Page 8 of Let’s Be Real

The three of us pushed into his room and came to a stop. Adrian was asleep with Samantha curled against his side on the bed.

Rome rubbed his chin. “Huh.”

“Get married already,” Ben muttered.

“I didn’t know they still did this,” I said.

Growing up, Samantha had spent more time at our house than hers, and since our parents had been largely absent, no one had ever said anything about her sleeping over. I’d found them in a puppy pile more times than I could count, their limbs tangled, breathing each other’s air. This looked a lot like that, except they were both six feet tall and in their thirties.

Adrian stirred while Samantha slept on. His eyes cracked open, focusing on us.

“I feel you looking at me,” he rasped. “It’s annoying.”

Ben was the first to move, winding to the opposite side of the bed from Samantha. “Heard you almost died.”

Adrian grunted. “Can’t get rid of me that easily.”

Roman went to stand beside Ben, his gaze traveling over Samantha before landing on Adrian. “Is this a good idea? Your sutures—”

Adrian raised his chin. “I forced her to lie with me so she’d get some sleep. My sutures are on my other side. If you’re here to give me a hard time, believe me when I say I’ve gotten enough of that without you piling on.”

After a long, silent moment, Roman’s head fell forward, air bursting from his lungs. “We’re worried, Ade. So damn worried. We could’ve lost you.”

He turned away, casting his gaze on his sleeping friend. “I’m fine.”

Ben clamped his hand on Ade’s shoulder. “You’re going to be. Thank god.”

“Thank Samantha.” I moved to the foot of his bed. “Adrian would’ve been rotting in a pool of vomit if she hadn’t come back to check on him.”

Ben nodded, wiping roughly under his eyes. “Of course she did.”

Adrian shifted uncomfortably at the visible display of emotion. “She won’t leave me alone. Such a nuisance.”

I eyed the woman at his side. “You very clearly hate it.”

Roman and Ben stayed until Adrian told them he was tired and forced them to go home. Out in the hallway, we discussed taking shifts so he’d never be without someone. Left unsupervised, he’d do something stupid, and we all knew it. When it came down to it, I was the only single, child-free one of us, so me picking up the majority of the slack made the most sense.

Adrian’s hospital stay stretched for four days, and Samantha only left for brief periods to clean up and get a few hours of rest at home. Ben and Roman relieved me during the day, but I spent my nights on the too-small couch. Not sleeping. My brain wouldn’t shut off enough to lose consciousness. I’d spent a lifetime getting too little sleep, so it wasn’t anything new. At least I had something tangible and real to worry over instead of the myriad made-up disasters usually occupying my mind.

After the doctor left, I said, “You’re coming home with me.”

Adrian’s sneer lost its effectiveness when a grimace followed. “I’ll be fine on my own.”

Samantha swatted his shoulder. “Don’t be a pain in the butt.”

He rolled his head in her direction. “Why won’t you let me stay with you?”

She shook out her arms. “Remember my noodle arms? I have no hope of being able to help you into the shower on my own. I’d have to call Nate anyway, and that would defeat the whole purpose.”

“I can get into the shower by myself,” he grumbled.

She scoffed. “You’ll try, that’s for sure. Do you think I’d ever forgive you if I left you alone and you ripped open your incision and bled out on my tile? I’d have to have it all replaced, and I just had it installed last year.”

His eyes narrowed. “You love me less than your tile.”

“It’s imported from Italy—and took me months to find. You should be honored you come in slightly below it.”

I shook my head, bemused. They’d always been like this, and as Adrian’s oldest brother, it never failed to confuse me. He wasn’t this way with anyone else. Sure, he occasionally joked around with us, but when we gave him too much shit, he normally bowed out.