Chapter 22 Arran
ARRAN
As soon as Thane returned from upstairs where he’d left the kids to do their homework, I commandeered the conversation. “So I need to tell you something.”
Lachlan sat on a stool at the island, nursing a beer, while I stood on the other side of it, nursing mine. Thane slid onto the stool next to our brother and said, “We assumed so, since you asked Lachlan to be here.”
I had requested the men to gather at Thane’s, but Mac hadn’t shown, and Lachlan told me he was at Arro’s book club, which meant it was up to Eredine to tell him. I hoped to Christ that went well.
I looked between my brothers. “Let me preface this by saying that I respect this family, and I would never go into anything lightly that would affect them or someone they loved.”
“This sounds ominous,” Lachlan replied dryly.
“I’m seeing Ery,” I blurted out, and then took a long chug of beer.
Thane smirked knowingly.
Lachlan … well, he glowered at me like he wanted to take my head off my shoulders. “Explain,” he bit out.
Not particularly relishing the fatherly tone he’d used many a time when I was younger, I pulled back my shoulders and tried to keep the defiance from my tone. “I care about her. As more than a friend. She feels the same way. So we’re dating. And it’s serious. For me, anyway.”
At that, my eldest brother’s expression softened, but I saw the worry in his eyes. “Is it serious for Eredine?”
“I think so. I hope so.” I shrugged, running a hand through my hair. “She gives me what she can of herself, but I know there’s a lot she’s hiding. And she specifically didn’t make any promises of being able to give me more.”
“And you can handle that?” Thane frowned.
“I have hope she’ll come to trust me enough.” I shot a look at Lachlan. “It isn’t exactly fun to know your brother probably knows more about the woman in your bed than you do.”
He sighed. “I understand. That would stick in my craw too. But it can’t be helped. I won’t tell you anything she doesn’t want you to know.”
“Just tell me if … is she safe?” And I realized as soon as the words fell from my mouth that the worry for her well-being had been weighing on me.
Lachlan nodded. “I’ve made sure of it.”
Which meant there was something to keep her safe from.
Fuck.
“Give her time,” Thane offered. “She’ll tell you when she’s ready.”
“Do you know?” I asked sharply.
“No. I don’t believe anyone but Lachlan and Mac have been entrusted with Eredine’s history.”
That relieved me. It would be utter shit if I were the only one in our family who didn’t know.
“You really do care about her, don’t you?” Lachlan mused.
I swallowed hard against the rising emotions. “More than any woman I’ve ever known.”
“Good.” He clinked his beer against mine. “Just be there for her. Let things play out naturally.”
“Thanks,” I murmured.
“I hate to bring it up, but … you should call Brodan,” Thane said, expression grim. “I don’t know what happened between him and Ery—”
“Nothing happened,” I replied. “I’ve already asked.”
My brothers shared a look before Lachlan shrugged. “We all saw there was something between them, even if nothing technically happened. And considering your history, you need to call Brodan. You need to be the one to tell him. Don’t let him find out from someone else.”
“If he wanted her, he should have stayed,” I argued, hating that this conversation was bringing up the old guilt about Monroe and transferring it to my relationship with Ery. “She’s a human being. Not some fucking toy he had dibs on.”
“For fuck’s sake, we know that,” Thane grumbled. “But he’s your brother, and he had feelings for Eredine, so be a grown-up and call him.”
Most of my calls to Brodan lately had been going to voice mail, so I was certain it would this time as I stood on Thane’s back lawn staring out at the water that glittered beneath the waning sun.
Four rings in and the line clicked on. “Hey, what’s up?” Brodan answered.
Things had been tense between us ever since I’d told him Monroe had come home.
I had a feeling this conversation would do very little to defuse the tension. “Eh, aye, I’m good,” I wavered. “You?”
“Fucking exhausted,” he said, sounding it.
Worry cut through everything else. “You’ve been working nonstop, Bro. Surely, you’ve made enough money to take a breather?”
“There’s nothing to take a breather for.”
Hurt, I snapped, “Uh, your family?”
“Shit,” Brodan huffed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean … I’m just tired. I didn’t mean … I’ll think about taking a break, but the schedule is packed for now.”
“You are coming home for the wedding in a few weeks, right?”
There was a hesitation.
Anger flared through me. “Bro, take it from me … if you don’t come home for your brother’s and sister’s weddings, you’ll hurt them beyond anything you can repair.”
Brodan cleared his throat. “I’ll be there. I’ll make it happen.”
“Good.”
“Did you just call to lecture me?”
Swallowing hard, I shook my head, even though he couldn’t see me. “No. I called to tell you something.”
My tone must have alerted him because he sounded frantic. “Is everyone all right? Has something happened?”
“No, everyone is fine,” I assured him. “I just … Considering everything …” I took a deep breath again. “Bro … I’ve started seeing Eredine. We’re in a relationship.”
Silence greeted me on the other end of the line.
“Brodan?”
“Right,” he bit out tersely. “Good for you. They’re calling me back to set. I need to go.” He hung up before I could say another word.
“Fuck!” I threw my phone in the grass and glared up at the darkening sky.
“I take it that went well, then?”
I turned to find Thane standing on his deck, frowning.
“I refuse to feel guilty,” I growled. “She’s been here for eight fucking years, and if he wanted to be with her, he should have made his move. I wanted her, and I made my move. I won’t give her up for him.”
“I know, I know.” Thane nodded, stepping down toward me. “And you’re right. Brodan used to drop back home, shower Ery with attention, and then fuck off, only to be photographed with some actress or model a few days later. You have nothing to feel guilty about. But you do, anyway, don’t you?”
“It’s not guilt.” I shook my head. “Not for this. I just …” I eyed my big brother.
“A few weeks ago, I told him Monroe was back, and he couldn’t get off the phone fast enough.
Things have been strained between us since.
I’m worried that this, on top of that, will take him back to that place we worked really hard to get out of.
I miss him as it is. I don’t want to push him even farther away. ”
Thane clamped a hand on my shoulder. “Something has been eating Brodan for a while now. Something he won’t talk about.
And that’s not on you. Or me or Eredine or Monroe.
You can’t live your life tiptoeing around him.
He hasn’t exactly been there for us this past year, so we’re living our lives the way we want until he’s ready to come back to us. ”
Except that wasn’t true.
Brodan had been there for me when no one else had.
But Thane didn’t know that because I was still too ashamed to tell him and Lachlan about Thailand.
Brodan hadn’t condemned me. Neither had Ery. I should tell Thane now, for Brodan’s sake, but the night had already been so heavy with confessions. And I still wasn’t sure I was ready to disappoint my elder brothers when we’d made such strides toward them seeing me as a responsible man.
Nodding, I allowed Thane to lead me back into the house to finish my beer.
An hour later, Regan and Robyn returned and enjoyed teasing me about Ery.
But they also seemed happy, so that was a relief.
Moreover, they said Arro, of all people, had defended me to a concerned Mac.
Arro. Ironic, since last year she’d vehemently told me to back off Ery.
I smiled at the thought, glad my sister saw me for who I was now.
I bid them all good night and returned to my annex, hoping to catch Ery on the phone before bed to see how she was feeling about everything.
Remembering I’d thrown my phone in the back garden, I walked around the side of the house to retrieve it.
As I strolled to the annex again, I tapped the screen and then halted at the notification banner.
I had a new email.
Tapping it open, trepidation filled me.
Don’t worry. I’m still here. I haven’t forgotten about you.
Pulse racing, I let myself into the guest house and locked the door behind me.
Why did emails that had once seemed like a silly prank now feel fucking sinister?
I hadn’t stopped long enough to wonder about how they kept ending up in my main inbox. I’d relegated each one to spam, but they came from a different email address every time.
That didn’t feel like the kind of time someone would spend on a prank.
Had I been burying my head in the sand?
Did this feel more like an obsession than a prank?
But who the hell would have it out for me?
Sinking onto the bed, I stared at the wall, pissed off as I considered the best approach to this. After everything our family had been through, the right thing to do would be to alert them and have Lachlan’s security team look into it.
I just didn’t want to bring this up a few weeks from the weddings.
Or freak Eredine out.
Shit.
I laid back on the bed and scrubbed my hands down my face.
I had no clue what to do, especially if I was just overreacting now that I had Ery’s safety playing on my mind.