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“Don’t bring my wife into this,” Charlie warns.
“I’m only pointing out that you know Brynn likes you for you. I’ve never had that luxury.”
“The eternal bachelor can’t tell if a woman likes him?”
“I can’t tell if they like me or what they think I represent.”
“We’re back to the whole ‘they only like me for my money thing’?” Charlie rolls his eyes.
“It’s not a thing, Charlie. I know you think I’m a playboy who indulges in everything, including women, and yeah, when I was younger I did. I was so proud of myself for finding success on my own when everyone thought my decision not to go to college was a mistake. I got carried away with that success and the lifestyle that came with it, including the women, although most of them enjoyed my lifestyle as much or more than they enjoyed me.” I pause to take a breath, shaking my head to clear it before continuing.
“I’ve been out with women who are offended when I suggest a casual meal instead of the most expensive restaurant in Denver. I’ve been with women who are more concerned with who I can introduce them to than in actually getting to know me. The woman who stopped by the office with me the night I first met Lisa? She was pissed that I picked her up in the truck and not the Porsche. Whether you want to believe it or not, it’s been years since I’ve been out with a woman without wondering if she has any interest in me at all. I’ve never wondered that about Lisa. She only knows me as your brother, and she’s happy with that.”
“She doesn’t know about your business? About your role here?” Charlie raises an eyebrow.
“No. I’ve kept that to myself, just like you asked. But I’d like to tell her. I don’t want any secrets between us going forward.”
“Going forward?” He frowns.
“I told you, it’s serious.”
“Because she doesn’t like you for your money?” He regards me skeptically.
“Because of that, because she’s funny and smart and sweet, because she’s stunning and has no idea, because I hate being away from her and think about her constantly when I am.”
“Holy shit,” Charlie exclaims. “Are you in love with her?”
I run a hand through my hair. “I don’t know. Maybe? I don’t know what that feels like, so I don’t know how to tell. But I think so, yeah.”
“You think you might be in love, and you didn’t tell me about it?”
Shit. This is exactly what I was afraid of. He’s bothered I went behind his back, but more so that I didn’t tell him about something this important.
“I wanted to, but I was torn. It killed me that I went behind your back, even though it felt right to do. I knew the longer I waited, the worse it would be, but I didn’t know what to say to make you understand how I felt.” I give him a pleading look.
“Because I’d react like this, doubting that you were serious.” Charlie sinks into his chair.
“Yeah.” I exhale.
“Wow. I’ve been a shitty brother.” He shakes his head.
“No. You’ve just been honest. I did create some of my own problems, and you weren’t wrong to point that out.”
“But I didn’t consider that maybe you wanted to be free of those problems. I thought you liked being the eternal bachelor.”
“I did, for a while. Then I got tired of people looking at me with dollar signs. Lisa’s never done that.”
“Good thing you don’t drive the Porsche here or your ruse would be up.” He snorts.
“She’s seen it. She didn’t like it until I let her drive it.” I smile at the memory.
“You let her drive your car? You never let anyone drive your cars. This is serious.” Charlie stands up, puts a hand to his heart, and staggers backward until he bumps into the bookshelf.
“That’s what did it for you, huh? Not that I like being with her and might be in love with her, letting her drive my car convinced you?”
“You didn’t even let Dad drive the Porsche when you first got it.”
“He didn’t have his glasses with him, which he’s required to wear when driving.”
