Chapter 2
THEO
Apillow hits me square in the chest, knocking the air out of my lungs and causing my phone to fly out of my hand.
“What the fuck, man?” I say through a grunt to my friend Matt sitting next to me. Leaning down, I pick up my phone and inspect it for cracks. I really can’t afford to break another phone.
“We’re planning our last party of the year. We have to make it big, and you’re not even paying attention,” Matt scowls at me from his side of the couch.
“When was the last time you got laid? You’ve been tense for the past two weeks.” He throws his hand my way, as if I didn’t feel his aggravation through the sheer force of the pillow that just hit me.
“Finals. Just stressed.” I wave him off. I don’t like lying to my friends, but they’d laugh at the real reason I haven’t been able to take my eyes off my phone lately.
“There’s plenty of time to study for finals. We have one chance to throw a final banger of a party,” Matt says, throwing a grin my way. I flip him off, then go back to scrolling on my phone. The fucker’s lucky he didn’t crack my screen. Otherwise, he’d have to deal with Roman.
“Would you two focus? We only have two weeks to plan this party for graduation, and I’m not doing it myself.” Jessie sets down a plate of mini corn dogs on the living room table as he slinks down in the cracked leather chair across from where Matt and I sit.
“As I was saying, before Theo rudely interrupted my ideas by ignoring me.” I side-eye Matt as he continues, “I think a pool party is the way to go. No one can get in unless they are wearing a swimsuit, and we can have a Slip ‘n’ Slide in the back, a kiddie pool in the living room—”
Jessie raises his hand. “We are absolutely not putting a kiddie pool in the living room. I’ll be damned if I have a bunch of drunk people near water, running around my house with no shoes on.”
“Your house?” I look up from my phone at Jessie, raising an eyebrow at him. I admire his confidence in phrasing it that way, but we both know damn well that this isn’t his house.
“You know what I mean.” Jessie brushes off my question and grabs a corn dog off the shared plate. Technically, the townhouse we live in is owned by Jessie’s dad, not Jessie.
Despite the low square footage, we’re all very grateful for Jessie’s dad, who has been letting us rent the place for next to nothing while we’re in school. At least there are three bedrooms, so no one has to share.
Just big enough for all three of us to get on each other’s nerves but not quite small enough for us to go to prison for first-degree manslaughter.
Jessie and I have been best friends since preschool because our moms were close.
Following the death of my parents when I was in kindergarten, Jessie’s parents helped my brothers and me as much as they were able.
We met Matt in English 101 during our freshman year of college and haven’t been able to get rid of him since.
“We’re not throwing a pool party in a fucking townhouse that doesn’t even have a pool in the back. It’s Portland. It’ll probably be raining in mid-June anyway,” Jessie says to Matt.
“Yeah, that’s true. I always forget the summers can be so emo here sometimes.
” Matt shudders. With his swept-back blond hair, preppy style, and insistence on using an umbrella every time it rains, he doesn’t exactly fit the Pacific Northwest mold.
Matt grew up surfing on the West Coast down in Cali rather than hiking to see the mountain views like Jessie and me.
“If you guys bother to visit me over the summer, I’m taking you to all the pool parties. Then you’ll understand.” Matt shoves a mini corn dog in his mouth.
Jessie and I both roll our eyes at Matt. He’s been telling us for years that “not only is the weather hotter in California but so are the women,” and we haven’t been able to see him in his “prime” yet. Which apparently happens at these pool parties.
Jessie’s curly black hair, dark brown skin, and athletic build, combined with Matt’s blond surfer boy hair, slim build, and height, usually make them a dynamic duo for picking up women. That is, until Matt opens his mouth.
Standing from the couch, I stretch my limbs, needing some space from the cramped living room we’re currently crowded in. For most people, it’s not too small, but for someone of my stature, any room that isn’t big enough to fit at least a four-person sectional feels suffocating after a while.
“You guys want a soda?” I ask my friends.
Jessie shakes his head at the same time Matt responds, “Yeah, but you'd better come back. There are details to discuss.”
Making my way through the cramped dining room to the kitchen, I squeeze past the small round table, only big enough to seat four. The fact that there are only three mismatched chairs around the table is a testament to how many parties we’ve thrown since living here.
Once I’ve reached the kitchen, I grab two sodas out of the fridge. The sun shines through the window at the back door, just to the left of the fridge, painting the tile floor in a yellow glow. The moment takes me back to the woman I met in the diner a couple of weeks ago.
Sienna.
That was the name stitched in cursive across the front of her planner.
I didn’t consciously take note of it, but for some reason, her name is burned into my brain.
It’s not like me to be so caught up on one woman, but something was so intriguing about her.
It’s why I haven’t been able to get off my phone.
Unfortunately, I still haven’t been able to find her on social media.
I keep replaying the way her dark curls framed her face. The way her deep bronze skin glowed under the morning sun. The sun hit her doe-shaped eyes in such a way that I swear they actually sparkled.
When her lips parted every time I flashed my smile at her, I found myself not able to look away. Not to mention how amusing it was to watch her tell off my friends. If Matt hadn’t invited the women from the party to join us at the diner, I might have actually gotten Sienna’s number.
Maybe then I wouldn’t be obsessing over my phone so much.
Shaking my head, I make my way back to the living room. It doesn’t take me long before I’m handing Matt his soda and cracking open my can.
I’m just about to sit back down when my phone rings.
“Sorry, guys. It’s Roman,” I say, flashing my phone screen at them. “You know I have to answer, or he’ll have the whole city looking for me within the hour.”
“Your brother is such an overbearing prick sometimes,” Jessie says, half smiling.
“Yeah, and you love him anyway!” I yell as I’m exiting the room, heading back toward the kitchen. Once I’m out on the small back porch, I answer the call.
“Hey, Roman.” I lie back on the outdoor sofa, fluffing the pillow behind my head, locking in for whatever lecture he’s about to give me this time. I should’ve been out here earlier. The sun could do me some good in getting Sienna off my mind for once.
“Why the fuck aren’t you answering the group chat?” Great, he’s already agitated. I swear he gets grumpier every year. If Matt thinks I’m pent-up, then I don’t know what word he’d use to describe Roman.
“I didn’t even notice. I’ve been swamped with finals—”
“So you’ve been studying?” he asks, a hint of suspicion lacing his tone.
“Of course, what else would I be doing?” I haven’t exactly started studying for finals yet, but Roman doesn’t need to know that. For someone who didn’t go to college, he sure has a lot to say about my grades.
To my relief, he decides not to press further and changes the subject.
“We’re setting a date for the lake house this summer.
Leo has that cooking trip in August. Alex said his training schedule is booked for all of June.
I’ll have to move some stuff around, but it looks like July is our only option.
After the Fourth. Does that work for you?
” Some papers rustle in the background, reminding me I still need to have another conversation with my brother.
“Yeah, that’s fine. While I have you on the phone, I was thinking since I’ll be graduating next month—”
Matt bursts through the back door, followed by Jessie, and they’re both yelling, “TOGAS! TOGAS! TOGAS!”
Matt gets close to my face. “A toga party, bro! Isn’t it perfect?” I push him off me, and they laugh as they leave through the side gate of our less-than-average-sized backyard.
“Really, Theo? Another fucking party?” Roman’s stern voice snaps me back to our conversation. Shit. I forgot to cover the phone when Matt came outside. That will make what I have to say a lot harder.
Roman hasn’t been impressed by my “recent lifestyle choices.” He’s the oldest of my brothers, and to say we have a complicated relationship is an understatement.
I try not to complain too much, given the fact that he raised my brothers and me at only nineteen years old after our parents died.
But sometimes I wish he acted more like a brother than my guardian.
I try to play it cool. “It’s just a small get-together with some friends to celebrate graduation.
I am graduating with my bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Do you not think that’s worth celebrating?
” Lacing sarcasm into my tone, I’m annoyed he still doesn’t trust me despite my being this close to having a college degree.
Average grades be damned, I’ve still made it to graduation.
“Oh, I’m sure it’s just a small get-together.” Based on his tone, there’s no need to question where I get my sarcasm from.
To deter the conversation away from my “less than savory party lifestyle,” as Roman likes to put it, I go back to what I was originally trying to say.
“Anyway, I’ll be free in July. Unless you think you’ll be needing me in the office. I know—”
“I already told you, you’re not taking a position at my company.” Once again, he shuts me down.
Roman is currently the CEO and owner of Kane Construction.
A company he took over from our father when he passed.
I’ve been working for months to convince Roman to sign me on as a partner.
I have ideas to grow the company into something much larger than what it is, but he’s never interested in listening to what I have to say.
Considering my last name is also Kane, I have just as much right to work for Dad’s company as he does.
I have a little money left over from the nest egg our parents left each of us. It would’ve been more had I not just bought a new car, but purchasing this car moves me one step closer to being treated as an equal to my brothers.
Kane Construction is a multi-million-dollar company; my brother, Leo, is a top chef in the city, having worked at several Michelin-starred restaurants; and Alex owns his own boxing gym.
Most of the time, I feel miles behind all of them, especially considering I’m the youngest and the college path doesn’t allow for many business ventures.
Roman claims I’m not mature enough to work with him. I call bullshit. Sometimes I wonder if he just wants to keep what Dad left us all to himself.
“I’m twenty-two, Roman, going to a few parties here and there is part of the deal. I’m graduating next month. What else do I have to do to prove I’d make a good business partner?” I run my hand down my face, trying to find a reprieve from my eyebrows being pinched together for too long.
“Considering you called me drunk off your ass at two o’clock just last Wednesday morning, I’d say you still have some growing up to do.”
“That has nothing to do with my business sense. I told you, we could expand Kane Construction to make it more profitable. We have the residential sector locked down, and together, we could break through to the commercial space, which you know is huge in this market.”
Not wanting to hear my ideas for the twentieth time, he says my name in the “dad” tone I rarely hear him use with my brothers.
“Theo, I’ve heard all about your ‘ideas.’ Your degree isn’t comparable to my time as CEO. Maybe in a few years we can—”
“I-I have a girlfriend.” What the fuck did I just say?
“A what?” I don’t think I’ve ever heard Roman so shocked.
“A…A girlfriend. Been going steady for about six months now. She’s really helped me change into a more responsible version of myself.” I guess we’re going with it.
When the other end of the line is silent, I continue, “She’s helped me set some goals, cut back on the partying, and even has me going to bed at a decent time every night. Last week was merely a slip-up. She chewed my ass out for it too.”
There’s a long pause. When he finally speaks, his response makes my head spin. “Well, I can’t wait to meet her at the lake house this summer.”
It’s my turn to be silent now as he continues, “I’d love to meet the young woman who has helped my little bro become such a responsible young man.
As a matter of fact, I’ll make you a deal.
” My grip on the phone tightens in anticipation.
“If you prove to me over the summer that you truly have become more responsible, with your new girlfriend in attendance, of course, then I will consider letting you work for my company.”
“Deal.” I accept his offer with a little more desperation than I intend. “I can’t wait to sign the offer letter that comes my way at the end of the summer. My girlfriend will be so excited she’s invited.”
“It’s settled then. You and your new girlfriend will be in attendance when we visit the lake house in July. I’m sure Alex and Leo will be thrilled to hear about this development.” Fuck, Alex is going to give me so much shit for this.
He ends the conversation with, “Answer the fucking group chat next time. Love you.” I respond with a quiet “love you” before he hangs up.
Now, where am I going to find a woman I can convince to visit a secluded lake house with my three brothers and me this summer without her thinking I’m going to end up burying her in the woods?