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I consider his words for a moment. They aren’t making me uphold anything. It’s more me than them. I want to make sure I look the way they want me to, so I’m not dropped. The Beachbody family has all kinds. But going and getting something like this done has always made me nervous. “Not that I know of,” I final respond.
“Great, then it’s settled. You’ll come with me tomorrow,” he says with a quick smile.
I get ready to protest, but all my mouth does is open and close. I can’t find the words to tell him no. And I’m not sure I want to. Not the way he’s looking at me right now. Like he could just take me and swallow me whole. I can see why the women are so memorized by him when he’s on stage. He’s downright charming and demanding. It’s incredibly sexy.
The doorbell rings and it startles me. Derek just laughs. “That’ll be my pizza.” He pulls cash from his sweatpants and goes charging for the door. I can hear him faintly talking to the delivery person. “Don’t tell anyone, will ya?”
The delivery person must have recognized him. I wonder how often that happens to him. I think back to the low-slung baseball cap on the beach and sigh. I should have offered to get the pizza.
“You okay? I ask him.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“It sounds like that person recognized you,” I explain.
“He did. But I’m pretty sure my big tip bought him off,” he says with a chuckle. “Want some?” He opens the box, revealing a pizza that’s fully loaded with veggies. “I even got veggies to make it healthy for you.”
My stomach growls at the aroma filling the room. The bowl of fruit I had for dinner is certainly not cutting it. “I usually don’t eat this late at night,” I admit sheepishly.
“Come on, Audrey, you can’t make me have a couch picnic all by myself,” he tells me with a wink.
The pizza box is set between the two of us, and he sits cross-legged in front of it, ready to share.
I sigh, giving in. I move over closer to him and mirror his seating position, then grab a slice of pizza from the box. I groan when I take a bite. It tastes like heaven.
“See, this was a good idea,” he teases, eating his own slice.
“Where is this from?”
“Georgio’s,” he replies.
I should have guessed. Every time my family and I were here, we always got Georgio’s. It’s tradition.
“Are your parents okay?” he asks me out of nowhere.
I wondered if this question was going to come up. He’s a smart man. The beach house has meant so much to them, so it makes sense that he’d expect them to be selling it for than the reason of no one using it.
“You’re perceptive,” I say in return. I finish off my slice and go to reach for another, but he closes the box on me.
“Audrey.”
“Are you going to hold the pizza hostage until I talk?”
“Maybe,” he says before opening up the box. “I don’t want you to tell me anything you’re not ready to.”
I should tell him. I should tell someone. God knows my parents aren’t talking. I’m not even sure that Aiden knows yet. They’ve been keeping the secret until they see him in person.
“My dad has cancer,” I say shakily. “Pancreatic cancer. I stumbled across that news on accident when I came home for a surprise visit. But I was the one who received the biggest surprise of all. I found my dad in the bathroom puking. My mom had run out for a bit, not expecting him to need her in her short trip to the store. So, I helped him back from the bathroom and into his bed on the sofa.”
I swallow audibly. I hate that I’ve told Derek, because telling someone makes it real. I also hate that he found out before Aiden. It doesn’t seem right that my brother is still in the dark. But living with this secret is tearing me up inside.
Derek is sitting frozen, staring at me, mouth agape. There’s a heavy silence stretching between us, so I fill it with more thoughts from that awful day.
“He told me everything, and my whole world crumbled down around me. When you’re a kid, your parents seem invincible. But not anymore. Now this horrible disease is destroying my father’s body and taking the only man away from me who promised to love me forever. Now, I carry the burden of being the only twin who knows. My mother was upset when I discovered the secret they had been keeping. She didn’t want us to know just yet, but I think they were in denial. Like they thought the more people they told, the more it would become a reality. And now it has. And I’m pretty sure there’s not much they can do. He’s fighting, and they are trying, but…” I can’t even say the words.
“You’re not going to tell him?” Derek asks. “He’ll know as soon as he sees you. It’ll be written all over your face. You two have always had that psychic twin thing happening.”
“I know, but they asked me not to. I have to keep my word and make sure he doesn’t find out,” I say quietly. “But he will soon.”
