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I rub my thumb along the baseball’s stitching.
“I’m done with Dad thinking he can control whatever he wants, whenever he wants to. Everything that happened with Candace…maybe I needed to realize how destructive chasing his approval was. If I take his deal, that’ll never end.” I exhale. “And if I hadn’t met Hannah, I probably would have given Quinn more of a chance. I might have talked myself into it, so I’m not alone and wasmoresuccessful. But now…”
I continue to turn the baseball around in my hand for a few more seconds, then set it back in its holder.
When I look up, Crew’s head is tilted as he studies me intently. I’m not sure what he’s thinking. I’m dumping a lot on him at once. Years—decades—worth of hidden thoughts and secret feelings.
“I’ll support you no matter what, Oliver,” he says.
My throat feels tight and thick as I nod. “I—me, too. I’ll support you, I mean.”
One corner of Crew’s mouth creases into a comma. “You okay? You’re usually a little more eloquent.”
I scoff as I glance at my watch, realizing I have to leave now if I’m going to meet Quinn on time. “I’m fine. Just tired.”
“Do I wanna know why?”
He’s smirking when I look up, and the knot of anxiety in my chest eases even more. I know Crew has moved on. He’s happily married. Obsessed with Scarlett. But I was still nervous how he’d react to hearing about me and Hannah. If he’d see it as a betrayal or look at me with resentment. It never occurred to me he might tease me about her.
I shake my head and stand. “I’ve got to go, or I’ll be late to meet Quinn. I’ll see you tomorrow, at the wedding?”
Crew nods. “See you tomorrow.”
I head for the door.
“Hey, Oliver?”
I turn back around. “Yeah?”
Crew leans forward, grabbing the baseball off his desk and tossing it to me. “Throw that away for me, will you?”
My palm stings, as my grip on the leather tightens. “That’s not what I was …”
“We should go to a game sometime. I’ll buy a new one.”
I nod, the motion jerky and uneven as emotion clogs my throat again. “Sounds good.”
I don’t want to be responsible for marring Crew’s relationship with our father any more than it already is. He’s my younger brother, and there will always be some instinct to hide the ugliness in our family from him instead of revealing it. But I’m realizing doing so has come at the expense ofmyrelationship with Crew, which isn’t a sacrifice I want to make.
Once I’m back in my office, I rush through grabbing everything I need, say a hasty goodbye to Alicia, and then head for the elevators.
I give my driver the address for the coffee shop where I asked Quinn to meet me, and then pull my phone out of my pocket, scrolling through the list of contacts until I come across a name I’ve never called before.
Scarlett answers on the second ring. “Hello, Oliver.”
“Hi.” I clear my throat, caught off guard by the realization she has my phone number saved. It says a lot about our dynamic, none of which I’m particularly proud of. I learned a lot more from my father than just successful business practices. “How are you?”
“Fine.” She sounds amused. “You?”
“Good. Thanks.”
“So… Is this a social call, or should I be concerned?”
“Your subtle way of asking if I fucked up again?”
“Did you?” she asks.
“I’m bringing Hannah to Garrett’s wedding tomorrow. I told Crew because I wanted him to have a head’s up. Thought I owed you the same.”
