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Matt faced him again, and though it took a few seconds, the clouds in his eyes lifted a bit. “Not sure I agree, but thanks for that.”
Gage leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “Are these attacks the reason why you keep your office at Enigma?”
Shit. All the dominos were falling today.
He nodded, then dug deep, desperately trying to lighten the mood. “You bastards barge into each other’s offices all the time without knocking. I couldn’t take the chance you’d come in when…”
“I get why you didn’t tell us about this when we were kids,” Gage started, “but lately…” He sighed, and Conor knew why.
“I’m sorry, Gage. I should have confided in you. In both of you. It’s just…you’d spent the last decade wallowing in a shit-ton of guilt over Mom’s death and I didn’t want you to worry about me.”
Matt rose, taking two steps toward him, stymied from making it all the way to his chair by several piles of books. “You’re our brother, Conor. We’re family. I know we haven’t acted like one for most of our lives, but I want that to change. I need that to change.”
Matt was typically a stoic guy, always playing his cards close to his chest. Lately, he’d been more open, laughing and smiling more than Conor had seen him do since when they were kids.
“Liza’s been a good influence on you,” he said, before turning to Gage and grinning. “And Penny’s made you almost tolerable.”
“Asshole,” Gage tossed back, scoffing playfully. “I was always the handsome, charming, fun one. You guys were the miserable, brooding, sad sacks. Although, I have noticed lately…”
Gage and Matt exchanged a look, and Conor knew where this conversation was headed.
“What’s the deal with you and Harper Branson?” Matt asked—before adding, “And Luca Moretti?”
“What makes you think?—”
Gage raised his hand. “I pointed it out to him after the second hockey night here. The sexual tension radiating between the three of you gave me a sunburn.”
Conor leaned back, too numb to even feel his exhaustion. Now that he’d opened the vault, he figured he might as well go for broke. “Did you know?” he asked them. “That I’m bisexual?”
Matt shook his head, while Gage nodded.
“You did?” Matt asked. “How?”
“I had a feeling. Back when we were in college, you went to California with some friend’s family the day after Christmas.”
Conor nodded, all of them aware of what Gage wasn’t saying. Shortly after that holiday, Mom committed suicide.
“From the way you talked about the guy, I got the impression he was a boyfriend,” Gage added.
“He was,” Conor confirmed. “I wasn’t sure how you would feel…”
“I hate that you thought you had to hide it from us,” Matt said sadly.
Conor didn’t want his brother taking that guilt on his shoulders. “I wasn’t hiding it, Matt. I swear. I’ve just gotten damn good at living a very private life, and to be perfectly honest, there haven’t been that many boyfriends—or girlfriends—in my past. I’m not great at forging relationships.”
Matt twisted around the piles of books, tired of the distance between them. He placed his hand on Conor’s shoulder and squeezed it tightly. “You don’t have to say that for my benefit. I know why you kept it a secret. Dad was a fucking homophobic prick, but I’m not. All I want is for you to find someone who makes you happy. Or…maybe two someones?”
“Do you think it’s crazy?” Conor asked.
Matt lifted one shoulder casually. “Not going to say I didn’t raise my eyebrows when Tony and Rhys hooked up with Jess. Or when Gio moved in with Rafe and Keeley. By the time Aldo and Kayden decided to settle down with Hazel, it was less interesting, and I started chalking it up as a Moretti thing. But I’ve spent time with all of those throuples lately, and while it’s not something I’d be comfortable with, I can’t deny that it works for them.”
“It does work,” Conor said, now in possession of firsthand experience of just how well. “I was like you at first. I couldn’t understand it, but after spending time with Harper and Luca, getting close to them, I can’t imagine being with one of them without the other.”
“Hey, you have to admit,” Gage chimed in, “it’s kind of the best of both worlds for a bisexual guy. You can have the peanut butter and the jelly.”
“Jesus, never say anything that corny again,” Conor muttered, though he chuckled.
“No promises,” Gage said with a wicked grin, his eyes roaming around the room again. “So…what’s the deal with the books?”
