Page 28 of Be Your Forever
Which is why I invited Cas and my brother, Xander, to lunch. About a year ago, I introduced the two, and they immediately hit it off. Given their history with substance and alcohol abuse, I thought it would be nice for them to lean on each other. I pull up to Porters Grille to see Cas and Xander chatting next to their cars.
“Aw, did y’all drive together? How cute,” I tease.
“Don’t be jealous,” Xander retorts back before leaning in for a bro hug.
It’s nice to see my big brother thriving. His drinking nearly destroyed our relationship. Growing up, he was my best friend, my idol. But then he tried to find himself at the bottom of the bottle, and everything changed. Xander is a few inches taller than me and is the spitting image of our father, Oliver, with dark brown hair and brown eyes. I took after my mom, Melissa, with my blond hair and blue eyes. Despite our differences and six year age gap, he’s always been my go to confidant.
I greet Cas with the same hug before we make our way inside. We’re seated pretty quickly thanks to the reservation I made this morning. I’m not much of a drinker, but when I’m around Xander and Cas, I’m mindful of my actions. Last thing I want is to make either of them uncomfortable. Xander has been sober for about six years now while Cas is still newly sober, but relapse is a sneaky bastard. So, instead of ordering my usual Manhattan, I order water.
Xander, unsurprisingly, is the first to break the silence. “What gives? Why are we here and not with Max discussing whatever you want to talk about?”
It’s a valid question. I let out a sigh, knowing Xander is about to make fun of me.
“Well, it’s not something I feel comfortable talking to Max about. See, I need your advice about Bri.”
Xander grins and I just roll my eyes.Here we go.“Well, fucking finally. You’ve only been in love with her for years.”
“Told you,” Cas adds.
“Yeah, whatever. Anyways, she created this plan for regaining control over her life, and I need some help coming up with some ideas.”
“It’s like best friend boot camp 2.0,” Cas remarks. Huh. I didn’t think about it that way, but it makes sense.
“Yeah, I guess you could say that.”
“What’s on the list?” Xander asks.
Shit. I didn’t think this far out. I should have assumed they’d ask, but this is personal for Bri. Well, they’re about to get a vague ass answer.
“She just wants to feel like herself again…to feel beautiful again. The accident really affected her.”
“The fuck? Does she not own a mirror? She’s a fucking ten. I’d go after her if I wasn’t happily married.” Xander winks at me.
He’d never do anything with her, but jealousy doesn’t seem to know the difference between a joke and something serious.
“Fuck off,” I snarl, and out of the corner of my eye I see Cas smirk.
I turn to him and glare. “Just say it,” I huff out.
“I’ve got nothing to say. It’s just a strong reaction for someone claiming not to love someone is all.” Dick.
“What Cas said. So, you’ve taken this upon yourself to help her?” Xander asks.
“Um, not really. She asked for help, and I agreed.” We won’t talk about what I agreed to. Some things should remain private.
“And I bet you so willingly agreed.” Xander winks at me. I love my brother, but sometimes he can be ridiculous.
“Right. Well, now I have to figure out what to do to help her see how incredible she is.”
“Bri is a bold and daring woman. And just based off of conversations with Avery, she has always been proud of her sexuality. Maybe you can do things to remind her of that? She probably doesn’t feel good about herself, so show her what you love about her. Convince her of her beauty.” Cas is wise beyond his years. I guess childhood trauma will do that to a person, but I appreciate his wisdom because this is the type of advice I’m looking for.
“Take her lingerie shopping,” Xander adds.
Cas looks at him like he’s ridiculous, but honestly? It’s not a bad idea. She struggles with her body image, so this might be a good lesson in helping her love and accept her body. Plus, it’s a win for me, too, because I get to see her in said lingerie. Will I tell him that, though? No, so I just roll my eyes and move forward.
“Yeah, sure. I’ll get right on that one, Xander. Moving on. She also wants to start taking more risks and finding hobbies that she loves. Any ideas on that?”
This time, it’s Xander who has the good ideas. “Well, you both love to read, so maybe you should do something like that? Honestly though, I think you might have to ask her what she wants, and then I think the ideas will come to you.”
