He shakes his head. “No, I’m pissed as fuck. What does she think she’s doing, just showing up here? We’re about to have ababy, Auden.”
“She’s looking for help, Reed.”
“Fromme?”
Mecomes out incredulously, and I can’t entirely blame him. We haven’t exactly had the best relationship through the years. We’ve fought more than we’ve gotten along and have ignored each other even more. I know he calls me hisevil stepsisterand all, but I didn’t think that meant he wouldn’t help me if I ever came to him for it.
I guess I was wrong.
“Yes,you. You’re her brother. And don’t you dare putstepin front of that word,” she says as he opens his mouth, likely to do just that. “You’re supposed to be there for her, no matter what.”
“Since when did you become Team Vanessa? I thought you didn’t like her.”
“Hey, I like her.”
“You called her mean and vindictive the first time you met her.”
“To be fair, I didn’t know she had been cheated on by her husband. None of us did. All she talked about was wanting revenge, not the why. We had no idea what she was going through. Now, though…” She shrugs. “I get it. I would have been the same way, and that jerk deserved to lose everything after what he did to her.”
I grin. She’s right that Neal deserved it, but he didn’t lose everything.
“That’s fair,” Reed says, dragging me back to the present. “I guess I just don’t understand why me. We don’t even like each other.”
“Maybe that’s exactly why you. Maybe what she needs right now is to get away from everything in New York, from all the people who judge her and expect certain things from her. Maybe she needs someone who won’t coddle her. Maybe she needs her evil stepbrother.”
How she knows better than anyone else what it is I’m looking for, I have no idea, but Auden is right. That’s precisely why I came to Seattle—though I’m not sure I even knew it until now.
I clear my throat, stepping out of the shadows and fully into the expansive yet still somehow cozy kitchen. Reed whips his head my way, but Auden looks unsurprised to see me. I wonder if she knew I was there all along.
I blow out a shaky breath and give my older brother a soft smile. “I know we haven’t always gotten along in the past. I was a young, bratty teen, and well, okay, a pretty shitty early twenty-something too. But I’m…” I take another steadying breath, already hating admitting this next part. “I’m not exactly doing okay right now. I’m struggling, and I need somewhere to stay while I get back on my feet and figure out the rest of my life. Not long-term, I promise. I don’t want to interrupt the amazing life you’ve built here. I just…” I sigh. “I’m feeling lost, you know? What happened in New York… It was a lot, and I’d like to find a place to heal. A place to learn who I am now. A place I can feel safe. This was the first one that came to mind, but if you don’t have the room or mental bandwidth given everything going on, I understand. Just tell me to go and I’ll go. I’ll?—”
“Stay,” Auden says, stepping forward. She takes my hands in hers, squeezing them tightly, her eyes brimming with tears. “You’ll stay. That’s what you’ll do. Right, Reed?”
She peeks back at her future husband, but he isn’t looking at her. He’s staring right at me, lips slightly parted, head tilted to the side. It feels like he’s looking at me for the first time, and I’m unsure how I feel about that for so many reasons, number one beingIdon’t even know who I am right now.
Slowly, he rights his head, then finally nods. “You’ll stay.”
“Are you sure?”
He folds his arms over his chest. “I’m sure.”
Relief floods me instantly. A bit of the weight on my shoulders relents, and I don’t feel as tired as I did just a few minutes ago.
“But…” he says, and I hold my breath. “The baby is coming very soon. We…” He runs his hand over his jaw, reminding me so much of Gavin that I have to force myself not to look away. “We have a family we’re building here, Van. I know you’re going through a lot. Just because you’re divorced, it doesn’t mean you’re automatically healed. Trust me, I know a bit about healing from heartbreak.”
Auden gives me a sad smile, once more squeezing my hands, which she still hasn’t let go of.
“And I’m not going to put a time limit on things, but…”
“But you want me out of your house sooner rather than later?” I finish for him.
He shrugs like he’s sorry, but I know he’s not. I understand where he’s coming from. I truly do, and I don’t plan to take advantage of his kindness in the slightest. I just need something—anything—to get me through until I can figure things out.
I nod. “I hear you loud and clear, big brother.”
He narrows his eyes. “Stepbrother.”
Auden huffs at him before pulling me into her arms and hugging me as best as she can with her enormous belly between us. The gesture catches me off guard, and I’m unsure if it’s because it’s so surprising or something else. Either way, I hug her back just as fiercely as she holds on to me, and something rattles loose inside me. Not by much, but still. I think I needed the hug more than I realized.
