Page 94 of Spencer and the Younger Girl
Spencer obeyed. “She’s… You two have ignored me, made me feel unwelcome on a ranch that used to be my home, in a family that used to be mine.”
“We’re still your family, son.”
“Then act like it!” He sucked in a breath. “If it wasn’t for Damien and Hadley, I’d…” He couldn’t finish that sentence.
“Leave?” His mother’s voice was so quiet, so unsure, he almost didn’t catch it.
“I don’t know.” He leaned back in the chair, all the energy fading from his body. He didn’t want to fight with them, but a fight was what they came for. “But I need her.” He didn’t realize until that moment, until they tried to take her away, how much that was true. Hadley made him smile when his world had been dark for so long.
Her laughter breathed new life into him.
No one spoke for a long moment. “She is eighteen, son. A young girl on the brink of a huge life change once she graduates.”
“I know.” He’d thought of little else. Even if he could stay, she wouldn’t. She wanted to be off in Paris and other exotic locations. And then what about college?
Flashes of another time with another relationship came back to him. That too had an expiration date. They just hadn’t known until it was too late. Was it better to avoid the pain altogether?
His dad turned his attention to Damien. “This rule applies to you as well.”
Damien smirked. “I’m not dating Hadley, Dad.”
“No, but what about Gabe?”
All the air left the room as Spencer waited for his brother to react, to do something. Instead, he sat as still as a stone statue, no emotion at all.
His mom had only softness in her eyes for her youngest son. “Honey, Gabe is here because his parents asked us to watch out for him, to give him work.”
“But he’s not an employee,” Damien croaked. “He’s part of the family.”
“Not legally, honey.”
Spencer watched it in slow motion. Damien caved in on himself, his shoulders hunching forward before his face fell into his hands.
He wanted to jump from his chair, pull his brother into a hug, and tell him everything was okay. But something held him back, something told him Damien had to deal with this in his own way.
Damien’s back shook as he lifted his face. Tears rolled down his cheeks, creating glistening paths through his sun burn. “How long have you known?”
“Sweetie.” His mom stood and crossed the room. She lowered herself into a crouch in front of him. “We’ve known for a while, but we wanted you to come to us on your own terms.” She brushed his tears away. “Your father and I love you with every ounce of our being. That will never change. Do you believe me?”
Damien sniffled and nodded.
She pulled him into a hug and settled her eyes on Spencer over Damien’s shoulder. “In this family, our love never ends. No matter what.” She pulled back and placed a hand over Damien’s heart. “This heart inside your chest is what makes you my sweet, sweet boy.”
Their dad cleared his throat, and Spencer wonder if it was to rid himself of the emotion he felt as well.
As Spencer watched his brother pull himself together, his truth now out in the world, he realized he needed to tell them everything. They deserved to know why he’d broken them.
Not tonight. But soon.
He wanted his mom to look at him the way she did Damien. He always had. When they were young, he’d only seen disappointment in her eyes, but now he wondered how true those memories were.
Because she looked at him with nothing but a deep sadness—that he’d caused.
“Damien,” their dad started. “You were right in saying Gabe is part of the family, but you cannot date a boy who works on this ranch. I am sorry for that.”
“But he makes me happy. Isn’t that the most important thing?”
“We’re sorry, son. Gabe needs a family and a home more than he needs a boyfriend right now”
