I blink repeatedly as I try to hold back tears. “All righty, here you go.” I place the sheet and pillowcase at the end of the bed. “I’ll go find you some jammies.”
I run into our room, slamming the door behind me. Why must there be horrible people in this world? Breathing deeply, I relax my body. Liam is breaking my heart. He has this tough exterior, but I can see the inner turmoil in him that I know all too well, which hurts me most of all.
I open Ethan’s drawers to find a pair of sweats and an old shirt. Remembering an unopened package of toothbrushes, I grab those together with some unopened samples of body wash, piling them on top of the clothes.
“Angel?” Ethan calls.
“Yeah?” I stick my head out of the doorway. He stands in the middle of the bedroom, rubbing the back of his neck.
“What’s wrong?” I close the rest of the distance between us.
“Are you okay with him staying here? I figured he would rather stay here than at the center.” There’s a nervous twinge to his voice.
“Yes! I’m happy he’s staying here. My mom isn’t a good person. I hope you don’t mind me getting some of your clothes for him to wear. They didn’t bring anything.” I shift the stuff in my arms.
“Nope, it’s fine.” He wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me to his chest, soothing me instantly.
“I love you.” I pull my head back to look at him.
He ducks his head so his mouth is barely grazing mine, his breath on my lips. “I love you too.” He presses his lips against mine, and I place my hand on the back of his neck.
A throat clearing has me pulling away. My mother is staring at us both. “I don’t need to see that,” her voice is full of annoyance.
Then it hits me. How did she find me?
“Wait, how did you know where I lived?”
“Liam is good at computers,” she says like she doesn’t have a care in the world. It makes me very uncomfortable that anyone could find me like this, this easily.
“Go help Liam. I will deal with your mother,” he all but sneers her name, making it known she isn’t welcome here.
I brush past her as I step into Liam’s room, then freeze when I see him asleep on the bed, holding the sheets to his chest, his hair fanning across his forehead. I tiptoe across the room to place the clothes on the desk along with everything else. I take the throw blanket off the end of the bed and cover him up with it, then brush the hair off his forehead. He must have been exhausted. I shut the door and run smack dab into my mother, who is staring at me strangely.
“You’ve changed.”
I tuck my hair behind her my ears. “Yeah, um, I guess so. Your room is right there.” I motion to the door we are standing in front of. “Do you need clothes or something?”
“No, I brought some things in my bag.” She turns to walk into the room but stops and turns to me again. My hands are starting to shake under her scrutiny.
“I’m proud of you, Braelyn.” Her voice is barely a whisper. She walks over to wrap her arms around me. My hands are at my sides, not knowing what to do. I can’t remember if she ever hugged me before. Maybe she has left him for good? Maybe I could get to know my mother.
“Thanks.” I don’t know what else to say. I never expected her to say something like this. Could this mean she wants to try to be a parent? Maybe Liam has changed her way of viewing things. She pulls away and closes the door behind her with a soft click.
“Come to bed, Angel.”
Ethan is leaning against the doorframe. I rub my tired face as I walk over. I rest my head against his chest. These past hours have been emotionally taxing, and I want nothing more than to get the day over with.
Ethan lifts me off the floor and lays me down onto the bed. He comes up behind me and wraps his arm around me. His face is at the crook of my neck. “I’m sorry, baby.”
Pulling back, I look over at him. “Why are you sorry?”
“I’m sorry your mom is here bringing up old shit. I’m fucking terrified of you getting upset again. You passed out and that scared the ever-loving shit out of me.”
His hands reach out and pull me harder against him. Sighing, I kiss the top of his head. “I never expected her to show up like this. To be honest, I wondered at times if she even knew I was alive.”
I trail my arm down his back as I continue. “I’m also glad, because I wouldn’t have known I had a brother.” I smile at the thought.
“He has your eyes.”
“He does. I can’t bear the thought of him going back to my father. I’m shocked she left him.”
“From what you’ve told me, I can’t see why she did after all this time. That’s why I told her he would be staying here.”
“I’m so fucking proud of you, baby,” he says next, shocking me.
“Huh?” I look down at him, confused, but he has half of his head on top of my breast and the other hidden in my neck.
“You got right back up after life just threw you a big fucking curveball. You took it in stride and held your head high. I haven’t seen anyone fucking braver than you.” He raises his head and his gaze meets mine. “You’re beautiful, baby. I’m in awe of you.”
My heart is ready to beat out of my chest. Tears cloud my vision. I don’t know what I ever did to deserve someone like Ethan.
“Ethan,” I whisper but stop, not knowing what to say to make him understand how much his words mean to me.
He puts a finger on my mouth, halting me from talking. “I know, Angel.” He leans forward, kissing me tenderly. A tear slips by and rolls down my face.
He pulls back and smiles softly. Then he kisses the tear away. “Let’s get some sleep, Angel.”
I roll onto my side. He lays his arm on the bed with my head resting on it. His other arm comes around my waist.
Closing my eyes, I go to sleep knowing that no matter what, everything will be right in the world as long as Ethan is here with me.
~*~
Yawning, I stretch in bed and look over at Ethan who’s still sleeping. I look over at the clock. It’s 8:00 a.m. I gently lift Ethan’s arm off my waist and onto the bed, then roll out of bed and walk downstairs; well, more like shuffle because I am still half asleep.
I walk blindly to the coffee pot and push the on button before I lean against the counter, willing the coffee to hurry along. The house is completely quiet besides the rattle of the coffee machine. When the coffee is finally brewed, I enjoy my first sip of the day as I glance around the kitchen and spot papers on the island.
I walk over and notice one is a letter.
Braelyn,
I’m sorry I couldn’t do this face-to-face. I never left your father. I came to bring Liam to you. He doesn’t belong with us and I’m reminded daily of how your father cheated on me.
I know he will be happy with you. Your father wanted him gone from the beginning. We don’t want to deal with the court system. He’s yours.
X mom
Beside the letter are his birth certificate, social security card, and all his information.
No, she can’t do this. What kind of person is she? I run up the stairs with the letter in my hand, heading straight for her room. I push the door open, banging it against the wall, and see she’s gone without a trace, leaving nothing to show she ever stayed here.
My mother is just as heartless as my father. They deserve each other.
Braelyn
I walk to Ethan and my bedroom. How will he react? My mind is going through a hundred different things that could happen. I sit down on the end of the bed, holding the letter in my hand.
“Ethan.” I shake his foot.
His eyes shoot open and then down to me. He sits up in bed, knowing something is wrong. “Angel, what’s wrong?”
I just hand him the letter, letting him see for himself. His eyes move as he reads over the paper. The longer he reads, the angrier he gets.
“What kind of fucking person is she?” he grounds out and throws the blanket off him. He puts his hands on top of his head as he paces the room. My eyes follow his movements.
“Let’s keep him.”
Startled, I look at Ethan. He’s shocked me again, but I should expect this from him.
“Baby, he’s your brother. He’s family,” he explains and starts smiling.
“If it’s possible, I just fell even more in love with you,” I tell him honestly. I lean forward and wrap my arms around his neck, inhaling his scent. Being in his arms alone is the most amazing feeling, the comfort, the feeling of safety and love. It’s like nothing else in this world.
He pulls me off the bed, wrapping my arms around his waist as we hug. We hold each other in silence for a few minutes. “What will he say?” I finally ask Ethan.
“I don’t know.” He sighs and sets me back down onto the floor gently.
“I’m just going to make breakfast.”
“Come on, I’ll help.” He takes my hand and leads me downstairs to the kitchen. I pick up my cup of coffee and take a sip, grimacing because it’s cold.
I take a pack of bacon out of the refrigerator as well as some of the ingredients for the pancakes, while Ethan gets all the other ingredients.
I place the bacon inside the cast iron skillet then take out a bowl, and mix all the ingredients together for homemade pancakes.
“Baby, let me do this and you can go wake him up.” Ethan takes the batter.
“Okay.” I rise up on my toes and kiss his cheek.
The stairs creak as I walk up to the second floor. Glancing at the room my mother was in as I pass, I get a pang of sadness. I shake my head as I divert my attention to Liam’s room. Knocking lightly on his door, I wait for an answer.
When I hear a thump like someone falling out of bed, I open the door and spot Liam lying on the floor. Grimacing, I walk toward him and hold out my hand for him to take. “Did I scare you?”
“It’s okay.” He doesn’t take my hand but rolls over to his knees and up to his feet. I retract my hand then bite my lip nervously as dread fills me at having to tell him my mother abandoned him.
He notices my expression. His eyes narrow on me and he crosses his arms across his chest, bracing himself. “What is it?”
I let out a deep breath. “My mom left.” I lay it out, hoping he catches on.
“Left for the center?” He arches an eyebrow, confused.
I shake my head no before continuing, hating this with every fiber of my being. “She left in the middle of the night. Back to him.” I can’t keep the sneer out of my voice at the last part.
He drops to the edge of the bed. His eyes are on the floor, and his hands are clenched. He slowly looks at me, our matching eyes connecting. “She abandoned me.”
“Yeah, she did. I’m sorry, Liam,” I tell him sadly. Hurt flashes across his face before he turns away from me.
“I’ll get out of your hair then.” He stands up and starts to walk out the door. He makes it halfway across the room before I stop him.
“No, wait,” I call and run, grabbing his arm.
“You are staying here with Ethan and me.” He turns to me, shocked. Smiling softly, I continue, “You will never have to live that life again, and the streets are hell too.”
“How would you know about the streets?”
“‘Cause I lived there for three years,” I tell him sadly.
His mouth pops open, shocked. “You?” His voice is full of disbelief.
“Yes, nobody deserves to live on the streets.” I wrap my arms around myself, feeling uncomfortable and shaken at the thought of the life I lived before.
“I’m sorry,” he mutters and surprises me when he wraps his arms around me. His body is shaking with emotion, just like mine. My brother.
“So, you want to go shopping?” My voice is muffled against his chest. He has no clothes, no nothing. We have to get him some things.
“Huh?” He pulls away to look at me.
“Let’s go shopping. But first we’ve got to feed you.” We walk side by side down the stairs.
Ethan is slaving over the stove, looking as hot as sin shirtless. I smile, walk up behind him, and kiss his back. He winks at me over his shoulder.
“Food about ready?” My stomach is growling.
“This is the last pancake.” He plates it on the huge stack sitting on the tray next to the bacon on a plate with a paper towel on it.
Liam is standing at the entrance of the kitchen, uncomfortable. “Do you mind grabbing the syrup out of the refrigerator and warming it in the microwave? Make sure you read the instructions.”
Ethan starts laughing. I smack his arm, then I walk into the dining room. I hear Ethan explain to Liam how I almost blew up the microwave. Literally.
Ethan and Liam come around the corner. Ethan is carrying plates and forks, while Liam has the syrup.
I place a plate in front of each of us and put pancakes on their plates and then mine. “Dig in.”
We eat in silence; well, I try to, but Ethan has roaming hands under the table. After the sixth time he grabs my crotch ‘accidentally’, I stab him with my fork. Liam sucks in a sharp breath. I look over at him, but he is watching Ethan, waiting for something.
“You’re going to pay for that,” Ethan says mockingly. I jump up, laughing, and take off to the living room, ducking behind the couch, knowing he can’t see me.