Page 2 of The Other Brother
In the meantime, Cody has staggered to the bottom of the stairs and slumped over, his head between his knees.
Damn. I’d been looking forward to cutting loose with my friends before summer vacation sends us sprawling in different directions. Now it looks like my night has encountered roadwork and is heading for a major detour.
I’m not his keeper. I’m about as far from Cody’s keeper as I can be. But I can’t leave him here like this.
I stride over to the stairs.
“Cody.” I shake his shoulder.
He stirs and lifts his head, opening one eye then the other. His gaze settles on me, and his eyes widen. Cody’s eyes could trigger the least inspired person in the world to write poetry. They’re bluey gray with dark flecks in them and a darker navy outline around the iris. Add dark curls, a straight strong nose, and the chiseled planes of his face, and he’s an incredibly good-looking guy.
A flash of attraction shoots through me. It leaves a weird aftertaste in my mouth.
I’m an out and proud equal opportunities player when it comes to who I hook up with, so the moment isn’t weird because he’s a guy. It’s weird because of who he is.
“Ryan?” he slurs.
When we run into each other accidentally, we usually pretend we don’t know each other. I’m sure I started it five years ago when we were twelve and saw each other at the movies. I remember his eyes lighting up, and he opened his mouth, but I turned away, ghosting him. It gave me a thrill at the time but ended up just adding another complicated layer between us.
“Yep, it’s me. The one and only.” Going for minimum contact, I tug his arm, trying to maneuver him into a sitting position.
“Why are you here?” he asks as I prop him up. He’s not actively resisting me, but he’s not doing anything to help.
“I should be the one asking you that. How do you know Jamie?”
Cody appears to think for a while. “Music camp,” he finally says. The words come out sluggish, like his tongue is set on slow motion.
His answer makes a little bit of sense, although Jamie is in a heavy metal band, which is definitely not the sort of music I associate with Cody.
“It’s time to go home,” I tell him.
“Why?”
“Because you’re a mess.”
“Everything’s a mess,” he mumbles, his words coated in despair.
Shit. I definitely didn’t sign up for the role of counselor tonight. That’s taking it a step too far. A giant moon step too far.
“Come on.”
As I try to lift him, I catch a whiff of his aftershave underneath the beer fumes. Cody lets me help him stand and does his best to get his feet to behave as if they’ve previously been acquainted and can work together. I support him with one arm as we cross the living room, ordering an Uber with my free hand.
I leave Cody propped up against the front door as I grab my jacket from the pile on the floor by the coatrack.
“Who’s that guy?” Harvey saunters over, eyeing Cody curiously.
“Just someone I know.”
I’m not about to explain who Cody is right now as it requires sitting down with pen and paper and sketching out some complex family trees. Once upon a time, before Cody and I were born, Cody’s dad and my mum were married and produced my half-sisters Mel and Kate. But this is one story that definitely didn’t end with a happily ever after. Instead, they had a bitter divorce before marrying other people. Cody’s dad married his mum and they had him, while Mum met my dad and produced me. So Cody and I are connected by our half-sisters, along with the mutual hatred between our parents.
Harvey lifts an eyebrow suggestively, but I ignore it.
“You know what they say about alcohol?”
“What?”
“It might not solve all your problems, but it’s worth a shot.”
