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“I know they’re Jude’s favorite band,” he said. “I know that objectively they’re really good at what they do. I know they’re not for me. But I also think everyone in Jude’s life knows who they are because he makes sure they do.

I chuckled. That I didn’t doubt. On more than one occasion, I’d found Mom listening to their music because of him.

“Sariah is marrying their drummer, May,” I told him.

I paused to let the words sink in. I could see how his brain struggled to catch up—I’d expected that. The confusion came first as his brows drew together, and then recognition flickered across his handsome face. His eyes widened as the realization of what this weekend was hit him.

This wasn’t going to be some casual and small get-together where my best friend got married. He was about to walk into a gathering of one of the biggest bands in the world.

“And that means most of the friends that you’re going to meet tomorrow consist of the rest of the band, their security team, the sound crew, and the random people we’ve collected over the years.”

Theo just continued staring at me. His mouth opened slightly before closing again. His gaze drifted over my shoulder toward my house, and I could see the wheels turn in his head as he put everything together, little by little.

“When you said the house wasn’t yours…” he began slowly.

Shifting slightly, I pointed down the beach to another house sitting in the dark. I could barely make out its outline on the plot next to mine.

“Sariah and May live there,” I explained. “People have described Sariah and me as… painfully co-dependent. You get her in this relationship as much as you get me.”

“Well, I’d say you get Jude, but he’s your brother,” Theo replied. “But you do get Wyatt too.”

“I know.” I smiled. Surprisingly, I wasn’t bothered by that at all. “When May bought a house for her and Sariah, she also bought a house for me—this house. We used to live down the hall from each other in the same apartment complex, so it only made sense to May to buy the house on the plot next to it. She didn’t want Sariah to have to drive an hour just to see her best friend.”

“So, naturally, she bought you a house.”

“I tried to buy it from her, but she’s not having it.”

Theo fell silent, and his gaze drifted down the beach toward their house. I could practically see the way he worked through everything—the houses, the band, the wedding, the people he was going to meet tomorrow. His thumbs had stopped their absentminded circles against my thighs, but he didn’t pull away.

I let him work through it. I’d managed to condense a lot of my life into this exchange, and I knew it was a lot to throw at him. It wasn’t surprising that he needed a moment or two to process it.

“So, you work for NASA as a rocket scientist—”

“Mathematical engineer,” I interrupted.

“—and you spend your free time hanging out with rockstars and building robots,” Theo continued as if I hadn’t said anything. I simply nodded. My reward was the slow smile spreading across his face. “You are so much more interesting than your brother thinks.”

“Jude can’t find out,” I said quickly, shaking my head. “Jude would lose his shit.”

Jude would probably lose his shit. I knew I’d have to tell him one day. I wasn’t naïve enough to believe I could keep these two pieces of my life separated forever. Jude was my brother, and I intended to keep it that way. Eventually, he’d crash his way into the rest of my life, a thought I wasn’t remotely upset by. I just wasn’t ready for that step yet.

“I know.” Theo leaned forward, his lips brushing against mine once in reassurance. “I won’t say anything, but if you ever do tell him, I want to be in the room.”

“Deal.”

We fell silent, and neither of us rushed to fill the silence that followed. Theo inched closer, his thumbs working small circles into my thighs. The simple contact was warm and pleasant, grounding me to the moment. I let myself sink into all of it—the steady pressure of his hands, the cool sand beneath me, the rhythmic crash of the waves against the shore. For once, my mind didn’t feel pulled in a dozen different directions with things to organize and do.

I breathed in deeply, reveling in the comfort of the salt air around us. My gaze drifted past Theo toward the horizon before rising to the sky overhead. Stars stretched endlessly above us. Without conscious thought, my attention found familiar points of light, seeking the patterns I knew better than I knew myself.

“What are you looking at?” Theo asked softly.

“The stars,” I whispered. I shifted my weight as I pointed to one set of stars. “Do you know what constellation that is?”

“No, but I’ve never really looked.” He was now, though.

“That’s Orion,” I told him. “And those three stars right there are his belt.”

“That’s nice that the universe gave him a belt,” Theo commented, making me chuckle.