I help Angelina settle inside our sister’s mansion, making her take a seat in the kitchen while I pour her a glass of water. She doesn’t look much better than she had after the service when she admitted to not feeling well. Is she drunk? I’ve seen her several times over the weekend with a glass in hand, but I don’t remember her ordering anything, so it could’ve been water. How sad is it that I can’t even say for sure whether or not my own sister drinks?

“What’s going on with you?” I ask when handing her the glass. “Are you sick?”

“I’m probably not eating enough protein,” she mutters before taking a small sip. Looking away, she sets the glass down on the island. “My agent has me on a strict diet that I haven’t exactly been sticking to while here.”

“Jesus, Ang. You look skinny enough already. I’m no expert on modeling, but maybe you should see a doctor. I’d think you could stand to gain a few pounds.”

She throws me a sharp look. “You’re right. You don’t know a thing about modeling.”

“I wasn’t trying to be a dick. I’m just worried your agent isn’t looking out for your well-being.” I plop down onto the stool next to her and sigh. “What does your boyfriend say about your weight?”

“I don’t have time for a boyfriend,” she snaps. “Between working out and keeping up with Go-Sees, I spend my free time resting so I don’t look like a damn zombie.”

I rub a hand over my jaw. What kind of life is that? “Hope the money you’re making is worth all this bullshit.”

Staring down at the glass, she traces the rim with her pointer finger. “It’s hard to find work when I’m competing with younger models. I auditioned for a part in a new TV series they’re getting ready to film in Miami. If that doesn’t happen, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

“Didn’t know you were interested in acting.”

“I didn’t either until my agent suggested I take acting classes they were offering at the University last summer. Turns out I’m a natural. At least that’s what the professor said.”

“They’d have to have their heads up their asses not to hire you. What’s the show about?”

“Incredibly horny supernatural creatures, like witches and vampires.” With a quiet giggle, she grins back at me. “If I’m hired, at least Mom and Dad aren’t around to watch their oldest bring shame to the family.”

With a firm shake of my head, I squeeze her arm. “They’d never be ashamed of you.”

Her smile flattens. “You don’t know me well enough to say that.”

I shift around on the stool when the truth behind her words stings. But we’re still blood, and our parents raised us to take care of each other. Maybe it’s time I stop worrying about myself and start keeping track of my siblings.

“Everyone does shit at some point that they’re not proud of,” I say. “Doesn’t mean Mom and Dad would’ve held it against you.” When she doesn’t answer, I add, “If the vampire porn doesn’t work out, you can always come out and see me in Cali. I have a spare room, and LA’s not that far of a drive.”

For a moment her expression falls like she’s going to cry. Then she slips off the stool, turning her back on me as she leaves the room. “Go back to the reception, Braden. I don’t need my baby brother watching over me.”

But she’s wrong. I think that’s exactly what she needs. What the hell is going on in her life that makes her seem so sad?

* * *

In the middle of the night, my cell phone chirps from somewhere on the floor. I nearly break my fucking neck jumping from Sofia’s couch to find it. Maybe Katie made up her mind and wants me to come to her.

But when Connor’s name flashes across the screen instead of his mom’s, the flicker of hope I felt with the ring of my phone becomes a bone-chilling fear. There’s only one reason he’d be calling at this hour. Something’s wrong.

“Connor? What’s wrong? Did something happen to your mom?”

“She’s okay, as far as I know. She spent the night at Ev and Charlie’s. I’m calling about Allen.”

Rubbing my forehead, I glance at the screen to see it’s 3:24. “Couldn’t this wait until tomorrow?”

“He was arrested for drunkenly disorder and assault.”

Fuck. I drop my head into one of my hands as I try to imagine Katie dealing with the news. “And you haven’t told your mom yet?”

“No, because she’s going to freak the hell out. She wanted to go after him when he left the reception, but me and Uncle Charlie told her he’d be okay. It’s not something we’d want to wake her over.” He pauses to let out a deep breath. “He called ten minutes ago, said they threw him in the drunk tank. Someone needs to go down there and pick him up.”

“Your mom should be the one to do it. If you want me to call her—”

“I was thinking maybe you could go get him.”

I grunt with a humorless laugh. “I’m the last person he’s going to want to see.”

“Just hear me out. He was really upset…I’ve never heard him that bad off—told me his life is a fucking mess. He said he isn’t fitting in at school and he’s flunking two of his classes. If Mom goes to get him, she’ll be really pissed when she finds out what’s going on and he’ll completely shut down. He needs someone levelheaded to tell him what he’s going through isn’t the end of the world. It’d be the perfect chance for the two of you to have it out without Mom being around. I’ll come along and play referee if you want.”

Although he’s right—it would be a great opportunity to connect with Allen—I hesitate to do anything behind Katie’s back. I sure as hell don’t need any reasons for her to hate me. She’s going to be mad enough when she hears I’m planning to stay out here in hopes that she’ll change her mind about coming to Cali.

“Think about it, man. My mom has it in her head that she can’t be with you because Allen can’t handle it. If you can bond with him, make him understand that you only want to make our mom happy, she won’t have a reason to break things off with you.”

I shake my head, chuckling. “Don’t get me wrong, I really appreciate your enthusiasm and everything, but doesn’t it weird you out that I’m not that much older than you? Why’re you so accepting of me and your mom being together?”

“Because I can tell that you make her happy. She’s stubborn as hell and has this ridiculous complex thing—thinks she was a shitty mom because our dad wanted nothing to do with us, but that couldn’t be any further from the truth. Until Allen graduated, she didn’t have a life. She didn’t date, and I only remember her going out a few times with our friends’ moms because they basically bullied her into taking a night off. Most of her life has been about her taking care of us, and Charlie, and our grandma. She has to stop putting others ahead of herself. She deserves something good for herself. If you love her, please don’t give up because of what she said tonight. I’m guessing she loves you too, but she’s probably scared to death to put herself out there in a real relationship after what she went through with my dad.”

“She’s lucky to have you, Connor. You’re a real stand-up guy.”

“Just don’t ever expect me to call you ‘dad,’ fucker.”

With a chuckle, I make plans to meet him down at the station before throwing on a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. Can’t say I’m looking forward to the conversation that’s ahead, but maybe Connor’s right. Maybe it’ll get me one step closer to winning Katie back.

* * *

I saw some weird shit when stationed overseas, but the drunk tank makes all that look like child’s play. First I notice the god-awful rank smell before almost running into an old guy covered in vomit who’s waiting to be admitted. A string of bile rises in my throat. Why couldn’t the little shit have gotten himself arrested back in Brooklyn?

“Sorry I’m late,” Connor huffs from behind me. “Took the wrong exit off the subway.” When I turn to face him, his lips are screwed up with a scowl as he’s taking everything in. “Shit. This must be what rock-bottom looks like. Have you figured out what you’re going to say to him?”

“I’ll probably just let him vent,” I answer, shrugging.

We stand near the reception desk a few minutes longer before a uniformed man escorts Allen out from a secured door. The poor kid looks like total shit—red rimmed eyes, scruffy hair, discolored bruise forming on his cheek, khakis and dress shirt from the wedding wrinkled and stained with droplets of blood. All at once I’m glad Katie didn’t have to come down here to see her son like this.

I hold my breath when he discovers me standing next to his brother. Surprise registers in his expression, but I take it as a good sign when he doesn’t appear hostile.

Connor hustles over to them, telling the officer he’s Allen’s brother and I’m a family friend. Allen stares at the floor while Connor signs the paperwork, and he doesn’t say a word until the three of us are headed out the door together.

“Thanks for coming to get me,” he mumbles.

“How does the other guy look?” I ask, nudging him with my elbow.

His bloodshot eyes meet mine. “They said I broke his nose.”

“Any other damage?”

“It’s the only hit I got in before they broke us up and called the cops.”

“You’ll probably just get community service and a fine,” I tell him. “Don’t sweat it.”

“Why are you here?” he blurts, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. “Did you come to rub it in my face that I fucked up?”

I glance Connor’s way, but he motions for me to have at it, so I say, “No judgments here. I’ve made my share of bad decisions over the years. Your brother told me you needed someone to come get you, and he was worried your mom would shit bricks when she found out you were arrested. He figured you could use a mutual friend to talk to.”

With a shake of his head, he suddenly looks…sad. “Fucking my mom doesn’t make you my friend.”

“I get that you’re mad, Allen, but if you keep saying shit like that, things will get real ugly between us. I’m sure this will seem weird to you because she’s so much older than me, but I love your mom and care about her more than I can put into words. If you can respect that, then we won’t have a problem.”

Mouth held in a tight line, Allen’s gaze flips between me and his brother. “Is this for real?”

“Yeah it’s for real, so I’d appreciate it if you could stop making our relationship sound cheap.”

“He makes mom happy,” Connor tells him. “What does it matter if they’re not the same age? Why do you have such a problem with Braden?”

“Because he’s not old enough to take the place of our dad!” Allen snaps in a shaking voice.

“I don’t want to take your dad’s place,” I promise. “Even if your mom and I decided one day to get married, I wouldn’t expect you to call me anything other than Braden. I know your relationship with your dad is shit, but I’m not going to swoop into your lives and pretend I can make up for the fact that he was never around. If anything, I could be a friend to help you through whatever shit you’re not ready to share with your mom.”

Allen swipes at his eyes so quickly that I’m sure he’s embarrassed to be seen crying. “You really love her?”

“Yeah,” I answer with a stern nod. “I really do. That’s why I’m willing to do whatever it takes for you to like me at this point. We got along fine before I started seeing your mom, so it seems pretty obvious what’s going on here. You don’t hate me, you hate the situation I’ve put you in. I’m sorry, Allen. I wish you hadn’t found out the way you did. You should’ve had time to adjust to the idea, but it was thrown in your face. That’s not how I wanted this to go down.”

Again wiping at his eyes, Allen draws his gaze over to the light traffic beside us. Considering he seems less and less aggressive, I’m optimistic that he’ll eventually accept that I want way more from his mom than a good time.

Connor moves over to his side, patting his brother’s shoulder. “Let’s grab something to eat while the three of us work on a game plan. Mom won’t be half as mad if you can admit to her that you’ve screwed up and have an idea of how you’re going to fix things.”

* * *

Over heaping plates of pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon, Allen eventually opens up and tells us everything about the past few months. It’s worse than we thought, considering he was often going to classes drunk, and was even involved in a B&E with some dicks he met at a frat party. With every confession it becomes clear he’s regretful of his choices and wants to turn his life around. I’m even convinced all this has to do with the fact that he felt unwanted because of his jackass of a dad.

But he nearly blows me the fuck away when he starts asking detailed questions about my time in the Marines. “Are you glad you joined?” he finally asks.

I lean forward to meet his gaze over the table. “Are you asking because you think it’s something you might want to do?”

“Seriously, Allen?” Connor pipes in.

Glancing at his brother, he shrugs. “Maybe…it’d beat the hell out of the track I’m on now.”

“If you really are serious, I can take you to meet with a recruiter,” I offer with my eyebrows raised. “They’d be able to answer your questions better.”

Allen hangs his head a little lower, drawing his gaze down to his empty plate. “I’m sorry I’ve been a dick to you. Guess I have some things to work out.”

Reaching across the table, I hold out my fist for him to bump. “Apology accepted. Sounds like you’ve been having a hard enough time dealing with your own shit. I get it, man. Next time don’t think of me as the enemy and I’ll help you out in any way I can. I’m hoping the three of us can always be this chill when we hang together. I’ve always liked you guys.”

His eyes draw up to meet mine. “So you’re still planning to date our mom?”

“I sure as hell hope so…as long as I can get your blessing anyway. I’m letting you know right now that I’m dead serious about wanting to stay in her life—I love that woman like fucking crazy. But I’ll walk away if it’s going to break up your family. Your mom has made it clear you two come first, and I totally respect that. More than anything I want her to be happy.”

Allen slowly leans back in the booth and drops his head back, looking over at me down the bridge of his nose. “It’s just weird, you know? She hasn’t brought anyone home all this time, and when she finally does it’s someone young enough to be our brother. I don’t know how anyone can be expected to wrap their head around that.”

“I can give you space to process, if that’s what you need. Your call, Allen. If you want me to back off for awhile, I’ll fly back to California by myself so you and your mom can sort this out without me around.”

His eyebrows lift. “You’d really do that?”

Meeting his gaze, I give him a hard nod. “Yeah. I’m not going to shove the idea of me and your mom down your throat. You need to deal with it in your own time.”

A painful burn ricochets through my chest with the idea of leaving Katie behind, even if it’s only for a few weeks, but I’m not going to push him just like I’m unwilling to push her. I sure the fuck hope whatever the kid chooses doesn’t involve me going home alone.