tryin’ to do, but I can’t think about that right now, okay?”
Ryan considered pointing out that if Evan
had spent more time thinking about his girlfriend and less time focusing on
work while they were together, he wouldn’t be in this mess. But he knew if the
situation were reversed and he lost Brianna, he wouldn’t want to be reminded of
all the mistakes he’d made. “She’s still not taking your calls?”
It had been several days since their
break-up and Ryan knew each day of silence made it harder for Evan to hold on
to hope.
“Nope. I went in to the boutique to talk to
Lena yesterday. I was hopin’ she could talk some sense into her.”
“How’d that go?”
Evan sighed. “She told me I need to give
her some space. She said if I’m serious about makin’ some changes in my life, I
need to prove it. Otherwise, I just need to let her go.” He clenched his fists.
“How the hell am I supposed to do that?”
Ryan turned down the street leading to
their childhood home. “What? Change or let her go?”
“I can’t let her go, but I don’t see how I
can cut back at work either. One bad year and everything our father’s worked
his whole life to build could fall apart. I can’t do that to him. He trusted me
to look after things. I don’t wanna let him down.”
Evan’s relationship with their father was
different than Ryan’s, and he’d accepted that a long time ago. Luc expected
more from Evan because he was so much like him. Ryan was the free spirit who
lived for a good time. He didn’t live to impress his father like Evan did, and
Ryan wouldn’t trade places with his brother for anything.
“He wouldn’t want you to sacrifice your
happiness for Titan, Ev. That’s not why he left you in charge.”
Evan propped his elbow on the door, closed
his eyes, and dropped his head into his hand. “I just can’t believe this
happened. I can’t believe she really left me.”
Ryan drove through the iron gates at the
end of the driveway. The circular drive was filled with familiar cars. It
didn’t look like his brother was going to get the reprieve he’d hoped for
tonight. “What did you expect? You said yourself she’s been complainin’ about
your relationship for a long time now. Did you really think she was just
blowin’ smoke?”
“Six years,” Evan said, staring at him in
the darkness. “We were together almost six years. You don’t just throw that
away on a whim, man.”
“I don’t think she did it on a whim. I
think she did everything she could to let you know that things had to change or
she was gone. You chose not to listen.” Ryan had been dancing around the truth
all week. It was time for brutal honesty. “If you wanna blame someone for this,
bro, ya need to take a look in the mirror. You can’t expect your woman to be
satisfied bein’ last on your list forever.”
Evan scowled. “What the hell would you know
about it? You’ve never been in a serious relationship in your life. I’d be
surprised if you even remembered the names of any of the women you’ve banged in
the last three months.”
Ryan didn’t tell Evan that he hadn’t slept
with anyone since Brianna started working at Titan. Just seeing her everyday
gave him more satisfaction than meaningless sex with a random stranger ever
had. “This isn’t about me, and you know it. You can tell me to go to hell. You
can tell me that I don’t know what I’m talkin’ about, but we both know I’m
right about this.” He reached for the door handle. “Nothin’s gonna change until
you change, man.”
Ryan let his brother lead the way up to the
front door in silence and watched him take a deep breath before turning the
doorknob and pasting a fake smile on his face for the benefit of their family
and friends.
“You’re not foolin’ anybody,” Ryan
muttered.
“Shut the hell up.”
Their mother, Marisa, rounded the corner
from the kitchen, her arms outstretched. Her arms fell and a frown marred her
face when she
Ryan considered pointing out that if Evan
had spent more time thinking about his girlfriend and less time focusing on
work while they were together, he wouldn’t be in this mess. But he knew if the
situation were reversed and he lost Brianna, he wouldn’t want to be reminded of
all the mistakes he’d made. “She’s still not taking your calls?”
It had been several days since their
break-up and Ryan knew each day of silence made it harder for Evan to hold on
to hope.
“Nope. I went in to the boutique to talk to
Lena yesterday. I was hopin’ she could talk some sense into her.”
“How’d that go?”
Evan sighed. “She told me I need to give
her some space. She said if I’m serious about makin’ some changes in my life, I
need to prove it. Otherwise, I just need to let her go.” He clenched his fists.
“How the hell am I supposed to do that?”
Ryan turned down the street leading to
their childhood home. “What? Change or let her go?”
“I can’t let her go, but I don’t see how I
can cut back at work either. One bad year and everything our father’s worked
his whole life to build could fall apart. I can’t do that to him. He trusted me
to look after things. I don’t wanna let him down.”
Evan’s relationship with their father was
different than Ryan’s, and he’d accepted that a long time ago. Luc expected
more from Evan because he was so much like him. Ryan was the free spirit who
lived for a good time. He didn’t live to impress his father like Evan did, and
Ryan wouldn’t trade places with his brother for anything.
“He wouldn’t want you to sacrifice your
happiness for Titan, Ev. That’s not why he left you in charge.”
Evan propped his elbow on the door, closed
his eyes, and dropped his head into his hand. “I just can’t believe this
happened. I can’t believe she really left me.”
Ryan drove through the iron gates at the
end of the driveway. The circular drive was filled with familiar cars. It
didn’t look like his brother was going to get the reprieve he’d hoped for
tonight. “What did you expect? You said yourself she’s been complainin’ about
your relationship for a long time now. Did you really think she was just
blowin’ smoke?”
“Six years,” Evan said, staring at him in
the darkness. “We were together almost six years. You don’t just throw that
away on a whim, man.”
“I don’t think she did it on a whim. I
think she did everything she could to let you know that things had to change or
she was gone. You chose not to listen.” Ryan had been dancing around the truth
all week. It was time for brutal honesty. “If you wanna blame someone for this,
bro, ya need to take a look in the mirror. You can’t expect your woman to be
satisfied bein’ last on your list forever.”
Evan scowled. “What the hell would you know
about it? You’ve never been in a serious relationship in your life. I’d be
surprised if you even remembered the names of any of the women you’ve banged in
the last three months.”
Ryan didn’t tell Evan that he hadn’t slept
with anyone since Brianna started working at Titan. Just seeing her everyday
gave him more satisfaction than meaningless sex with a random stranger ever
had. “This isn’t about me, and you know it. You can tell me to go to hell. You
can tell me that I don’t know what I’m talkin’ about, but we both know I’m
right about this.” He reached for the door handle. “Nothin’s gonna change until
you change, man.”
Ryan let his brother lead the way up to the
front door in silence and watched him take a deep breath before turning the
doorknob and pasting a fake smile on his face for the benefit of their family
and friends.
“You’re not foolin’ anybody,” Ryan
muttered.
“Shut the hell up.”
Their mother, Marisa, rounded the corner
from the kitchen, her arms outstretched. Her arms fell and a frown marred her
face when she
Similar Books
