Chapter 5 Goose
GOOSE
“Glad you came by tonight.”
“Me, too… It’s been too long, and that’s on me.”
Davis smiled that old Davis smile. I had to give it to him. Davis looked and sounded the part of the remorseful brother, but that didn’t mean he was sorry.
It just meant he’d gotten better at faking it.
His smile remained as he added, “I’ve missed my little brother.”
Little brother.
I hadn’t heard him call me that in years, and I won’t deny that it got to me. Felt like maybe all those years of tension and heartache were finally behind us. I had no idea how it happened or why, and while I was leery, I was glad to finally have a decent conversation with my brother.
I didn’t want the good to end with us all drifting into different directions, so I asked, “Where you staying tonight?”
“I’ll hang with my girl tonight.” Davis rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced. “But that’s not gonna work long term. Her sister’s been staying there, and you know… She’s a lot.”
Presley’s jaw tightened as she glanced up at Davis.
There was something in the way she looked at him, but it was only for a split second. If you blinked, you’d miss it.
But I didn’t miss it.
It was a look of guilt intertwined with sadness, but I had no idea what she had to feel sad about. She had a good job. She had Davis. Things seemed good. I would’ve expected her to be happy, and it made me wonder if something was going on with them.
Before I had time to question it, I offered, “You could stay with me.”
Yeah, I should’ve thought that through.
I wasn’t in a position to make such an offer, so I backpedaled.
“I mean, my place is a wreck. I’ve been doing some renovations, and shit is everywhere.
It’s a disaster zone, but we’ve got spare rooms at the clubhouse.
I could put you up for a couple of days…
a week maybe. Just enough time for you to find something else. ”
“You serious?”
“Sure,” I answered, like it wouldn’t cause me to lose sleep.
Davis was my brother. I cared about him and wanted him in my life. But that didn’t change the fact he’d proven, time and time again, that he couldn’t be trusted.
But the offer wasn’t me giving him my trust.
That had to be earned.
He could do right. I hoped in my heart of hearts that he would, but one slip. One lie. One wrong move, and that would be that. There would be no more chances.
Davis didn’t even blink. He just gave me a nod and said, “Man, that’d be awesome.”
“Are you sure about this?” Presley whispered.
“What’s not to be sure of?” Davis scoffed. “My brother’s coming through for me.”
“But it’s quite the imposition, don’t ya think?”
“Imposition? You know I don’t like you using big words like that,” he chuckled. “And we’re brothers. It’s our jobs to be impositions.”
“But…”
“But nothing,” Davis cut her off. “It’ll be fine.”
“He’s right. It’s all good.”
“See? Nothing to worry about.”
The words were barely out of his mouth when Davis stepped forward and slung his arms around me, pulling me in for a hug. That’s right. An actual hug. Surprised me, too, but maybe, just maybe, we were finally patching up something that should’ve been fixed a long time ago.
I hugged him back, and when I let him go, I glanced over at Presley. It was just a brief moment, but her eyes held mine for a heartbeat too long. And damn it. I felt it down to my bones.
I didn’t say a word.
I did my best not to let it show.
It wasn’t easy, especially when she was looking at me like that. She wasn’t smiling. She didn’t look relieved or happy in the slightest. Instead, she looked worried, and it hit me right in the gut.
I shouldn’t have cared.
I shouldn’t have felt anything where she was concerned.
She was Davis’s girl. One wrong move there and I’d wreck any chance I had of fixing things with my brother. No way I was taking that chance. I turned my attention back to Davis as I said, “I’ll have to okay everything with Prez, but I’m sure he won’t have a problem with it.”
“Good deal. I’ll be there at ten… unless you call and tell me something different.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
The next morning, I got to the clubhouse early and went to see Prez, making sure it was okay with him that Davis was coming for a few days. Once he’d given me the okay, I went to one of the spare rooms and picked it up a bit, making sure it was move-in ready.
I wrapped up there and headed out front. I wanted to be there when Davis pulled in. I figured he’d need some help with his things, but there was no sign of him. I glanced down at my watch and groaned when I saw that it was ten twenty-three.
He said he’d be here by ten.
Yeah, we weren’t off to a great start.
I wasn’t bent out of shape about it, but I won’t deny that I was a little on edge. Needless to say, it wasn’t the best time for Memphis to come up with one of his what-in-the-actual-hell-are-you-doing looks, but there he was, eyeballing me like I was the dumbass of the year.
“I don’t want to hear it.”
He shook his head and scoffed, “Not saying a word.”
“You don’t have to. I know what you’re thinking.”
Memphis and I were close. He knew everything. He knew how deep the scars went. He also knew how I felt about Davis. “Just making sure you’ve thought this thing through.”
I didn’t answer right away. I took a sip of my coffee and stared at the empty space where Davis’s truck should’ve been. “Guess that’s a no.”
That was the thing about Memphis.
He only pushed when he needed to and pulled back when he knew I was too close to the edge. And never once, not a single damn time, had he ever made me feel stupid for hoping that things would get better. He nudged my arm as he asked, “Where’d he say he was working?”
“Factory downtown.”
“You check it out?”
I felt the question settle heavy in my chest. It would’ve been easy to make a call or have Shep look into it, but I hadn’t taken the time. “No.”
“You don’t think that’s something you should look into?”
“I’m giving him a chance, Memphis. He deserves that.”
“Giving him a chance doesn’t mean ignoring the red flags.”
“I’m not ignoring shit.”
“You are, and you know it.” He leaned against the rail. “You haven’t spoken to the guy in years, and then, he waltzes into the Vault like it was no big deal… like the two of you haven’t been on the outs for as long as you could walk. What the hell was that?”
“What do you want from me?”
“I want you to remember that your brother has a past. A long one. A deep one and opening up the clubhouse to him is no small thing.”
It wasn’t something I hadn’t considered.
Hell, it weighed on me to the point it was damn near crippling.
Davis had fucked up more times than I could count, but I couldn’t help but be hopeful. He’d looked good last night. Sounded good. And he seemed like he actually wanted to make things better between us.
I’d been waiting a lifetime for that, so I told him, “He’s my brother.”
Memphis didn’t look at me like I was stupid. He didn’t try to talk me out of it. He just nodded, like he understood where I was coming from.
There it was.
That right there was the reason we weren’t just friends. Memphis wasn’t blood, but he’d been there for me through thick and thin. He understood why this was so important to me, but he also knew my decision came with risks.
“I get it. I’d do the same damn thing.”
“I’m going to have the prospects keep an eye on him. I’m hoping he won’t fuck up, but if he does…”
“We’ll know about it. Good you’re on top of things.” He clapped a hand on my shoulder. “We’ll play the rest by ear.”
When Davis finally pulled into the lot, Memphis stood there beside me, steady and unwavering. As always, he was ready to deal with whatever came next.
Brother.
Not by blood.
But in every way that mattered.
Davis’s old truck rumbled into the parking spot like it barely survived the drive. Memphis straightened his back, watching intently as Davis killed the engine and hopped out. He had brought Presley with him, but she stayed put as Davis started over to us.
He forced a grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes as he told me, “Morning, Bub.”
“Morning.” I motioned my head to my side. “Davis, this is Memphis. He’s one of the brothers and a damn good friend of mine.”
“Good to meet ya, Memphis.” Davis extended his hand. “I appreciate you boys letting me hang with you for a few days.”
Memphis shook his hand, easy as ever, but I saw the guarded look in his eye. If anything, the man was protective. “No problem. We’re glad to have ya.”
“I’ll grab my stuff.”
Davis stepped back to the bed of the truck and grabbed his backpack, then immediately started back over to me and Memphis.
Presley opened the passenger door, and when she stepped out, Davis didn’t even look at her, much less speak to her.
I didn’t know what the man was thinking.
Presley wasn’t the type to ignore. Not unless there was a reason.
“It okay if I throw my stuff in my room?”
“Yeah, I’ll take you,” Memphis answered as he reached back and opened the door. “It’s right down the hall.”
Davis nodded and followed without so much as glancing back at Presley. Something was off. I just couldn’t figure out what the deal was. She lingered by the truck with her arm wrapped around herself like she wasn’t sure if she should follow or bolt.
I smiled as I started over to her and asked, “How ya making it today?”
“I’m hanging in.” She shrugged. “How about you?”
“About the same.” I walked over and glanced in the truck as I asked, “He got any more bags?”
“There are two more in the back.”
“I’ll grab ‘em.”
I reached over the side and grabbed the duffels, slinging them over my shoulder. When I turned back, Presley reached out and placed her hand on my arm. “It’s really nice of you to let Davis stay here like this.”
“He’s my brother.”
“I know, but still.” She let out a breath. “You didn’t have to do it, and I hope Davis remembers that.”
“I’m sure he will.”
She studied me for a moment, and I mean, really studied me. After a beat, her brows furrowed and she announced, “You’ve changed.”
“You think?”
“Most definitely.”
“How so?”
“I don’t know. It’s hard to put my finger on it.” She shrugged. “I guess you’ve grown up.”
“Yeah, but I’m still me.”
“That you are,” she laughed, then followed me up to the door. As we started inside, she asked, “You still play the guitar?”
I couldn’t help but smile as I asked, “You knew I played?”
“Are you kidding?” She rolled her eyes. “Every girl in town knew. Those bonfire parties at the boat ramp wouldn’t have been the same without you.”
“Ah, the good old days.” I gave her a wink. “That was back when you went through the short skirts and cowboy boots phase. I liked that phase. You walked around like you were ten feet tall and untouchable.”
“Yeah, I guess I did. I didn’t think you noticed.”
“Oh, I noticed.” I leaned toward her with a smirk. “Hell, every man in a fifty-mile radius noticed.”
A light blush crept across her cheeks as she giggled, “And there’s the Luke I remember.”
I held her gaze a second longer than I should. “Never really went anywhere. Just learned to bite my tongue.”
“Duly noted,” she giggled, continuing down the hall. “You didn’t answer.”
“Hmm?”
“Do you still play?”
“Oh, yeah. Now and then.” I chuckled. “Whenever the mood strikes or a party runs long.”
“That’s great. You were really good.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.” She kept glancing down the hallway where Memphis and Davis had disappeared into, and there was no missing the worry that was looming over her. Something was going on. I just had no idea what it could be, so I asked, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I don’t know.” I studied her for a moment. “Just a feeling.”
Before she could say anything more, Davis stuck his head in the hall and said, “There you two are.”
“Went on and grabbed the rest of your stuff.” I stepped into the room and dropped the bags with a thud. “That should get ya.”
“Good deal.”
“So, what’s your plan for the rest of the day?”
“I’m pretty open.”
That threw me a bit, and I didn’t bother hiding it. “Open? You aren’t working today?”
“Nah. Took the day off.” He shrugged like it was no big thing. “Figured I’d take the day, get my stuff moved and settled in.”
“But didn’t you just start this job?”
“It’s factory work, man. They can live without me for a day.”
I nodded, but I couldn’t help but notice Memphis looking at me. Not a smile. Not a warning. Just a reminder that if I wasn’t careful, this whole thing could blow up in my face. Memphis turned on his heel as he announced, “I’ve gotta get to the casino.”
“Yeah, me, too.” I glanced back over at Davis as I said, “I’m sorry. I just figured you’d be working, too.”
“That’s no problem. I’ll just tag along with you… I mean, if that’s cool with you.”
Before I could answer, Presley stepped forward. “But what about me? I have to get to the salon.”
“What for?”
“I have to work. I told you that.”
Davis’s mouth tightened. It was clear he wasn’t pleased with her response. I wasn’t sure if it was because she’d put a ripple in his plans or the fact that she wasn’t going to be where he wanted her. His brows furrowed. “Call in.”
“I can’t. I have a client coming in. I have to be there,” she pushed.
“It’s okay. I can drop her off on the way.”
“You don’t mind?” Presley asked with concern.
“Nah, I don’t mind at all.” I reached over and gave Davis a pat on the shoulder. “You sure you’re up for a night at the Crown? It’ll be busy. Lotta noise. Lotta moving.”
“Sounds like my kind of place.”
“Then, let’s do this.”
“Hell, yeah.”
Presley lagged behind as Davis and I made our way down the hall and outside. They both piled into my SUV, and Davis was yammering away the whole time. He was playing it cool and lighthearted, but something was off.
But that’s how it was with Davis. The man came with too many red flags to count. Hell, they were sewn into his damn shadow. It wasn’t that I didn’t care. I did, but I was tired of being forgotten.
I was tired of being angry and hurt.
I needed to know I’d tried, really tried, to make things right between us. And it seemed to be working. He’d been treating me like I fucking mattered to him.
I’d waited a lifetime for that.
It made the doubts easier to shove aside. He was my brother, my real brother, and no matter how hard I tried to tell myself that didn’t mean shit anymore, it did.
So, if there was even the slightest chance that we could fix what was broken between us, I would take it. And I would take it with no hesitation.
And I wasn’t about to be the one who walked away from his brother.
Not now. Not ever.