CHAPTER 25
M allory scrubbed her face, hoping that her cleanser would do more than erase blackheads. She needed the image of Beckett obliterated from her mind. The haunted look in his eyes as he left, the defeated slump in his shoulders; it gutted her. She’d known the man for most of her life, and it was clear he was still trudging his way through grief. It wasn’t her place to fault him his own process, but it hurt that he wouldn’t lean on her more, wouldn’t trust that they would be okay in the end.
When she was as fresh-faced as anyone nearing thirty with a monster hangover could be, she padded out to the kitchen in search of fattening foods. Alcohol wasn’t appealing, but she needed something comforting to soften the edges of the last twenty-four hours.
After she pulled out a loaf of bread and block of cheese, her culinary efforts were interrupted by the jangling of keys in her front door. Mallory spun around in time to see Evan bound into the apartment, his jaw tense and eyes wild. “Ev?” she asked, wiping her hands on a tea towel.
At first he didn’t say anything, simply stared at her like she was the one acting crazy. Then he turned and stalked back to the living room. He ate up the floor with his long strides, and she hoped her neighbors couldn’t hear him stomping. It sounded like a pair of elephants in tap shoes. Fernando came out long enough to investigate before hissing and dashing into the bathroom.
Mallory joined her brother, only then noticing the bandage around his hand. “What happened to your hand?” She stepped forward, already frowning at the subpar bandage work. “Let me see.”
Evan held his arms up, their own version of keep-away. “No, Mal. I’m fine.”
“What happened? Did you hurt yourself at the diner?” It wouldn’t be the first time Evan showed up with a minor burn or a nick from a chef’s knife.
Evan shook his head.
“Let me see.” She urged, jumping and waving her arms. “I’m guessing you haven’t seen a professional, so stop being a big baby.”
Side-stepping her, Evan sighed. “Leave it, I’m fine.”
“You’re obviously not, so let me—”
“I punched Beckett.” Evan’s admission echoed throughout the room, his words shocking them both. Behind her, Fernando meowed, seemingly just as appalled by the news.
“I’m sorry, what?” Mallory stumbled back as if she was the one being struck. “Why did you do that?”
“I don’t understand,” Evan said, pacing back and forth, acting as if she didn’t just ask an important—and valid—question. Her apartment had never felt overly spacious, but right now she was surprised her brother could fit inside with all his barely contained rage. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”
Mallory took a deep breath, readying herself for a fight with Evan. They were siblings, so this was hardly her first rodeo with bickering and arguments. But she knew this was different. She’d done the one thing Evan couldn’t stand—treating him like a kid. They were barely eighteen months apart, and she knew he felt the sting of her betrayal acutely, like a jellyfish sneak attack.
“Ev,” she started, only to be silenced by Evan grunting.
“Has he hurt you? Ever done anything you didn’t want?” His questions were so outlandish, Mallory pursed her lips to keep from laughing.
“Beckett’s never willingly hurt me, but our relationship hasn’t always been easy.”
“Oh, geez,” Evan sighed. “Your relationship. I don’t know if I can hear this.” He covered his ears with his hands and turned his back, his shoulders tense. “Ugh, this is too much.”
Mallory had so many questions, least of which was the state of Beckett’s face. Did he break his glasses? Did he fight back? Was he hurt right now? She grew dizzy with the myriad of questions and sat on the arm of the couch for support. “Evan, I need you to tell me what happened.”
Evan whirled around but kept his distance. “Why? I feel like I’m the only person in Buckeye Falls that doesn’t know the full story.”
Mallory raised an eyebrow. “The story of me and Beckett?”
“Gah! I’m still not ready for this.”
If she was being honest, neither was Mallory. Her brother had a knack for theatrics when he was in a mood, but this seemed like too much. What had Beckett said to get a punch to the face?
“How’s Beckett?”
“How the hell should I know? He left when CeCe came outside. Frankly, I don’t know if I want to see him again.”
“Oh, boy.” Mallory groaned. “You’re not serious. You’ve been friends for your whole lives. You’re going to throw that away because we’re dating?” Or whatever we’re doing...
Evan scoffed. “Yeah, it’s because of that . But it’s also the whole ring thing.”
Mallory froze, unsure what Evan meant by that. “The ring thing?”
Evan finally stopped his tap routine and flopped onto the couch, kicking his legs out and resting them on the coffee table. His nervous energy couldn’t be contained, and he continued wiggling his legs. The movement shook a stack of gossip magazines to the floor, but Mallory didn’t have the energy to care.
“You’re telling me you don’t know?” With his head thrown back, she could only see his profile, the vein in his temple throbbing an alarming tempo. He looked like their father every time the Browns lost a game, but she kept that tidbit to herself.
“I’m serious, Ev. Calm down and tell me the whole story. I’m clueless here.”
Evan swallowed hard, taking a moment to collect himself. “CeCe hates Nana Lawson’s ring. She told Beckett at the engagement party. Then he let it slip right after telling me he’s been sneaking around with you. Some best man he turned out to be.”
Mallory’s hand flew up to her mouth, barely containing her gasp. “CeCe doesn’t like Nana’s ring? What are you going to do?”
With a snort, Evan sprang back to his feet and stomped into the kitchen. “Please tell me there’s beer here.” He didn’t wait for a response, rattling the contents of her fridge around until he found what he was looking for. Stalking back into the living room, he didn’t bother offering Mallory a drink.
“I’m good, thanks.” She deadpanned, her mind still whirling with the fact that CeCe didn’t want the ring.
“You want to hear something hilarious?” He spat, eyes brimming with frustrated tears.
Mallory snorted. “It’d be a nice change of topic.”
“Emily called on my way out here. I unloaded all the Beckett and Nana’s ring drama, only for her to add another cherry on this crap sundae.”
Mallory paled, collapsing onto the couch by her brother. Fernando, for once, sensed she needed him. He sauntered out from the hallway and climbed into her lap, tail looping around her forearm. “What did Em say?” she asked, voice strained.
“You’ll love this,” he groaned. He took a long pull from the beer before slamming it on the coffee table. He raked his hands through his hair and muttered to himself. By the time he was done, half of his blond locks were tousled to almost vertical heights. “Em said you always wanted Nana’s ring. That it was your dream to inherit it. I have been in the dark on every aspect of my engagement since the beginning. My best man is in love with my sister, my sister didn’t want me to use the ring, and my fiancée hates the ring. How does everyone know everything except me? Why do I always feel like the idiot kid of the family?”
Knowing it was bad form to point out how he was acting childish, Mallory tried another tactic. Holding up her hands, she slowly scooted toward her brother, trying not to corner him like a trapped animal. “Ev, can I just have one minute to explain?” Her voice was thick, as if she’d downed a gallon of honey. “Please.”
Sensing her turmoil, he put his sister out of her misery by dropping his arms to his sides and letting out a sigh. “I’ll give you two minutes.”
The corner of her lip quirked, but she wasn’t about to waste her opportunity to explain herself. “I didn’t know how to tell you.” She started, licking her lips and willing her heart rate to slow. “Nana used to let me play with the ring, remember?”
“Yeah, kind of. You two were always the closest.”
Mallory allowed herself a moment to smile at that, because Nana was one of her favorite people, along with Gram. “Thanks for saying that, but I don’t want to get off topic.”
“Then why not just say something, Mal? I felt like such a fool. Do you know how that made me look? I thought we were close.”
His words had their desired effect, rocking Mallory back into the cushions like she’d been slapped. “Ev.” She reached out, Fernando darting back down the hallway, but her brother wasn’t finished.
“And you know the worst part? I looked like some stupid kid who got carried away with a fanciful idea. God, I’m always the young, dumb one.” He leaned forward and dropped his head into his hands. Now Mallory was done keeping her distance.
She scooted over, taking his hands in hers and pulling them free until he finally met her matching blue gaze. “Evan, you need to listen to me. No one thinks you’re a kid, or a fool, or anything else you’re worried about. If anything, they think I’m the old spinster sister who can’t let go of a childish fantasy.”
Evan wrinkled his nose in confusion. “What are you talking about? No one thinks you’re any of those things. Especially Beckett.”
Mallory’s heart expanded—no exploded—in her ribcage. “What do you mean?”
“Yeah, pretty sure I’m going to have to kick his ass if he doesn’t get back together with you. But then I’ll have to kick his ass if he does.” He shook his head, clearing his head. “I literally have no idea what’s going on anymore.”
“Brother, you’ll have to get in line. Ever since Beckett came to town, I don’t know which end is up.”
Finally, Evan’s trademark grin made an appearance, damn near lighting up the room. “Aren’t we a pair?”
Mallory reached and pinched his arm. “Certainly are.”
Evan drained the last of his beer and sighed. “I promise I’ll be an adult and take CeCe out to find her perfect ring.”
Mallory shot him a thumbs-up. “And Beckett?”
“I’ll try not to murder him at the rehearsal dinner. At least I have a few weeks to get used to this.”
Mallory huffed out a laugh. “Progress.”
For a moment, his megawatt smile melted as he asked, “You’re really into Beckett? Like this is more than a passing crush?”
He was giving her an out, a way to avoid the trickiness and messiness of the situation. But Mallory was tired of the easy way out, and she was tired of lying about how she felt about Beckett, about how he made her feel. Mallory hugged a cushion to her chest and sighed. “I’m in love with him.” If this surprised Evan, he didn’t show it. “And in case you’re wondering, I have been for, like, my whole life.”
That got a reaction. “Say what?” He blinked a few times, his left eye twitching like his brain had short-circuited. “You’ve been in love with Foxy this whole time?”
Mallory lifted a shoulder and grimaced. “Basically. Do you hate me?”
Evan ran a hand down his face and sighed. “I don’t hate you, Mal. But I will have to kill my best friend if you tell me he did something to hurt you. I’ve seen you guys lately, and it’s like there’s an electric forcefield between you.”
Mallory was incredulous. “You’ve seen electricity? Ev, come on.”
Rolling his eyes he sighed. “Fine. CeCe saw it, and gave me a ludicrously long description of my blindness and ignorance.”
“I love her,” Mallory said, unable to hold back her grin.
Evan’s lips tipped up. “So do I. Now get back to the forcefield part.” He winced as he said it, but she was proud of him for asking.
Unsure how much to divulge, Mallory decided the full truth was best. She didn’t know where she stood with Beckett, and she wasn’t about to lose the goodwill with her brother. Her world only made sense if Evan was in her life. “I said some things I shouldn’t have after the engagement party. He came over after he left with Julia, and I just—” Even saying the other woman’s name now left a bitter taste in her mouth. She knew in her heart that nothing happened and Beckett felt cornered, but that didn’t stop the hurt from being left behind. Again.
“Good Lord,” Evan said on a groan. “I need to stop fixing him up with random women.”
Mallory leaned forward and flicked him on the forehead. “Could you, please? It’s kind of annoying.”
Evan pushed himself to standing and held out a hand for Mallory to join him. Pulling her to his chest, he squeezed her firmly before stepping back and letting his arms fall. “I love you, Mal. But I’m going to go home and beg CeCe’s forgiveness for giving her the wrong ring.”
“That woman loves you more than a good loaf of sourdough bread. You could put a rubber band on her finger and she’d love you.”
“Yeah, but she deserves more than that.” Evan’s smile returned at the mention of CeCe, and Mallory’s heart swelled with love and pride. He’d gone through life with his heart on his sleeve, and finally the right woman had snagged it. She couldn’t think of a better partner for her brother.
Now that things were out in the open with Evan, she hoped she and Beckett could find their own happily ever after. They’d certainly taken an eternity to get here, and she thought they deserved one more fighting chance at forever.