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“That actually sounds a lot like Hale,” Van admitted.
It did not escape his notice that Jake and Hale both rolled their eyes at the same time.
Shit. He was the Adam.
And that suddenly didn’t seem like a terrible thing to be. If he didn’t have Hale in his life, he would be sitting in a jail cell. He would be alone.
It might be time to start thinking about what Hale needed.
Security. Stability.
Roots.
Hale started to walk out behind Adam. Van stopped him. “Hey, man, thanks for calling my brother.”
Hale’s dark eyes hooded. “I thought you would be mad, but I didn’t know what else to do. We don’t have any cash. Or credit. Or anything.”
And that had to change or he was going to lose his best friend. He could see that now. Hale was at the end of his rope, and he needed to build something.
It was kind of what he did. He built things. Furniture. Houses. He fixed things, too.
Van needed to find a way to stop breaking things.
The door closed, and he was left alone with his brother.
Jake started to take a deep breath that would likely lead to a long lecture.
“I’ll do whatever you think I should do.” Van would avoid the lecture and get down to where this conversation needed to go.
Jake stopped, obviously expecting some kind of argument. “I’m going to tell you that if you want to live this way you should drop Hale. He is not meant for the kind of life our parents live.”
Jake hadn’t been either. He’d left as soon as he could to try to find some stability in the form of the US Army, and boy hadn’t that freaked their parents out. “I know.”
“I’m going to be honest. I know Kaelin and Jessa are happy living in a nomadic way, and the younger kids seem cool with it, too, but I thought you would settle down.” Jake stared at him like Van was a puzzle he was working through. “When you left with Hale, I thought you two would find a place you liked and try to start a life. I was surprised when I found out you’ve moved twelve times in the last eight years. And this isn’t the first time you’ve been arrested.”
Nope. It was his fourth, though it was his first assault charge, so he was moving up in the world.
“I thought I would, too, and then I find myself in some kind of tight spot and my impulse is to leave,” he admitted. “And I’m quite excellent at giving into my impulses.”
Jake sighed and sank down to the table, gesturing for Van to join him. “Look, I know we haven’t been close, but you are my brother and I care about what happens to you. The older I get, the less angry I am with Mom and Dad. I’ve even talked to them in the last couple of months. The truth is it’s hard to be a parent, and it’s even rougher to keep holding on to anger that does nothing for me. Seeing Adam get close to his brother has been…I get a little jealous that he gets to be close with someone he grew up with.”
“You were twelve when I was born. I don’t think I was an important figure in your life,” he said softly. “Not that I didn’t want to be. You were my hero when I was growing up. And I know Mom and Dad were shocked about you going into the military, but mostly they were scared.”
“I know. It’s something we talked about when they came through town.” Jake frowned. “In their broken down camper, which they parked on my street and freaked out the neighbors with.” He suddenly chuckled. “I tried to get them to stay in the guesthouse, but Mom wouldn’t hear of it. And she set up a compost station. In the front yard.”
“Hey, at least she didn’t insist on a dry toilet in the garage,” Van pointed out.
“Serena put her foot down.” Jake got serious again. “We don’t all get the childhoods we want, but becoming a parent has made me look differently at ours. And you. I don’t think you’re happy, Van. If you can look me in the eyes and tell me this is what you want and need, I’ll head home and we can go back to texting every now and then when you have a phone. If you can’t, I’d like to offer you something more.”
“I thought you were done with all of us.”
“Like I said, I’m older and softer than I used to be. Or maybe I shouldn’t put it that way. Maybe I’m older and far stronger than I used to be. I watched Adam befriend a brother who had literally turned his back on him. I can help out my dumbass brother who just needs a hand.”
