming in.

I quickly wiped my hands on the tea towel nearby and walked out to the entryway. When I saw Max standing there, shaking snow off his hair, my fist clenched.

“Max, what are you doing here?”

I shouldn’t have given him my house key. But I had Max’s house key, and if I didn’t give him one, he would want to know why. I couldn’t very well explain it was because I didn’t want him to walk in on Olivia and me.

“Can’t I visit my little brother?”

“Of course, you can. With a little notice before,” I said, my voice tight. I hoped my face didn’t betray me. How would I explain Olivia’s presence in this house?

And suddenly, I was tired. So goddamn exhausted, I just wanted it all to stop.

I didn’t want to keep secrets anymore, not from the two people I loved most. Not from Max, and certainly not from Olivia.

Max took me in, and I knew the moment he realized I wasn’t alone. It was in the way his eyes brightened.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. Is she upstairs?”

I nodded. What more could I say? He looked happy that I was seeing someone. How he would feel differently when he discovered the identity of that person.

“Is she important? I mean, she must be if you’re bringing her to your new house.”

“Yes, Max. She’s important,” I said quietly.

So, so important.

His eyes brightened even more, if that was possible, and my heart felt like someone had wrapped a tight fist around it. I rubbed my chest absently, while he shot me a smile. “I’m glad. It’s been a while since you’ve been in a serious relationship.”

I didn’t think I had ever been in a serious relationship before Olivia, no matter what Max thought. I knew he was thinking about the last time we had this conversation, about a toxic relationship I was getting into.

“You know, for a second, I thought…” he trailed off with a shake of his head. “Never mind. That’s not important.”

“What?”

“It’s nothing. When will I get to meet her?”

“Perhaps another time,” I said. As much as I wanted to come clean with my brother, I didn’t want to blindside Olivia with it. “I’m making her dinner.”

He mocked salute me. “Okay, okay. I know when I’m not wanted. Perhaps I’ll take Olivia to dinner. I wonder where she’s at,” he said the last part to himself, and the uncomfortable feeling in my chest grew.

Max made a move to turn and walk away, but something must have caught his eye because he paused. A moment of hesitation, and then he was walking back into the house, and I didn’t know why, until I figured out where he was headed.

The K.H. Knight painting.

Panic filled my heart, but I stayed where I was, not wanting Max to see what I was feeling.

He traced the artist’s signature with his index finger, and we didn’t say anything for a long while.

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