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“Okay, but the longer you put it off, the more time you’re losing,” Jax explained. “If it were me, I’d have had the surgery as soon as it was suggested because I don’t want to miss a season. I might not play as much as I want, but I’d make damn sure the coach put me in at least once a game.”
“It’s not like that with dance. If I’m in a show or a touring company or a dance squad, I need to perform at every performance. No one’s going to coddle me because there are a hundred girls waiting to take my spot who are just as talented, if not more!”
Jax leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, and began talking about sports statistics. That’s when Noah got up to get himself a bottle of water—not that anyone noticed. He was glad his brother and Lily were hitting it off, but…he hadn’t been part of the conversation in over a half-hour. Hell, he could probably go to bed and neither of them would miss him.
Even in his head he sounded whiny, but he hadn’t expected to be completely shut out of the conversation. He’d been looking forward to his brother meeting Lily; he just hadn’t thought the two of them would hit it off quite so well. It made him feel like he couldn’t sit at the cool kids' table even when it was in his own damn house.
Yeah, I’m whiny…
Rather than continue down that path, Noah took a few minutes and straightened up the kitchen and took out the box of brownies Lily brought for them. Then, he drank half his bottle of water and told himself it didn’t matter if he wasn’t an athlete; he could still be part of the conversation and to stop being so sensitive about being excluded.
Or jealous.
Because…yeah. How could he not be? Jax was Lily’s age and the two of them had a lot more in common than he and Lily did. And on top of that, his brother was a wildly successful football player who had women chasing after him all the time.
All. The. Time.
Noah had no issues with his looks; he was actually pretty confident in them. He didn’t have a hard time meeting women and had enjoyed a bit of getting chased all through high school and college. But Jax was on a whole other level, mainly because he had a lot more confidence and swagger. And from the way Lily was giggling over something he said and had her hand on his arm, he was fairly confident in believing she was attracted to that swagger too.
Dammit.
Grabbing their dessert, he stalked back to the living room and dropped it on the coffee table. “Dessert anyone?”
Both Jax and Lily looked at him in confusion. “You okay, bro?” Jax asked.
“Sure,” he lied. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
His brother’s eyes narrowed. “Because you’re pretty much shooting daggers at me and slammed that box down. What crawled up your ass and died?”
If it were just the two of them here, Noah knew he’d have no problem starting a fight. Lily was sitting right there watching the two of them though, so he took the high road.
“Just tired of sitting here silently while the two of you talked sports injuries,” he told him before sitting down.
“Don’t get pissy,” Jax said with a snort. “And you could have joined in. You’ve listened to me talk about this sort of thing since peewee football. You’re just as versed in this shit as I am.”
“I’m really not, and I just thought we could talk about something that we all could participate in,” he retorted. “You don’t see me bringing up stocks and interest rates, do you?”
“Only because you don’t want to put everyone to sleep…”
“Okay, okay,” Lily said as she stood and stretched. “This sounds like you’re both gearing up for something that I don’t want to see and I’m taking it as my cue to leave.”
The brothers were instantly on their feet, and Noah blocked her from walking away. “You don’t have to leave. We’re just picking at each other. I’m sure you do this with your sisters.”
“Oh, I definitely do, and that’s why I know I need to go. The two of you only have a short time to visit and I shouldn’t have horned in on it.” She kissed him softly on the lips before turning to Jax. “It was really nice meeting you.”
“You too, Lily. And if you ever want to consider trying out for the squad by me in Wichita, just let me know. I’m close with the management and could put in a good word for you.”
She walked over and hugged him. “You’ve very sweet and I promise to think about it.” Then she grabbed her purse and jacket while Noah waited for her by the door.
“I hate that you’re leaving,” he told her, holding her close.
“It’s really okay. I wasn’t going to stay tonight. You’ve got work in the morning and, like I said, you two only have a short amount of time together. So, stop pouting, eat a brownie, and play nice with your brother.” Then she kissed him again before walking out the door with a wave. Noah watched until she was in the elevator.
“She’s a great girl,” Jax said when Noah closed the door. “You didn’t mention her when we spoke the other day.”
“Yeah, well…it’s new and it’s complicated.”
Jax took a brownie out of the box and ate half of it in one bite. “Why?”
