Page 19 of The Wrong Brother

She had a wonderful time with Jaxson. She wouldn’t let the thoughts of Dane distract her from the nice time she had.

“Game starts in an hour. Up for some baseball?” Jaxson asked, plopping down on her couch.

“That’s a dumb question. You know I’ll always watch baseball. Damn, we should’ve gone to the stadium.” She should’ve thought of that sooner. That would’ve rounded out the evening perfectly.

“Wow. You want to take in all the sights. What’s up with that?”

“Going to a baseball game isn’t taking the sights in. It’s fun. And I’m on vacation, remember?”

“Ah, yeah, almost forgot. You know, normal people go on a cruise, or an exotic island, or some shit like that,” Jaxson said with a laugh, grabbing the remote control from the coffee table.

Then they both pointed at each other and laughed, “Quarter!”

“Mia asked. You know I always do anything for her. Even if it is ridiculous.” Gabby started to walk toward the hallway to the bathroom.

“If she asked you to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge, would you?” Jaxson asked, his facial expression devoid of all teasing.

“She’s my best friend. She’s more fragile than people realize. I need to protect her, sometimes even from herself.”

Jaxson rubbed his chin, grimacing. “I know, Gabs. Forget I said anything.”

She nodded, knowing that Jaxson did understand.

While she looked out for Mia all the time, he liked to look out for her. As she walked to the bathroom, she wondered, who looked out for him? She did, for the most part, but not like she did for Mia.

She changed clothes and took her time using the bathroom, trying not to think about a man she should forget about. Nothing good would come from her daydreaming about him. But damn it. It was so easy to picture Dane’s handsome face. She couldn’t help but daydream. Picture the rare smiles he had bestowed upon her. He would hate her when he found out the truth. She knew it. For once in her life, she wished she would’ve said no to Mia.

But if she’d said no, she never would’ve met Dane. She couldn’t be sorry about meeting him. She was sorry for how it all happened.

“You’re not stinking the joint up, are you? I have to use the bathroom too, you know,” Jaxson hollered from the living room.

She laughed, shaking her head. She should’ve stunk up the bathroom to irritate Jaxson. She wiped her hands dry and walked back to the living room.

“Bathroom is as fresh as the day I cleaned it. Settle down.”

Jaxson stood up, heading toward the bathroom himself. “You were in there forever. What were you doing, if not stinking it up?” He frowned. She must not have shielded her sadness well enough. “Ah, shit, Gabby. I’m sorry. Why don’t you try talking to him? It would make you feel better. Obviously, I’m not helping like I hoped.”

“I don’t think that would help. I don’t want to hear the nasty words he’d say to my face. And you always help me, Jaxson. You’re the best guy friend a girl could have and the best partner.”

“Ah, shucks, don’t make me blush.” He grinned sheepishly, as if embarrassed, then a bright sincere smile emerged. “You’re the best partner and friend a guy could ever ask for. Mia’s pretty lucky that you’re such an awesome friend.”

They didn’t have heart-to-heart talks like this very often. She didn’t know how much more she could take. It meant a lot to her that Jaxson cared as much as he did. “Go take a piss already. Did you find the channel for the game?”

“Yeah. Be right back. Don’t take my spot.”

She smiled with a wicked twinkle in her eyes, watching as he shook his head while walking away, knowing that she was going to sit in his spot. Which she did. She sat down, wiggling her butt to get as comfy as possible when a knock sounded on her door.

She wasn’t in the mood to be bothered by anyone. Probably one of her neighbors looking to borrow something. Mrs. Stenson, two doors down, loved to bake and was always knocking on her door to borrow sugar or flour or whatever other ingredients she ran out of. Gabby didn’t think she ran out of supplies as often as she claimed. She figured Mrs. Stenson liked the company since her husband had passed away not more than a year ago. Of course, if it happened to be her, Gabby wouldn’t turn her away.

She knew it wasn’t Mia. She always walked in without knocking. Jaxson did as well if the door wasn’t locked.

She glanced through the peephole, her lips twisting with surprise as she jumped back.

It couldn’t be.

Leaning closer, peering through the hole again, she almost thought about rubbing her eyes. They had to be deceiving her.

Dane stood on the other side.

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