Kevin didn’t like this feeling.
He kept telling himself he wasn’t doing anything wrong, but simply sitting on the couch in Brooke’s living room made him feel like he was betraying Gabe.
He wasn’t doing anything more than comforting a friend, but as Brooke worked in the kitchen, fixing them a pot of tea, Kevin couldn’t help but look around the room and think about all the memories he had shared with Brooke.
Hell, even the couch he was sitting on. Together, he and Brooke had lost their virginities on it one night when her mom had the closing shift at the grocery store.
Brooke rejoined him with a plateful of stale cookies and a pot of hot tea. Fortunately, the tea softened the biscuits, but Kevin wouldn’t have complained even if he’d had to choke a few of them down to be polite. Brooke looked wiped—the last thing she needed was to worry about entertaining company.
Her hair looked wet from a recent shower, and her clothing was wrinkle and stain-free, but the dark circles under her eyes gave away her sleepless nights. It made Kevin a little uneasy, considering her past.
Kevin eyed the sugar dish but stuck to just milk in his tea. He gave the cup a stir, the spoon clanking on the side, before laying the utensil on the saucer. “How have you been?”
Brooke avoided eye contact, but he chalked that up to the fact that she was fixing her cup of tea. “As good as can be expected, I guess.”
“What are your plans now?”
She swirled her spoon in the hot liquid. “Can we talk about you instead?”
“Sure.” Kevin never argued much when it came to Brooke. She knew best what she needed, and if he was to be a distraction, that’s what he’d be. “What about me?”
Her smile was the brightest he’d seen it in a long time. “I feel like I haven’t talked to you in forever.”
“It’s been like two months.”
“Exactly. For us, that’s forever. We still talked even when we were on our breaks or dating other people.”
That was true. “What do you want to know?”
“I heard you’ve been going to the gym, and that you quit smoking. Good for you!” Kevin smiled when she smacked his thigh with enthusiasm. “But tell me about this job.”
“It’s not a job yet—just courses. I won’t be able to work with an agency until my preliminaries are done, which will take about eighteen months. Then I’ll get on with an agency while I complete the end of the program and get the rest of my credentials.”
“You’re in this program without a job? Won’t that be tricky—financially speaking?”
He’d hoped to get through the program without having to take on another job, but even a few months in, he realized that was faulty logic. Between his rent, car payments, and insurance, his bank account was already dipping. “I’m definitely going to have to take on a job before this is over. I was thinking about having Ed see if he could get me a job for Chris.”
After years of working retail, a construction job wouldn’t be a breeze. He was accustomed to standing on his feet all day and often had to load and unload heavy boxes, but it wouldn’t be anywhere near the physical exertion of being on the job site he would face. On the plus side, he wouldn’t have to deal with angry retail customers, and he’d learn more about houses before working in the housing market. He’d be better able to identify buildings with major defects and avoid selling lemons to his clients.
“What made you want to do real estate?”
“You remember my cousin Becky? I was at her twenty-fifth birthday party, and my uncle put the idea in my head. He mentioned that his firm is always looking for new people. We got to talking about what was involved with the job. He thought, with my years of customer service, I had some of the necessary skills. He planted the seed last year, but after that night at the bar, I decided maybe I should just go for it.”
“I’m glad.” She played with the handle of her teacup. “I’ve missed you, Kevin.”
“You’ve got Gabe now.”
When she raised her gaze this time, all the happiness was gone. Sadness had seeped into its place. “It’s not the same. I mean, Gabe’s great and fantastic, but we’re friends. I miss talking and stuff.”
He didn’t know where she was going with this, but it made him uneasy. “If he’s your boyfriend, you should be able to talk to him.”
“I have been, but it’s not the same. You and I have a history. You haven’t missed me?”
He took her hand. “Of course I have. So many times, I picked up the phone and almost called.”
Hugging him, she squeezed him tight, and he reciprocated. When he let her go, she leaned back and wiped under her eyes. “Sorry, I’m leaking a lot lately. I haven’t been sleeping well, and it’s getting to me.”
“It’ll get better with time.” That’s how he’d gotten over the death of his father. It would never entirely go away, but time would help dull the pain.
“I hope so.”
“It will.” He patted her leg, and despite his still full cup of tea, he said, “I should probably get going.”
“No.” She grabbed at him when he tried to stand.
“I just wanted to make sure you were okay, but I really should go.”
“Why?”
He hesitated. “Because you’re Gabe’s girl now, and I don’t think he’d like me sitting here with you like this.”
Brooke’s eyes flared. “We’re friends! He can’t dictate my friends to me.”
Inwardly, Kevin cringed. If he’d just inadvertently started a fight between them, Gabe would be pissed.
“Besides, you don’t have to worry about it. This thing between me and Gabe won’t last.”
“Why do you say that?”
Stalling, she took a sip of her beverage. “I’m going to head back home soon. It was never meant to be a long relationship—sort of more like a fling. I’ll go back home before the end of the week, and I have no idea when I’ll be back here. There’s no point in trying to push a relationship destined to crash.”
“Does Gabe know all this?”
“He knows it’s a limited-time thing. He doesn’t know the particulars, but he set up the parameters of the relationship. I’m sure he’ll be relieved.”
Kevin didn’t quite believe that. He’d seen how Gabe looked at her the day of the funeral. It wasn’t a fling.
Despite his unease, Kevin stayed longer than he’d intended. He and Brooke talked until not only their teacups were empty but also the pot. They got caught up on all sorts of news. The only topic she kept a tight lid on was her relationship with Gabe. No matter what he asked, she always shut down his question and changed the topic.
She asked him for his uncle’s business information. Kevin promised her that even though he wasn’t a realtor yet, he’d help in any way he could in selling the house.
Finally, he convinced Brooke he should be heading home. He promised to call more often, especially after she moved back to her place. As they said goodbye at the door, she started crying again. Just a few tears, but it still hurt to watch them slip down her cheeks. She wiped them away and hugged him before opening the door.
They were both surprised to see her front porch was already occupied.
Gabe stood in the afternoon sun. He was carrying a big bouquet of flowers and, seeing them together, an even bigger frown.
* * *
He waited at the door, his arms loaded with flowers. He hadn’t yet rung the bell when the door swung open, and he found himself face-to-face with Brooke and Kevin.
“Gabe?” Brooke’s eyes were red and a little puffy. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to see you.”
“Oh.” She seemed surprised.
Awkwardly, they stood in the doorway.
“These are for you.” He thrust the flowers toward her, and then, with meaning, he said, “They’re not from me.”
“Thanks. I’ll just put them inside.”
“I’m going to take off,” Kevin announced. Putting an arm around her in a light hug, he kissed her cheek. “Give me a call if you need anything.”
“Okay.”
Kevin lowered himself so he could look into her eyes. “Anything.”
Brooke nodded before turning to Gabe. “Did you want to come in?”
“I’ll be in in a minute.”
Glancing between the two men, Brooke seemed to understand they wanted a moment alone. Taking her flowers with her, she paced into the house.
When Kevin and he were both on the porch, Gabe reached in and closed the door so they wouldn’t be overheard. “What are you doing here?”
Kevin’s eyebrows shot upward. “Seriously?”
“I thought you two broke up.”
Kevin’s eyes narrowed. “Are you warning me away from your girlfriend?”
“Damn right, I am.”
“We’re friends, Gabe.”
“It wasn’t that long ago that you were more than friends.”
Kevin squared his shoulders in an attempt to match Gabe’s height. The hours he’d been putting in at the gym were definitely helping his physique, but he still couldn’t meet Gabe’s muscle mass or height. “You had every right to intimidate us when it came to your sister. She’s family. But you will not dictate my friends to me.”
Gabe crossed his arms over his chest. “Brooke belongs to me now, so you need to back off.”
Kevin laughed. “Seriously, come on, man. We’re friends, and that’s not going to change, but you’ve got to know there isn’t anything romantic going on.”
Gabe continued scrutinizing him until Kevin said, “Besides, you’ve got bigger problems than me to worry about.”
He scowled. “What do you mean?”
“You’ve never seemed all that serious about a girl before. If that’s different with Brooke, you might want to talk to her to make sure your plans mesh. And if not, if she’s just the current flavor of the month, then you need to be careful. If she tailspins again, then you and I are going to have a problem.”
No way was he going to explain himself to Kevin. “It’s none of your business.”
“It is if you fuck her up again.”
Gabe bit his tongue. What happened in high school wasn’t his fault. “It’s different this time.”
“Good.” Kevin jogged down the porch steps. “Make sure she’s all right.”
“I plan to.” Gabe nodded before heading inside. He followed the sound of running water to the kitchen, where Brooke put the flowers in a vase. “Those are from the girls.”
“I read the card. That was nice of them.”
“They wanted to come yesterday, but that wasn’t possible.”
“That’s okay. I understand.” Brooke busied herself arranging the flowers and tossing the wrap they’d come in into the garbage beneath the sink. With her back to him, she said, “They’re all nice women. Could you tell them goodbye for me?”
“Goodbye?”
She faced him. “Yes. Please tell them goodbye.”
He’d already told them that himself. Paige and Sam could use the room until the end of the month, but he’d turned in his keys and canceled his lease. He didn’t tell Brooke that, though. Wanting to see what she’d say, he asked, “You’re not coming back to the motel?”
“Sorry. No.” Deliberately avoiding eye contact, she picked up a cloth and wiped the counter. “Actually, I’m listing the house with Kevin’s uncle. Everything that Dan or I don’t want to keep is going to be donated this weekend. Dan’s friend runs an auction house, so all the furniture is going there. Dan’s overseeing it early next week. I’ll be heading back home on Sunday.”
She was leaving him.
“What about us?”
After dumping the wet rag in the sink, she released a deep breath and faced him. Her smile was wide and, from what he could tell, completely phony. “Fake relationship status terminated.”
“What?”
“Since your relationships always seem to end on good terms and just sort of stop existing, I assume this should be relatively easy. Unless you want a big public production with tears and screaming, but I’d just as soon not be seen as the crazy bitch you were lucky to escape from.”
“You could never be that.”
Brooke barked out a laugh. “I’m pretty sure you’ve called me that before. If not to my face, definitely behind my back. Probably said worse than that.”
Gabe wouldn’t deny it, but she’d convinced him she wasn’t that person anymore. “But that was before. Do you have to leave?”
That seemed to give her pause. “Yes, I have to go. I told you it wouldn’t be a good idea to pick me. I know Taylor leaves for school soon, but she probably would have been a better choice. Your family would have liked her better, too.”
“My family likes you just fine.”
As though he hadn’t spoken, she continued. “They’ll understand the breakup because of the circumstances.”
“What if I don’t want to break up?”
She closed the distance between them. “It was going to end eventually. It’s better this way.” She patted his chest. “I can walk away before I get too attached.”
But he wanted her to get attached. He wanted her obsessed, consumed, committed—head-over-heels in love.
Just like he was.