Page 55 of My Brother's Best Men
He looks at me with sorrow and I don’t finish that sentence. “Anyway…I applied with this start-up. They’re kind of like a lifestyle magazine meets travel company.”
He waits for me to continue.
“And I applied for all the normal stuff, you know. Sales, customer service, marketing…but I also applied for entrepreneurial staff writer.”
“Writing, huh? That’s cool. I didn’t know you still did that.”
I shrug. “I haven’t in years, but…I just thought it sounded cool. Traveling and stuff, writing about businesses and restaurants and things…”
“So you got the job, right?” he asks, coming to stand beside me. “I mean, you wouldn’t be mentioning it if?—”
“I told them I’d think about it,” I say quietly. We stand there in the light of the jellyfish, side by side. His comfort is welcome, needed. I look up at him with scared eyes.
“What’s there to think about?” He raises an eyebrow at me.
“It’s just…a big change. I’d be traveling a lot. Probably wouldn’t need an apartment or anything, but I’d still need somewhere to list as a residence or emergency contact.”
He smirks. “So list me.”
“You make it sound so easy.”
“It is. You want the job, they want you, it’s an amazing opportunity. You should take it.”
I frown. “It’s been so hard these last few years, being away from you. Raegan. And even Mom and Dad, but don’t tell them I said that.” I twist my lips. “And I guess I’ve missed the guys too.”
“Hmmm. Yeah, I can see that. So you weighing the options of flying off on your dream job or coming home to watch the rest of us like some small-town soap opera?”
I push his arm playfully. “No.”
“Think about it all you want, but I know if I got an offer like that, I’d take it. At the very least, try it out and if it wasn’t what I wanted, I’d quit.”
“Hey.” Matthew’s voice breaks the silence and I turn to see him standing there in his damn Speedo. Seriously, doesn’t he own a pair of trunks?
Though if I’m honest, I kind of think the Speedo suits him and his personality, but I won’t tell him that. I fight to keep my gaze trained on his face and not his tight swimsuit that hugs him in all the right places.
“We should probably head for the tank, I think Benny and Lucy are just about done.”
A ring of jealousy slices through me at the thought of Benny with one of the other bridesmaids.
Not that I think he’d do anything in the presence of sea animals, but knowing what I do know—the rumors I’ve heard—and given his insistence to Matthew about hooking up with women on this trip, I feel strangely on the spot and pissed, even though I know I have no reason to be.
Clearly what happened between us was a mistake. A moment of weakness.
It’s not like it’s going to happen again…
“Yeah, good idea. Have fun!” Sam says, giving me a smile as he heads off for the opposite side of the jellies, leaving me to question more than just my sudden job offer.
11
MATTHEW
“I can’t believeyou got that dolphin to jump,” Sam says with a laugh.
“I was just lucky I guess,” I admit as I take a sip of my beer.
Sophie smiles. “Animals pick up on vibes, you know. And you have some of the best vibes.” I can’t help the flush that hits my cheeks at her compliment. She casually sips her iced tea, barely touching her wine tonight.
“I think that sounds like so much fun,” her mother says.
