Brody was the only guy who’d have ever been able to convince me to drink Pabst beer. The first time we’d gone out fishing he’d insisted on it. Evidently it had been a tradition when he went fishing with his brothers, and I decided to be a good sport and go along with it. Two years later, I couldn’t imagine a day of fishing without it. Fishing was really the only “guy” thing we did together. We’d done it on a whim one day when he first moved in, and it had become a semi-regular thing for us.

The sun way already high in the sky by the time we pulled the canoe out. Usually we left early in the morning, but I’d had trouble leaving my bed again. When you have a girl like Carly begging you to stay a few more minutes, it can take an army, or in my case an annoyed roommate, to pull you out of the sheets. I left the condo with a promise that Carly would be around that night. She’d been spending more time with Maddy lately. Combined with the extra shifts she was working now that she was bartending, and the fact that I worked days rather than nights, finding time together could be tough.

“Think we’re going to catch anything today?” Brody stretched out as much as he could in the canoe.

“Maybe. Either way, I’m glad you dragged me out here.”

“I know she’s prettier than me, but man it’s hard to pry the two of you apart.”

“She’s a hell of a lot prettier than you.” I took a long sip of my beer.

“Yeah, I’m not going to argue there.”

“So what’s going on with you? I feel like all you’ve been doing is working.”

“I’m trying to save up a little until I figure out what to do next.”

“Do next? Were you planning on doing something different?”

“Aren’t you? I know you own the place, but are you going to stay out here when Caleb takes over the shop?” Brody wasn’t the type to beat around the bush.

“I have no clue.” I had no idea how I could rationalize staying around if I didn’t have a job at the shop.

“I guess the better question is whether Carly’s sticking around.”

“Who knows? It’s not like we’ve been together long.” It sure didn’t feel that way though.

“Yet she’s slept in your bed almost every night for weeks now.”

“I can’t get enough of her. She makes everything seem better, like I’m not a complete fuck up.”

“You’re not a fuck up. Did you decide what to do with Wharton? Aren’t you out of deferrals now?”

“I’m not going.”

“You do understand that getting an MBA would help you with more than just your family business.”

“I just don’t want it anymore.”

“Then what do you want? Other than Carly and spending your life diving?”

“I have no clue. I’ll figure something out.” I tried not to think about it anymore than I had to.

“Same here. My parents are bugging me to go home. My brother Gavin thinks I should move to Wilmington where he is.”

“He’s the one getting married, right?”

“Yeah. He’s coaching a minor league baseball team and someone’s wife owns a restaurant he thinks I should work at while I go to culinary school.”

“Wouldn’t that be a good opportunity?”

“In theory, but I don’t know, I just want to do something on my own I guess. My family’s great and all, but they can get overbearing.”

“And he probably just wants you around so you can babysit when they inevitably get pregnant in the next few years.” I let some cynicism slip in.

“Speaking of pregnant—Maddy’s really having a baby, huh?”

“Looks that way. She seems surprisingly excited about it.”

“It’s not that surprising. She loves Colin.”

“Yeah, but she’s the one who usually overthinks everything.”

“I guess this comes more naturally.” Brody cast his line.

“I guess so. Maddy a mom. Seems crazy.”

“Right now I’m going to focus on the fact that she’s getting married. That’s crazy enough.”

“Have they set a date yet? She told me her parents took all the news well.”

“They did. Her parents are cooler than she’d let you believe, and they like Colin. Maddy’s trying to convince Colin to do something really small though. He’s convinced she’s only pushing for that because she’s pregnant, but I think it’s actually what she wants.”

“Are you going to talk to him?”

“I’m going to let Carly take care of that. Colin usually listens to her.”

Brody laughed. “Yeah, let your girlfriend do the hard job.”

I shrugged. “She doesn’t seem to mind. I think she likes being part of everything.”

“What’s the deal with her family? I never wanted to ask, but I’m guessing you know.”

“It’s all sorts of messed up. All I’m going to say is that if I ever see her brother-in-law he’s going to get hurt.”

“That bad, huh?”

“That bad.” I pulled off my t-shirt. The sun was roasting.

“You’re going to get sunburn.”

“You sound like Carly.”

“Yeah, but unlike Carly I’m not going to help you with the aloe.”

I chuckled. “Yeah, that’s what Carly would say too.”

---

Three hours was a really long drive to go to a show, but I knew how much Carly loved the group. We’d decided to get a hotel in Virginia Beach for the night, and I was looking forward to it. As much as I loved having Brody as a roommate, I was looking forward to some more privacy for a change.

“What’s your view on listening to a band on your way to go see them, yay or nay?” Carly sat happily in the passenger seat. She was dressed in my favorite dress. It was navy blue and shorter than she usually wore. I mentioned how good she looked in it, and she seemed to be wearing it a lot more. I enjoyed knowing I had that kind of influence more than I’d have admitted out loud.

“I’ve never considered that important question before. There’s always the risk of getting tired of the music before you get there, but could you even get tired of listening to Dan Croll?”

“Never.” She turned on her Bluetooth and the music blared through the radio. I smiled to myself. Sometimes Carly was so easy to please.

I’d been expecting a large venue, but the show was in a really intimate place off the beaten path. My interest in watching the show rose exponentially. I always preferred when you got to be up close to the performers. There was something so much more satisfying about it. Being that close made it worth the price and effort of seeing them live.

“I’m so excited!” Carly stepped up on her tippy toes trying to see over the people in front of us as we waited in line.

“There’s nothing to see yet, babe.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you trying so hard?” I teased. I loved how excited she was, it made the drive seem like nothing.

We turned over our tickets and walked in, ordering some drinks before making our way closer to the stage. Carly watched the bartender like a hawk while he mixed them.

The opening act was surprisingly good, and I found a comfortable spot with Carly leaning against me. Standing room only wasn’t bad when it involved Carly in close proximity.

She got so into the music. She sang along to the songs as her body moved against mine.

Carly suddenly froze. “Let’s go.”

“What? He’s not even done with the first set. What’s wrong?”

“Please. Let’s go.”

“Are you sure?” I looked at her nervously. Something had spooked her, but I had no idea what.

She took my hand and pulled me toward the door. We got stuck in a crowd by the bathrooms, but made it out to the lobby. The music was faint outside the main doors.

“Running away from me, Carly?” A voice called.

She squeezed my hand, and I turned around. I came face to face with a guy in his mid-to late twenties. “Who the fuck are you?”

He ignored me and focused on Carly. “Just like when we were kids, you always spied on me and ran away.”

Carly turned. “I wasn’t spying on you. I’m obviously here with someone. And if I find out you’re here with someone God help you, asshole.”

Whoa. Carly didn’t curse much. Whoever the hell this punk was he’d rubbed her the wrong way.

“Oh yeah? Are you going to go crying to Kim again? Look at what good that did last time. Just made a mess of things for all of us.”

Kim? A light bulb went off. This was her brother-in-law. “Don’t even talk to her, you jackass.”

“I see you found yourself a new friend. How long’s he going to last? You were never good at keeping boys around, were you? Even in high school you always scared them off.”

“What the hell would you know? You were in college by the time I was in high school.”

“That didn’t stop you from chasing after me back then.”

“Shut up, Jasper. I was a kid. Now if you’ll excuse us, we’re leaving.”

“Leaving?” He laughed dryly. “The show’s barely started.”

“And you successfully managed to ruin it for her. Don’t say another word.”

“Who the hell are you to tell me what to do?”

“Her boyfriend. Now get lost.”

“Boyfriend? Well let me do you a favor, cut your losses. She’s just a little tease. She’s not worth your time.”

“What did you just say?”

“She’s a tease. Always has been, always will be. She fucks everything up, and even her family knows it.”

“Oh yeah? Is that why you were hitting on her? Coming on to your wife’s little sister, real classy.”

“I was only offering Carly what she’d wanted for years.”

I looked at Carly. I was so tempted to punch the asshole, but I was also realizing there was so much more to the story. Either way, none of it was Carly’s fault. I knew that.

“Let’s go.” I took her hand. “Let’s catch the rest of the show.” I wasn’t going to let the idiot ruin our night.

“Not yet.” She squeezed my hand. “There’s something I need to say.”

“Is there?” He sneered. “Is this where you finally confess what we both already know. If it weren’t for Colin none of us would be in this mess.”

Colin? He was involved too? I forced myself to stay quiet. Carly was holding my hand. If she wanted me to get involved I would, but right now I needed to just support her.

“Colin was protecting me, the way a brother should.”

“No. Colin screwed things up. You felt the same things I did. Don’t even try to lie.”

“Did I have a crush on you back then? Yeah, but what girl doesn’t crush on her older brother’s best friend at some point? It’s human nature.”

Brother’s best friend? Whoa.

“It was more than a crush, and it went both ways.”

“It was a crush. I was sixteen and stupid. Colin did the right thing keeping you away. And what, six months later you were dating Kim? Clearly you didn’t care that much.”

“Didn’t you ever wonder why?”

“Wonder why? No. You ended up with the perfect one. The one who did everything right. I hated Kim for a year when you guys got engaged, but then I realized I was being stupid. She deserved to be happy, and if it was with you, then fine.”

“The perfect one? Not quite. Do you realize how hard it’s been for me? All those stupid family events when you’d show up with shmucks like this one just to piss me off.”

I bit down the response I wanted to make.

“I wasn’t trying to piss you off. I’d moved on. You were married to my sister. My sister, who also happens to be the sister of your best friend.”

“We’re not friends anymore. You know that.”

“That’s your own fault. What did you expect him to do?”

“Back us up. He’s the reason we’re in this position.”

“Stop saying that. You’re in this position because you’re a jerk.”

“How am I a jerk? You spent that whole night watching me. You kept giving me those looks of yours, and you wanted me to follow you home.”

“No. I had absolutely no interest in sleeping with my sister’s husband. I’m not that kind of person, and frankly I can’t believe you’ve become that type either.”

“Don’t act like I’m a monster. It’s not like I’m sleeping around on her. Although she thinks I am. You went and told and now she’s checking my phone records, and I swear she’s hired a PI.”

“You came on to me, Jasper. You tried to talk me into having sex with you when you were married to my sister. I never said you were a monster, but you’re a jerk. You tried to guilt trip me, play on my insecurities. You know how much I wish I was Kim, how I wish I could be half as successful and perfect as her, but I’ll never be. Go home. You’re lucky she kept you in her life. She sure as heck didn’t keep me.” Tears spilled down Carly’s face, and I’d had enough.

“Just admit it, Carly. You’re in love with me.” He stepped closer to her. “You always have been.”

“No.” Carly wiped away her tears and stood up straighter. “I’m not.”

He leered at her. “We’ll see what you say when I see you without your boyfriend next time.”

My fist made contact with his face without me thinking about it. His words were the last straw.

Security moved toward us at lightning speed. They watched us, clearly deciding how to intervene.

“We’re leaving.” Carly held up her hand, and they backed off. “He was just protecting me.”

She grabbed hold of my hand and rushed toward where we parked. We didn’t speak until we were in the car and on our way back home. Fuck the hotel, I just wanted to get away from this place. I could tell she was upset. She tried to hide them, but I noticed the tears. I wanted to give her time before asking any questions.

She put a hand on my leg. “Thank you.”

“You never told me the backstory.” I wasn’t mad, she didn’t owe the whole story to me, but I wished she’d trusted me enough to tell me everything.

“I didn’t want you to think even less of me.”

“Why would I think less? That just makes the guy even more of a creep. He went after you when you were sixteen.”

She turned to look out the window.

“He didn’t. I mean I’m hoping when he said tease that means you didn’t sleep with him back then.”

“No… we came close, but you heard what he said about Colin.”

“My respect for your brother just rose again.”

“I still don’t get why she married him. She’d never liked him growing up. I was the one who did.”

“Maybe that’s exactly it. She wanted to prove she could have him.”

She turned to look at me. “But why? What did that matter?”

“I don’t know Kim, but maybe she feels the same way about you that you feel about her. Maybe she’s jealous of you.”

“That’s impossible.” Carly slumped down in her seat.

“No, babe, it’s completely possible.”

“I’m sorry this night was such a mess.”

“I’m sorry—I shouldn’t have punched him. We should have just gone back in.”

“I’m glad you did. I wish I’d had the courage to do that myself.” She stared down at her hands in her lap.

“You were awesome, Carly. You stood up for yourself and didn’t back down. I’m glad I was able to witness that.”

“Do you want me to drive? You drove so much today already.”

“No, I just want to know you’re okay.”

“I’m fine.” She squeezed my arm. “I have you.”

My heart swelled. This amazingly beautiful girl found strength and comfort from me. Maybe I wasn’t completely worthless.

“Tell me about your childhood. It had to have been more interesting than mine.” She traced small circles on my arm.

“Are you sure about that? Your late teens kind of sound like they belong on a TV show.”

“Very funny. Come on, what were you like? That first night down on the beach you told me you weren’t always cool. Were you a nerd?”

I put my arm behind her seat. “A nerd? No. More like a geek.”

“Is there a difference?”

“Yes. A nerd is all bookish. A geek is just into geeky things. And I was the kind of geek who didn’t look like one on the surface.” I passed a slow moving truck before settling back into the right lane. I wasn’t in a huge rush, but I was ready to get Carly home.

“Really? No glasses?”

“I had glasses, but they made me look cute, not geeky.”

“So you say.”

“Just ask Maddy.”

“I had braces for five years.”

“Really? I can’t even picture that.”

“Yup. The first time I made out with a guy I cut his lip.”

I laughed. “Seriously? You were a dangerous kisser?”

“I guess so. Looks like you met me at a better time.”

“I think we met each other at the perfect time.”

“Me too.” She leaned into my arm, and I turned up the music. We didn’t have to worry about listening to too much Dan Croll.