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“I know that.”
“So what is there to decide? You’ll never get another shot like this. It’s the right call and you know it.”
“It’s not that simple.”
“You’re worried about letting him down? About falling back into old habits—”
“Don’t,” I gritted out.
“Don’t what? Try to talk to you?” His lips pursed. “Try to understand what the hell you could possibly have to think about? It’s a good job. It’s the right—”
“I’m not a kid anymore, Cam. You don’t need to pull the father figure routine with me.”
He stiffened. “What the hell does that mean?” It came out cold.
“Nothing,” I huffed, glancing away. “It means nothing.”
“You know, Mom and Dad would want more for you. They’d want nothing more than to see you succeed… succeed at something.”
He might as well have punched me in the stomach. I stared at him, slack-jawed and speechless. The blood drained from his face. “Shit, Xander, I didn’t—”
“Whatever.” I went to get up, but Hailee called, “Cam, a little help please.”
Her voice was like a bucket of cold water over the tension brewing between us. My brother let out a small sigh of frustration while I pulled out my smokes.
“You need to quit that shit,” he gritted out as he stood.
“I’ll get right on it, Dad.”
I regretted the word the second it tumbled from my lips. It was a low blow, I knew that. But I wasn’t a kid anymore and I was so fucking sick of him always thinking he knew what was best for me. It was tough shit if he didn’t like the decisions I made.
He gave me a lingering look before going back into the house. I could finally breathe again. Dropping my head back against the wall, I inhaled a breath. It was so damn cold it made my lungs smart, but I welcomed the burn.
It was always the same between us. Cameron held my mistakes against me, and I resented him for it. But along the way, it had gotten messy, miscommunications getting tangled up until there was no unravelling the past. And the kicker was, I knew… I knew I’d screwed things up back in high school. That one split decision had set me on a dark path. I couldn’t handle the disappointment, the gut-wrenching guilt, the way Cameron looked at me after the accident. But instead of getting through it, together, we’d only drifted further and further apart.
A minute later, Ashleigh slipped outside and joined me. “I thought I’d find you out here,” she said.
“What’s up, kid?”
“Sometimes I wonder if you say that to piss me off or to remember that you’re the adult now.” She snickered, poking her tongue out at me.
“Trust me, I don’t need a reminder,” I said, leaning down to put out my smoke.
“I wish you’d quit that. It’s such a disgusting habit.” Her nose screwed up.
“Could be worse.” I shrugged.
“It’s just so… unattractive.”
I glanced over at her and arched a brow. “Thanks.” It came out sarcastic.
“You know, if you quit you might have a better chance at getting a girlfriend.”
I almost choked on my own breath. “A girlfriend? Where the hell did that come from?”
“I heard Mom and Dad talking… I guess they think it’s time you settled down or something.”
Peyton’s face popped into my head.
