But then I think of Grace waiting on me and my smile slips.
I should have hit him again. Harder. Kicked him in the ribs and cracked a few of those.
Pulling into the underground garage of my building, I hop out, grab the suitcase, her purse, and I’m inside the elevator in under a minute. And when the doors part on my floor and I enter my condo, I find myself sagging with a disappointment I have no right to.
Grace isn’t waiting on me.
She is exactly where I left her on my couch, tucked under a blanket, but now Oliver is with her. His arms are wrapped around her, her face buried in his chest as she cries. His green eyes meet mine, noting the suitcase, and he mouths, thank you.
I walk the suitcase into one of the guest rooms and Oliver is behind me, Grace in his arms as he carries her. He gives me a grateful nod and I shut the door behind them. That’s it.
And for the first time in my life, I’m jealous of my little brother.
He gets to hold her, comfort her all night. He’ll take care of her because that’s what they do for each other. She doesn’t need me the way she needs him.
I’m just her new roommate. Her attending.
The idiot stuck on a woman who will never want him the way he wants her.
6
Bright sunlight streams across my face, warm and welcome on my skin as I slowly roll onto my side and scream at the top of my lungs. Oliver goes shooting off the bed, smashing his hip into the nightstand before tumbling back with an oomph against the wall.
“What the fuck?” he yells, rubbing his smarting side.
“Crap. You scared the hell out of me.” My heart is racing a million miles an hour as I try to catch my breath. “I forgot you were here. I’m so sorry. I just didn’t expect a head of dark hair to be on the pillow beside me.”
He scrubs a hand over his face. “Yeah, I didn’t mean to be. I fell asleep making sure you were asleep.”
I sit up, bringing the blankets with me and laugh. “Do you remember the last time we had a sleepover together?”
He grins, running his fingers through his sleep-mussed hair. “We were twelve and my parents thought we were doing inappropriate things with each other.”
I giggle. “After that, we weren’t allowed any more sleepovers in the same room. I had to sleep in one of the guest rooms in another wing at your house whenever I stayed the night.”
“Just as well, I think I would have been scarred for life if I had woken up beside you with morning wood.”
I scrunch my nose. “Ew. Gross. I don’t want to think about… that.”
He laughs, coming back to sit on the bed beside me. His clothes are a mess, his white T-shirt wrinkled, his track shorts twisted. He’s wearing what he showed up in last night. I must have changed because I’m in pajamas. My pajamas, no longer Carter’s clothes. Carter. My suitcase. Tony.
“I don’t remember much after you arrived.”
“Once Carter came with your stuff, I gave you an Ativan. Remember?”
“Barely. Did you have me take it because I was an emotional wreck or because you thought I was going to have a seizure?”
“The first. You showed no signs of anything else. I wanted to make sure you’d get some sleep, and I didn’t think you would without a little help.”
“Probably right on that.” I flop back against the pillow, staring up at the high, vaulted ceiling. “Tony isn’t going to break my streak. If I can make it through the end of medical school and the first two years of my residency without having one, I can make it through a cheating fiancé.”
“Wanna talk more about it?”
“No. I have a lot of questions. A lot of things to think through. But I’m not sure I have a whole lot left to say.” I twist onto my side to face my friend. “Thank you for coming. For rushing out of your house in the middle of the night in a rainstorm for me.”
He smiles softly, running his hand over my hair. “I’d do anything for you, babe. You’re my no matter what. My ride or die. And you know, you’re always welcome to come stay with us. We have plenty of space.”
“I know and thank you.” I sigh, twisting the sheet between my fingers. “It’s weird, but this place still kind of feels like my second home even though you no longer live here. Something I still can’t believe I forgot. I felt so stupid when Carter answered the door.”
Oliver hitches up a shoulder. “He didn’t mind. I think he’s glad you came here.”
I snort. “I doubt that highly. I ruined his date, cried about my boring sex life and cheating fiancé, and then imposed myself to move in.”
“He invited you to move in. He wouldn’t have done that if he wasn’t cool with it.”
I know he wouldn’t have. Carter is a great guy. An amazing guy truly, but he would have never done that just to be that great guy. He’s great because it’s effortless for him and he doesn’t even have to think about it. But me staying here puts him in a weird position. He’s my supervisor. He evaluates my work. We were already playing a fine line with my relationship with his brother, but me living here?
I need to find a new place to live, but the thought of apartment hunting, of trying to move…
I just need some time to sort myself out. A couple of weeks at most. What harm can staying here for a couple of weeks do?
“Come to the compound today,” Oliver suggests, cutting off my thoughts. “Bring your suit and we’ll swim and eat. You’ll be with family.”
I smile at that. It’s true, Oliver’s my family. His parents and my parents were best friends until my parents decided I wasn’t something they wanted to deal with any longer if they could avoid it. Then the Fritz clan sort of turned their back on that friendship. I haven’t seen much of my parents since they moved to Australia to follow my younger brother, Scott’s family. Scott got married straight out of college to an Australian woman, and now he has a daughter with another on the way.
The last time I spoke to my mother was when I called to speak to my niece, and she accidentally picked up his phone. That conversation lasted all of three minutes.
I lift my hand, hovering it over my face, staring at the sparkling diamond. “Should I flush it?”
“You could sell it. Donate the money to a charity or use it to get yourself a new place.”
I could do that, but knowing Tony, he’ll make a stink and demand I return it. “I’ll mail it to him.” I don’t want his money anyway.
“So you’re done? Like, done, done? No second thoughts or waiting period?”
“Carter?!” I yell, making Oliver jar back, covering his ears.
“Damn. Warn a guy before you start screaming.”
“Carter!” I try again, and a minute later, I hear him trudging down the hall.
The door opens and he pops his head in. “You bellowed?”
“Come in here, would ya?”
He grunts something under his breath but does as I ask.
“Was he there last night when you went over?”
He nods, hovering by the foot of the bed, visibly uncomfortable to be in here during my pajama party with his brother.
“He looked like shit if that helps.”