Page 26 of My Brother's Best Men
“I’m going to murder your ass and make it look like an accident in a minute, if you don’t hurry it up, dickwad.”
“Get your damn briefs out of your ass, Benny,” Matt says, flipping him the bird.
I sigh in annoyance as I follow Benny to the back of the car.
“She’s got a fuckingfiancé, Eli. Or did you forget that part?” Benny says as he grabs his suitcase and all but yanks it out and throws it on the ground. “Seriously, what the hell were you thinking?” His eyes shine with surprise at my actions, but also a hint of animosity. “You’re supposed to be the fucking noble one here.”
I don’t miss the jealousy in his voice. It’s sharp, brutal. Like his glare.
Shame and guilt befall me once again, returning like a vicious storm as memories of that kiss, ofcomingto the thought of that kiss and my fantasies, push through.
And then I remember her confession, and I remember Benny doesn’t know the truth, and neither does Matthew.
The air between Benny and me feels different. Not antagonistic, not sympathetic, but more like pained. Strained. Guilt with a tinge of jealousy.
But what would Benny Anderson have to be jealous about? That I kissed our best friend’s sister? Why would he care? fiancé or no fiancé, it doesn’t matter. If anything, this is on me, not Sophie, and certainly not him. He’s not her keeper or anything.
It’s not like he has a Matthew-sized crush on her or has been jacking off to fantasies of her for over a decade. Hell, he’s barely even spoken to her since she’s been home, so what is his fucking problem? Why does he give a shit about the sanctity of marriage all of a sudden when he’s the least commitment-ready man I know?
I open my mouth to argue with him, to tell him to cool his damn jets, but then I see the faintest glimmer in his eyes that I recognize all too well.
It’s not the look of the asshole I can’t stand. It’s the look of thefriendwho always has my back. Which also means he’s probably thesafestoption of who to tell about what really happened. Or rather what Sophie told me.
Benny is probably the most objective man in this damn friend group when it comes to matters of the pining heart. He’s also the only one in our group who doesn’t have it hard for Sophie, and that’s a victory all its own.
He’s also loyal to a T, so I know Icantell him the truth. And maybe if I tell him the truth, he’ll understand. I’m not a damn homewrecker. I’m a man who had a moment of weakness in the presence of the woman he’s been in love with in secret for years, nothing more.
“She’s not engaged any more,” I say carefully. “She and Keaton broke up.” I swallow hard. “He cheated on her.”
Benny’s eyes widen as Matthew’s suitcase falls to the ground with a thud.
“Shit,” Matthew says, nearly breathless. “That’s?—”
“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Benny says. “She said her boyfriend was sick, said?—”
“I know what she said,” I respond. “But what else was she going to say at dinner in front of her family and all of us, huh? That’s why she got so pissed at her mom and ran off. When I caught up to her, she told me the truth.”
Benny purses his lips, his glare sizing me up as he grips the handle of his suitcase. The cool early morning air makes my skin prickle with goose bumps and I’m aware Matt is watching us both. Intently.
“Was this before or after you kissed her?” Matt asks plainly.
“Before.” I sigh. “I’m not a fucking asshole, Benny. I don’t make it a point to go around kissing engaged women.”
I know the moment I say the words that it’s the wrong thing to say, because Benny’s last relationship turned out to be an affair. She’d lied to him, of course, and I thought he would just brush it off, because Bennyalwaysbrushes that sort of thing off. Women and other man drama.
As loyal as he is, the man has a type, and that type always ends up burning him somehow, someway. But healwaysgets back up on the horse and keeps going, because that’s what Benny does.
But he’s been moping around ever since things blew up last year, and suddenly I realize his reaction isn’tjustabout what I did. It’s not just about kissing Sophie. It’s about theprincipleof the matter, because he actually does have a heart.
Fuck.
“Benny, I didn’t?—”
“Just drop it, okay?” he says, slinging his duffel over his shoulder. He storms off for the entrance of the airport, and for the moment, I let it go.
After all, we have a plane to catch.
6
