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I shake my head and wrap him in a hug.
“I’ve got you, little sister.” He squeezes me tightly, and I sink into him. It’s nice to be able to get a hug from my big brother.
“What do we do now?” Derek asks.
“Now we release the statement. I’m gonna revise it a bit. I’ll send it over to you all for your review. Once I have your okay, I’ll release it. Then…we’ll see what happens. I have a new idea for a spin on this that might help things. Let me work on it. But trust me, I’m going to do my best to take care of you. You’re good guys, and I want to fix this for you.”
Dale leaves and I slink over to Derek and fall into his arms.
“It’s going to be okay,” I tell them. “It has to be. You’ve worked too hard to see this all go away over a girl.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Things are getting ironed out better than I thought they would be. It’s almost like the worst of our trouble might be over. But they’re not. I need to talk to Aiden. We haven’t really spoken since he found out about Derek and me. That’s not like us, either. Normally we talk on the phone or text back and forth. There’s a Snapchat picture exchanged here or there. Or we’ll comment back and forth on Instagram when Aiden sees my posts.
This silence between us can’t go on. I make my way over to the table where Aiden is sitting, a notebook open in front of him. I recognize it as the one Derek has been feverishly scribbling in since I saw him in Corolla. Always working. For rock stars, they sure work harder than I thought they might. It makes me laugh thinking about how Aiden was in high school. Always asking me to do his papers for him. Or trying to bribe the girl he happened to be dating to take care of it for him. Sometimes that works, but I never did his papers for him. My parents would have been so angry at us.
Back when we were kids and I wanted to talk to Aiden, we’d sit at the kitchen table with sodas and pretend we were sipping beer or wine like our parents, trying to make ourselves feel and seem more like adults. We weren’t even teenagers then, but we were like any other kids—desperate to grow up. I spot sodas in the glass-door fridge and grab two.
“Penny for your thoughts,” I tell him, sliding a can in front of him. It’s a peace offering, and I hope he sees it as such.
He looks at the can, then at me, but goes back to the notebook. I’m unsure of what to do. I hope he’ll pop it open and drink it with me. I open mine and take a sip. Just like when we were kids, I lean forward and cradle the can in my hands.
Aiden stops what he’s doing and watches me. Finally, he pops the top on his own soda and mirrors my position. “What’s on your mind, kiddo?”
I smirk, glad that he’s treating me like I’m so much younger than him. For once, I don’t mind. It seems like he might not hate me forever. “I’m just wondering if you’re going to ever talk to me again, or even look at me again without glaring in my direction.”
“I’m talking to you now, and there’s no glaring. So, I guess I will.”
“Aiden,” I plead.
“What, Audrey?” Aiden slams the notebook closed and stares at me.
I take a drink and sigh. “How can you keep being like this? We’re adults. I thought you would grow up and be a little more accepting of things.”
“I know what kind of guy he is. That’s what makes this so hard for me,” he tells me. “Do you not know what he’s like when he’s on the road? He sleeps with a lot of women.” He takes a long drink of soda.
“You think I don’t know that? I’ve hung around all of you long enough to hear the stories. I’ve been backstage when you’re on tour. This isn’t news to me, but I don’t think that he’ll be like that with me. Can’t you give him some credit? He’s not any different than you,” I throw at him. I can’t wait to hear what he thinks about that.
He scrubs his hand down his face. “Maybe that’s why I don’t want you dating him. Because I know how I am, and he’s a lot like me. I wouldn’t want you dating someone like me.”
“That’s a gross thought,” I tell him, crinkling up my nose.
He laughs. “Relax, no one is suggesting we would date. We’re twins, dummy.”
“I know, I just like giving you a hard time. Gotta make sure you know you’re gross. But you’ve been like this since we were kids. No one was ever good enough for me. Why can’t you just let me be happy? We’re consenting adults.”
“Please don’t say consenting adults. It makes me think of you doing other things than just dating.” Aiden wrings his hands. “I can’t think if you doing anything like that with Derek.”
“I’m your sister, so I get it. We do those things, though, you know,” I tease.
“Audrey,” he warns.
“I’m happy, Aiden. I just want you to be happy for me. I finally found someone that makes me happy. Do you have any idea how lonely it’s been for me? I’ve been by myself for six months. Living alone, coming home to an empty house. There are no random hookups on my sets.”
“You’re lonely?” he asks me.
“Well, I was, until Derek came along.”
