AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Sixteen
Iguess I must have been drunk when I agreed to stay in one of my parents’ pool houses the night before the wedding. It wasn’t so much the accommodation, which was more luxurious than most peoples’ primary residences, it had everything to do with spending the whole night in James’s company, but fortunately Hammer was there as well.
For two hours solid I spoke to Billie on the phone about how our lives be after we were married, and when we hung up, an ache in my chest grew tighter, as I missed her already.
James, Hammer, and I sat talking about the last tour our band, DisKord had completed, and then discussed what we’d wanted to do next, until Hammer checked his phone and a goofy grin came over his face. I could always tell when he was loved up because there was always this faraway look in his eyes, like his body was present and his mouth was moving, but his mind was totally someplace else.
I marveled at how he’d managed to find a girl between babysitting Logan and visiting Wiggy. He retired shortly afterward with a large glass of soda when he noticed his woman had tried to reach him, and stood to slip away to call her back.
“Why don’t you invite her to the wedding?” I offered. “I’m guessing she’s in state since you’ve not had time to go anywhere.”
“Weddings are tricky,” he replied, which gave me nothing, before he chuckled and winked. “Besides, isn’t it traditional for the groomsmen to hook up with the bridesmaids?” He stepped into his bedroom and quietly closed the door before his comment sunk in. Then it dawned on me that the bridesmaids were Tricia and my sister and that was wrong on many so many levels.
With my bandmate safely tucked in and out of the way, it left James and I sitting alone for the first time since he’d confronted Charlotte, and I found myself a bit tongue-tied for something to say. Luckily, James hadn’t felt the same.
“I wanted to thank you for this,” he started then stopped talking.
I nodded. “It was Billie’s idea,” I told him honestly, then felt like shit for not thinking before I spoke. “What I meant was—”
“It’s okay, Sawyer, I get it. You’re a better man than I am. Had this been the other way around …” he left the rest unsaid.
“Anyway, on to happier times,” I said, moving the conversation on.
“Yeah, and Billie’s incredible, Sawyer, you’re very lucky.”
“The age thing bothered her,” I disclosed, knowing the age gap between my brother and I was almost the same as Billie and me.
“I figured, what with her having Colby to consider. You being part of a rock band probably didn’t help either.”
I smirked, wryly. “I took her on the tour bus.”
“You did? It’s amazing she’s still here in that case.” He chuckled, his eyebrows almost in his hairline. “I can only imagine what traveling around on a tour bus with your band must have done to her.”
“Me too … imagine I mean, I should have known better. She took one look at the guys and left.” We both burst out laughing this time.
“Never thought you’d end up with a quiet girl,” he said, honestly.
“To be frank, I don’t think Billie has ever been allowed to grow and shine. Inside my reserved, nerdy girl is someone who’s been conditioned how to behave. She’s a deep thinker; the only child of an only child who doesn’t push herself forward. But if you’re lucky enough to be let in you’d find she’s strong, funny, and full of compassion. She’s been through a lot, but we have this amazing connection. There are so many things I love about her, she’s full of surprises, and when her belly is full of fire she doesn’t take shit from anyone when she knows she’s right.”
“The first time I met her I could tell immediately from the way she looked at me she wasn’t a very confident person, but she’s got your back, Bro, and I think she’s the perfect woman for you.”
“Sorry, it doesn’t feel right talking about her like this with you,” I told him honestly, and grabbed the Jack Daniels bottle from the coffee table. I poured us both another drink.
“Don’t apologize, I get it,” he replied sadly and shrugged a shoulder, as if saying ‘it is what it is.’ “It’s me who should be apologizing, but if I keep doing it, we’ll never bury the past enough to move forward.”
“You’re right, and dare I say you’ve grown up through all of this.”
“That’s a rich statement coming from my baby brother,” he said through a chuckle but he took it in good humor. It was true, the transformation from the guy he was when Charlotte targeted him to how he was since had been nothing short of remarkable. Playboy James had turned into a serious man from what I’d gathered about him since he’d come back into my life.
“One day we’ll be okay,” I told him, because I had to start believing in him if that was to come to fruition.
“I hope,” he said, swallowing roughly and I watched his Adam’s apple bob in his neck. For a few moments we sat in silence then he looked up and flashed me his winning smile. “So … tomorrow,” he started and widened his eyes. “My little brother is getting married. Who would have thought we’d see the day? You were so determined this would never happen.”
“I know, but I hadn’t met Billie.” I smiled at the thought of her and a mental picture of her smiling face flashed through my mind.
“How did you meet?” I didn’t mind sharing this with him. I had wanted him to understand the trust Billie had shown in me, a total stranger, and I suppose I had wanted him to know the risk I had taken when I’d kissed her.
“Remember when Brian had his bachelor party? It was a pretty wild weekend.” I chuckled when I thought about what we’d gotten up to. “On the last night I had a hookup, man, I was drunk. Anyway, the following morning the girl, Alison or Addison or something became clingy, and although I tried to let her down gently, she had obviously decided not to take no for an answer.”
