My Brother's Five Friends Read online

  “Are his parties always like this ?”

  “Yes and no,” Aiden admits. “He wants this month to be special so I think he’s starting with a bang .”

  “That’s an understatement,” James says, returning with drinks. “Did you point out the Senator ?”

  Aiden laughs. “I didn’t notice him .”

  “He’s the old crusty white guy over there .”

  “Oh wow,” I say. “I think I saw him on the news one time .”

  “Is he the guy that wants to cut taxes for rich people, or the one that says he’s a socialist?” James asks .

  “What’s the difference?” Aiden grumbles .

  “Oh, wow,” I say suddenly. “Is that Minnie Gray ?”

  “Oh yeah,” James says, spotting the small brunette women. “That’s her. He has a few actresses he’s friends with .”

  I can’t help but laugh and shake my head. Minnie’s on one of those popular sitcoms right now. “I had no clue,” I say .

  “About what?” Aiden asks .

  “That my brother knew so many famous people .”

  He shrugs a little. “He’s an outgoing guy with a lot of money .”

  “Still, he never mentions it when I see him .”

  “What’s he going to do, brag about all the celebrities he knows?” Aiden sips his beer. “Truth is, you’re better off not knowing .”

  “Why’s that ?”

  James and Aiden exchange glances. “That sort of thing can go to your head,” James says. “We try to stay a little more… low key .”

  I raise an eyebrow. “Is my brother an ass ?”

  James laughs, shaking his head. “Not at all .”

  “He just gets too involved in image sometimes, is all .”

  I bite my lip, watching the party. I’m having such a good time with James and Aiden that I forget how much I stick out at this party. They blend in perfectly, since they’re both gorgeous and dressed in expensive and stylish outfits, but I’m totally out of my element .

  It’s nice learning more about my brother. I’ve always wanted to get to know him better, and hearing it from his friends directly… it’s really interesting .

  “Do you two know all these people?” I ask James .

  “Some,” he says. “Not most .”

  “James keeps to himself,” Aiden says .

  “Not totally true. I’m just busy .”

  Aiden laughs. “And owning a construction company is easy ?”

  “Well, it’s not art,” James says, grinning at him .

  Aiden laughs again. “It’s something like an art, I’d say. We build some beautiful things .”

  “I can agree with that,” I say .

  Aiden winks at me. “Thanks, Emily .”

  “Don’t gang up on me,” James says, frowning .

  “You started it,” Aiden comes back, and we all laugh together .

  We start to wander down toward the water and I take a few steps toward it. I let the ocean lap over my toes and laugh. “Holy crap, it’s cold .”

  “That’s the Atlantic for you,” Aiden says. He kicks off his sandals and steps up next to me. James isn’t wearing shoes, so he walks right out up to his knees, looking back at the two of us .

  “You should come visit me in LA sometime,” James says. “Beautiful water, always warm .”

  Aiden laughs. “That’s the line he uses on all the girls he wants to sleep with .”

  I blush a little bit. “Are you trying to get in my pants, James ?”

  He grins and shrugs. “If Aiden’s willing to share you .”

  Aiden arches an eyebrow. “I wasn’t aware that I had the right to share her .”

  “Oh, please,” James says, “like you haven’t noticed the way she looks at us .”

  “Good point,” Aiden muses .

  “Guys, I’m right here,” I say, staring at the two of them like they’re insane .

  “See, she’s not even denying it,” James points out. “I bet we could strip her down right here and do whatever we wanted to her .”

  “No way,” Aiden says .

  “Thank you, Aiden.” I smile at him .

  “I think we’d have to bring her inside at least,” Aiden continues. “I mean, she has some modicum of decency .”

  “Oh, you ass,” I say, kicking water at him .

  He laughs and dances away. “Careful, I wouldn’t start a war you can’t win .”

  James comes over and lifts me up out of the water. I yell, laughing, and he threatens to toss me in if I don’t stop splashing .

  “Okay, okay!” I say .

  He puts me down and I push him back. He grins at me. “You’re a dangerous one, aren’t you?” he asks .

  “Maybe,” I say. “Come on, let’s go inside. My feet are freezing .”

  I dance up out of the water and the guys follow me. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten attention like this from guys as handsome as they are, let alone from two at once. It’s a little overwhelming, and I feel like I’m drunk even though I’ve barely had anything to drink. It’s intoxicating, flirting with these two guys .

  What’s stranger is how intelligent and interesting they are. At first, I thought I was living in a house full of pretty, boring boys. But so far, they’ve proven me wrong at every turn .

  We head up toward the house. I wipe my feet off on a towel and the boys follow suit .

  “Hey, check it out,” James says, nodding into the house .

  I follow his gaze and I see Henry talking to this pretty girl with red hair. She’s shorter than him and gorgeous, with the most striking green eyes I’ve ever seen

  They’re clearly flirting. He touches her elbow and she laughs, leaning into him. He says something to her and she gets this look on her face for a second before smiling and nodding .

  He takes her hand and they walk back toward the stairs .

  “Holy shit,” Aiden says .

  “Well, looks like he’s out to a good lead,” James answers serenely .

  “What?” I ask them. “Lead ?”

  “Nothing,” Aiden says. “I just think Henry’s about to score .”

  “Oh,” I say dumbly. “Gross .”

  The guys both laugh and we head inside. The rest of the party drifts like that, although I lose James and Aiden at a certain point. I’m still content just watching, learning about my brother and his friends, existing in this space that’s so clearly beyond me. I don’t belong, but it feels good to pretend that I do .

  Maybe getting stuck here wasn’t such a bad thing. I was dreading it the whole trip out, but now that I’m here, it’s surprisingly amazing. I just hope of the rest of Henry’s friends are as cool as Aiden and James .

  4

  James

  T he water laps up against the sand as I make a quick mark with my brush. I smile at the sloppy line as I get a little more color on it and add some more to the canvas .

  This isn’t my normal style of painting. I usually go for the cityscapes, more abstract, more emotion and excitement. I’m not usually one for these Bob Ross-style impressionistic wet-on-wet nature scenes, but it’s actually really relaxing .

  The other guys are mostly still asleep. The house is a little beat up from the party last night, but I’m feeling good. I didn’t bother drinking too much, since I wasn’t exactly trying to get laid .

  I understand why Henry wants to have his little contest. He doesn’t get to hang around with the guys as much as he wants to. Although he’s filthy rich now, the guy works hard, and he rarely takes any time off. He’s either working on his crypto trades or helping out at one of the charities he’s helped found in the last few months .

  He’s trying to recapture some of the lost glory days. I make a little zag and add some more color to the canvas, trying to get my waves looking just right .

  Personally, I don’t need to recapture anything. I try and live in the moment as much as possible, and I don’t miss what’s gone, I don’t have any regrets. Except for maybe last
night .

  I shouldn’t have walked away from Emily. She’s the first interesting person I’ve met in a long time. It’s a shame that she’s Henry’s sister, although they barely know each other. He’s super protective of her, but I think that’s mostly just because he thinks he has to be. Henry has these old-fashioned ideas of what it means to be a man and a brother, and sometimes it can get a little annoying, but he means well .

  I glance back at the house and I spot something moving around. The back door slides open and Emily steps out. Her blonde hair blows in the wind and she tucks it back behind her ear, walking out toward me in some floral print shorts and a white V-neck shirt .

  I watch her come with a little smile on my face. I know that she’s thinking about us, I can tell by the way she looks. It drives me crazy that all the guys want her as much as I do, although none of them have admitted it yet. Personally, I’m not the type to pretend like I don’t want something when I do, and I always go after it. Emily’s no exception .

  “Hey,” she says .

  “Hey, yourself.” I cock my head and smile .

  “That’s really good.” She bites her lip and crosses her arms, looking at my canvas .

  I look at the painting. “It’s okay,” I say. “I’m honestly just messing around .”

  “It’s really amazing,” she says. “I mean, being able to do something like that .”

  I shrug and put my brush down. I hang my palette off the easel and sit down in the sand .

  Emily sits down next to me .

  “Anyone up yet?” I ask her .”

  “Not yet,” she says. “I think that girl slept over with my brother .”

  “Oh yeah?” I laugh a little bit. “Good for him .”

  “None of the others are up yet though .”

  “They’re on vacation.” I shrug a little and lean closer to her. She doesn’t shy away .

  “You’re on vacation too,” she points out .

  “Oh, I’m an early riser .”

  She makes a face. “Aren’t artists supposed to like, stay up all night making art and doing drugs? Sleep all day, like a creative vampire or something ?”

  I laugh at that. “You’re not wrong. I mean, that’s the cliché, right? But that’s not my thing .”

  “You want to be different,” she states .

  “Maybe,” I say. “I just work better in the morning .”

  She laughs at that. “Yeah, me too, actually .”

  “Is that why you’re awake? Busy at work ?”

  “I can never sleep that great in a strange bed .”

  “Not even in this stupidly fancy house ?”

  She laughs again, watching me. “Even in this house, yeah. Ever since I was a little kid .”

  “I’m guessing you didn’t go to sleepovers that often .”

  “Nope, always had some excuse .”

  “Me neither .”

  “Really? Why ?”

  I look out at the water and the sun as it slowly rises. “My family moved a lot when I was younger for my dad’s work,” I say. “He was a computer contractor or something like that. But anyway, I never made many friends .”

  “Oh,” she says. “That’s really hard .”

  “Yeah, it was. I went to six different high schools .”

  “Wow, six ?”

  “And eight elementary schools. He slowed down as I got older .”

  She shakes her head. “That’s horrible .”

  “I know. We never even unpacked most places, never bothered. He’d do his job, and then it was on to the next town, the next job. He made good money and took care of us, but it was hard .”

  “Did your parents like moving ?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t know, honestly. I think so, at least, otherwise why would they do it ?”

  “Have you asked them ?”

  “They both passed,” I say softly. “Mom first, dad later .”

  “I’m so sorry .”

  “It’s okay. Maybe it’s why I paint, you know? Always trying to create a stable place to exist. I can do that in a painting, it can be as stable as I want it to be, it can be home .”

  “That’s a really pretty idea,” she says, leaning closer to me, head cocked to the side .

  I turn to look at her and we lock eyes. I’m surprised by her irises, both green and brown at the same time. Not exactly hazel, but like they’re swirled together. Without thinking, I reach out and run my fingers through her hair, but she doesn’t shy away .

  In fact, she leans toward me. Without thinking, I press my lips up against hers, and before I know it, we’re kissing .

  I don’t know what I’m doing. This is stupid, but I can’t help myself. Henry would kill me, and he’s the last person in this world that I want to hurt. He’s a good guy, works hard, takes care of his friends. Hell, he’s done so much for me personally, I can’t imagine doing anything to hurt him .

  And yet here I am, kissing the one girl that’s totally off limits. Maybe I’m fucked up or an asshole, but I can’t help myself .

  She tastes good, feels good. I’ve kissed a lot of girls in my life, but there’s something special about this. I just can’t put my finger on it. It’s like all of her paint’s perfect and pure, never mixed together, bright and vibrant. I can feel it on my lips, on my tongue, and I don’t want this moment to stop. It’s the first time I’ve felt good since coming to this house, hell, maybe in a long time .

  But I have to break it off. I can’t risk letting anyone catch us. She smiles at me, blushing a little bit. “That was unexpected,” she says .

  “Was it?” I ask. “I don’t think it was .”

  “I mean, I just — “

  “It’s okay,” I say, interrupting. “You don’t have to pretend you’re not interested .”

  She blinks at me, surprised. “Okay,” she says .

  I stand up and brush my hands off. “I’m gonna head inside and grab coffee. Want some ?”

  “Yeah,” she says. “That’d be good .”

  I nod and quickly walk away, my heart beating fast .

  I don’t know what the fuck happened just then. She’s clearly into it, and I should have kept kissing her, but I couldn’t. I think it’s the thought of Henry, the fear of getting caught. I hurry back inside, shutting the sliding door behind me .

  Aiden’s standing in the kitchen, making coffee. “Morning,” he says to me .

  “Aiden,” I say. “Hey .”

  He grins. “I saw,” he says before I can mention it .

  I let out a breath. “Shit .”

  “It’s okay, man. I’m not telling Henry.” He grins a little. “Just so long as you don’t mind when I kiss her .”

  I raise an eyebrow. “No shit ?”

  “I wasn’t joking last night, and I don’t think you were, either .”

  I shake my head. “Go ahead. If she wants to, I won’t get in the way .”

  He nods thoughtfully and pours me two mugs. I sip mine as he makes himself a cup .

  He turns back to me. “One thing though .”

  “Yeah?”

  “What if she wants to kiss both of us ?”

  I hesitate. “I don’t know,” I admit. “At the same time ?”

  He laughs at that. “Fuck, no, not at the same time. But in a night, or a day? Maybe .”

  “Wouldn’t be that bad,” I admit. “There’s something about her, isn’t there ?”

  “Definitely,” he says. “You know none of the guys got with anyone last night except for Henry .”

  “Shit, that’s a first,” I say, genuinely surprised .

  “I can’t say for sure, but I think they all have their eyes on her .”

  “No way,” I say. “I mean, I know Ryan was watching her…” I trail off, trying to think .

  “Carter and Daniel too,” Aiden says. “I talked with Carter already. He said he’s trying for her as soon as he has a chance .”

  “Fuck,” I say. “That’s five guys all going for her. That�
�s a lot of competition .”

  “Fun though, yeah?” He grins at me. “Most excited I’ve been in a while. A little friendly competition never hurt anyone .”

  “I guess not,” I say, picking up both mugs. “Although it looks like I’m winning so far .”

  Aiden laughs and hurries to beat me to the door. “Good luck,” he says, stepping out ahead of me, and closing the door in my face .

  “Asshole,” I say, awkwardly trying to get the door open with two hot mugs of coffee .

  Still, once I get outside and spot Aiden laughing with Emily, I don’t feel upset. If anything, I feel happy. We’re close enough that a girl’s not going to come between us, even a girl like Emily. I just hope that Henry isn’t upset by it, or that we can keep it from him at the very least. I don’t want to hurt him, but I also can’t stop myself from having what I need .

  I walk back to them, mind racing, but feeling good for the first time in a long time .

  5

  Emily

  T he sun’s high in the sky and I’m sweating just a little bit. I’m lying on a chair next to the pool, which seems a little silly, since the ocean is just a few feet away. But I don’t feel like swimming or getting sandy, so this works great .

  The guys are mostly inside hanging out, and I’m alone. That suits me just fine, actually. Henry’s awake and playing host again, so I think a lot of them want to avoid his little sister, since I’m so clearly off-limits for them .

  Except apparently James doesn’t really mind that. I keep thinking about that kiss, so surprising but so incredibly good. I felt that spike of excitement, that special feeling you get when a particularly incredible guy kisses you. James gave me that and more, all from a short little kiss, his tongue in my mouth, his taste on my lips .

  Maybe it was the painting, or the fact that he opened up about himself. I don’t know what it was, but I knew it was right as soon as he touched me, and I wanted more. But he broke it off and walked away, leaving me hanging. Aiden came out not long later, so I couldn’t ask him about it, but I think I know what’s going on .

  He’s afraid of Henry. I get the sense that Henry is important to him, helped to make his career. He doesn’t want to risk hurting Henry after everything Henry’s done for him. That means I’m extra off-limits for him, except he still kissed me anyway .