AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter One
“Do you know how proud I am of you?” I glanced sideways from the road to her face and frowned. Billie, my gorgeous financée smiled at me from the passenger seat. A second later I’d had to drag my eyes back toward the road and away from her perfect mouth; the mouth I couldn’t stop kissing … never wanted to stop kissing. The downside of her praise was her topic of conversation, which was about my brother, James.
“Don’t get too excited, I said I’d listen,” I warned. “That doesn’t mean we’re going to break bread and be best buddies. We’ve never been close in the first place.” Concentrating more on the traffic, I changed lanes and prepared to leave the intersection to head west on the I-495, which would lead to the I-95 south.
Billie sat quietly for a minute but when she took a deep breath, I knew talking with her about my brother James was far from over.
“I know and I’m sure he’s very grateful for having the opportunity to state his case,” she argued. Shifting in her seat, Billie turned her body to face me as much as she could with her seat belt on. “I also know he can’t change what he did, but doesn’t everyone deserve a second chance?”
I shrugged and gripped the steering wheel of her Lexus SUV as tension tightened my chest. Billie’s persistence to find a resolution for the ongoing feud between my brother and I had felt wearing. The only thing preventing me from losing my temper, had been me making allowances for her lack of understanding of how it felt to be betrayed by my own flesh and blood. Being an only child, Billie didn’t understand sibling rivalry or the closeness of having a special bond with a brother or sister.
“This drives like a dream,” I stated in reference to her car, trying to change the subject. When she didn’t respond, I eyed her with a small degree of suspicion and shook my head, annoyed that she wouldn’t let the topic slide. It made me wonder how in a few short five-minute conversations with my brother, he had somehow gained her trust, when I had spent all the time since I’d known her working hard to earn it.
The thought that James had made a positive impression on her made me feel anxious because, I more than anyone, knew how persuasive my brother could be with the ladies. I had to believe Charlotte was right and it had been his persuasion which had cost us our relationship; otherwise, I had lived with someone I never knew at all.
“Would you give Logan a second chance? Do you think you could trust him again after what he did to you?”
“Not to be my husband, no, but in time I hope we can be amicable toward one another for Colby’s sake.”
“Is that the expectation? That my brother and I become friends? Because if this is what everyone thinks, then they are going to be sadly mistaken. We weren’t on good terms before he stole my girl, what makes you think I’d want that now?”
“I just think, at some point, you will have to make peace with what happened.”
“Like you have with Logan?” I threw back, and immediately regretted my outburst. “My situation isn’t like yours.”
“You’re right it isn’t, Sawyer. Logan is Colby’s father and we have to put him above our own feelings.”
“Then your circumstance is better than mine, because you have a valid reason to work it out.”
“You have plenty of reasons to resolve the rift between you. Did you see your parents faces last night, the hope in your mother’s eyes? Caitlin, Lorna? What about Tammy … your nieces and nephews?”
“Are you saying I should behave as if nothing has happened to please everyone else? That’s in contrast to the blasting you gave me about being honest before.”
She sighed in frustration and her brow knitted. “Look, you told me nothing else matters but us, right?”
For a moment I mulled over her question. “Yes.” I heaved in a breath and blew it out. “Why are you defending him, anyway? Why has he turned your head?”
“That’s not what he did at all, Sawyer. When he spoke to me, I never forgot for a moment all the things you had told me about him, about Charlotte either, or how they had hurt you. However, I wasn’t only listening to what James said, I listened to how he said it as well.”
I scoffed. “And in a few minutes, he managed to convince you he was a good guy?”
“Not at all. I’ll admit my first impression of him wasn’t positive, and I didn’t like how he voiced his opinion about the women in your life, or whatever it was he said, but mainly it was his attitude toward you. If I am honest, I had prepared myself to hate him, but I don’t,” she shrugged. “People change, Sawyer, both ways. Just like Logan and Charlotte broke us for a while, we came back stronger, and look at what we have now because of them. James? Well, maybe he does deeply regret what happened.”
My fingers flexed on the steering wheel and I stared straight ahead at the road because I hated the jealous feeling that brewed inside of me, just talking about my brother.
“Now I’ve upset you,” she said, leaning across and placing a hand on my forearm. When I didn’t respond she drew in a breath and swallowed, knowing I’d always been honest when it came to telling her how I felt. For a moment an irrational fear coursed through my veins and I felt threatened by the fact Billie liked James. They were the same age and I was sure they’d have a lot in common.
“What?” Billie asked, looking toward me, her beautiful big blue eyes full of concern when I’d stolen a glance at her again. I’d been distracted by my thoughts.
“Forget it, I was just having an irrational thought for a moment,” I confessed.
“About?”
“You and James…” The disbelief on her face told me everything I needed to know. She was mine.
“Jeez, if you really think for one moment I’d prefer James over you, you’re not the man I thought you were,” she snapped, repositioning herself in her seat like the thought made her feel uncomfortable.
“Okay, I know, but is it so ridiculous? I mean you’re the same age.”
