Page 27 of Unburied

“Meet you at six?”

“Sure.” She’d make sure to text Mason when she left and let him know that Knox was coming over so he wouldn’t show up. She was sure he wouldn’t like it, but she couldn’t help it. She should tell her brother—and she would. If things worked out between her and Mason, and when the time was right.

She gathered up her stuff and headed home to wait for Knox. True to his word, he was there less than a half hour later. His eyes widened as he stepped inside. “You’ve been busy.”

She glanced around at the boxes as she closed up behind him. “I know. I’ve been getting stuff boxed up, but I haven’t had a chance to take most of it to the storage unit yet.”

“We can take a load in the SUV tomorrow,” he offered.

She grinned. “You’re useful once in a while, you know that?”

Knox snorted. “Whatever. You don’t know what you’d do without me.”

“I don’t,” she agreed. “You’re pretty much the best big brother ever.”

“I know.” His cocky smile reappeared, and she rolled her eyes.

“Good thing you’re so humble.”

His smile slid away, replaced once more with his patented serious expression. “I hope you know you can talk to me if you ever need to.”

Piercing dark eyes stared into hers, and she fought the urge to spill her guts to him on the spot. “I know.”

“Okay.” He studied her again. “You just… haven’t seemed like yourself recently. I know you’ve got a lot going on, I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“I’m just a little overwhelmed,” she admitted. “I mean, with the house and Ellen and everything…”

Not to mention the drama with Mason, but there was no way she would ask her brother for advice on that. Ever. She trailed off, and thank God Knox picked up on the excuse.

“It’s a lot for one person to handle. I’d be more than happy to help you with whatever you need.”

“I appreciate that, and I might take you up on the offer.” She gestured to the subfloor they stood on. The workers had pulled up the damaged flooring after the fire, but she had yet to fix it. “If I stay here, I’ll eventually replace the floors, paint, that kind of thing.”

“Makes sense.” He nodded a little. “Is there still a question of you staying here?”

She watched as Knox flipped open the lid of the pizza box and extracted a slice, all while contemplating his question. “I don’t think so, not anymore.”

“You sure?” He took a bite and chewed. “No one would blame you, you know. You went to school for a reason. You left the state because you wanted bigger and better things. No one wants to hold you back. If you want to go back up north, or if you want to travel, you should do it.”

“I know, but…” She bit her lip. “I feel guilty.”

“Don’t.” Knox shook his head. “You can’t live your life based on someone else. I can understand you wanting to be here for Ellen, and I commend you for that. But you don’t have to put your life plans on hold. I mean, I’m your brother so I obviously want you to be safe. I’d prefer you be here, but I understand that you need to find your own way, too. If you’re not happy here, you should go do what you want to do. You can always come back. You can visit, or you can move.”

“I don’t think I want to leave.” She shook her head. “It’s just… I know it doesn’t make much sense. This feels like home. I love it here, and a lot of my friends are still here. You’re here. It’s just that I never quite pictured this when I went away to school. I always thought that I would go to work somewhere big and important, and do big things.”

“You still can,” Knox said softly.

“I could,” she agreed. “When I was up north in school, I felt like I belonged. But then I came back here and this fits, too. I just can’t decide what I like better.”

“Well, just so you know,” Knox said as he lifted his pizza and took another bite, “I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure you’re happy here so you stick around for a while.”

She lifted a brow. “Maybe give me a raise?”

“Eh, except that.” Knox grinned, and she lightly backhanded him.

“Come on, I’m putting you to work.”

For the next couple of hours, Knox and Vivi sorted through Christine’s old bedroom. Ellen hadn’t had the heart to get rid of her things, so for years it had remained a sort of enshrinement to her deceased daughter. After a long conversation, Knox and Vivi decided to keep only the important things in storage in case Ellen or Elijah ever wanted them and either donate or toss the rest. It was a blast from the past, seeing all of the nineties décor as they packed all of her things into boxes and bags.