AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m Harper, the baby of the family,” she says, stepping in front of Elijah and clasping Leah’s hand in hers before pulling her into a welcoming hug. “Sorry I missed you earlier,” she says. “It was a late one.”
Elijah scowls down at the two women. His monster frame means the women only come mid-chest on his body. I’m six-two, but my brother is at least four inches taller.
I glare at my brother but decide to bide my time before speaking to him about his rudeness.
“Aunty Harper, Uncle Gabe,” a voice yells from the stairs.
“Hey, Princess,” Harper says, turning to face our niece.
Lottie flies down the stairs and into her arms. There are only ten years between them, and while Harper’s life is colourful, Elijah cosets Lottie.
“I love your hair,” Lottie says, twisting a lock of Harper’s hair.
“Don’t go getting any ideas,” Elijah interjects at his daughter, who pulls a face.
“When will you grow up?” Elijah says, turning to Harper. His lip curls in disgust as he takes in her appearance. “Don’t you think this rebellious stage has gone on long enough?”
“It’s called personal expression, dear brother,” Harper replies sweetly. “Maybe I’ll change the day you get a personality transplant.”
Leah’s eyes are wide as she stares at my siblings. I tried to warn her, but it has to be seen to be believed. Elijah has got worse over the past few years. When I was younger, I remember looking forward to the summers when he would come back from college and then university, with his friends in tow. Then, everything changed. Now, the rest of us have become immune to his surly manner. Only Lottie, his daughter, seems to bring out a softer side in him.
“Don’t be mean, Daddy,” Lottie says, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Aunty Harper is an influencer. She’s cool.”
Elijah’s expression softens as he looks down at his daughter. “And what do you know about influencers?” he asks her warily.
The colour rises in Lottie’s cheeks.
“Look at the time,” I say, grabbing everyone’s attention. “We better start getting ready for dinner, or we’ll be late.”
Lottie shoots me a glance, and I wink. Her eyes widen in surprise, before shooting me a shy smile.
I pull Leah away from my siblings and towards the stairs. Leaving them in the hall.
Leah is silent as we return to our room. Walking in, she settles herself down on the side of the bed.
I run a hand through my hair. I know what she’s thinking.
“Ignore Elijah, he’s —”
“A man mountain, I’ve seen photographs, but I had no idea,” she says, laughing. Choosing to ignore the fact my brother was a rude ass. “I thought you were tall, but he dwarfs even you.”
I chuckle. “You sound like Penelope.”
I know these two will get on. I wonder if Pen will come tomorrow. She always has, but over the past couple of years, it’s got more and more awkward.
“You and she are close?” Leah asks, a hint of something I can’t quite recognise in her eyes.
“We are.” It’s then I realise what I’m seeing. Is Leah jealous of Pen? “But not in the way you’re thinking,” I say, dropping onto the bed next to her. “Pen and Elijah were at Uni together. Pen used to come down at weekends with Elijah and Darra. I’m like a little brother. I was so shy. She used to sit and talk to me. She got me into gaming and showed me the online community. Helped me build my first computer.”
I smile at the memory.
“Build?”
“Yes, build. When Dad saw the impact Pen was having on me, he told her to purchase whatever was needed. It’s not like we didn’t have the money to buy top-of-the-range, but Pen wouldn’t hear of it. She said I needed to understand the components and how they worked.”
Leah’s eyes widen. “How old were you?”
“Thirteen. It was the same computer I used to track the stock market in the early days. I’ve built every computer since, with Pen, of course. It allows us to spend time together.”
