GladYouCame (23 page)

Dozens of students poured out of Whiskey Cove High School.
Their loud chatter reached all the way across the street to where Dade leaned
against an aging maple tree. A few small groups huddled around bundles of
paperwork despite the chilly winter air. From the images splashed across the
front of the pamphlets, the juniors had just gotten their ordering information
for class rings.

Yet another teenage rite of passage Dade had missed out on.
Food, clothing and medicine had been more important for him and his brothers.
Trivial things such as rings, proms and football game hadn’t been a part of
Dade’s high school experience. But he’d sure as hell made certain his brothers
had experienced theirs.

The crowd thinned and teachers made their way out of the
school. One teacher in particular caught his interest and Dade straightened.
Dark hair, worn long in the front so it scooped over one side of his face,
strong cheekbones and jaw. Shocking green eyes.

No denying the Ellingson in him.

Dade crossed the street, emotion thick in his throat as he
approached. “Jasper.”

Confusion gave way to surprise and curiosity. All in a
single heartbeat. “Dade. Wow. It’s been a while.” To Dade’s shock, Jasper
pulled him into a tight hug. Tension bled from Dade’s shoulders, relief washing
over him as he wrapped his arms around Jasper. Instead of immediately releasing
him, Jasper clutched tighter. Dade had always been able to retain mastery of
his emotions during stressful times. To not let them rule him. But he felt that
hold crack wider and wider the longer Jasper hugged him.

A pretty blonde approached as they broke apart. “If this is
a bad time…”

“No. Not in the least.” Jasper released Dade and slipped his
arm around the woman’s shoulders, pulling her into a tight embrace before
brushing a kiss against her forehead. “Diana, this is my older brother, Dade.
My fiancée, Diana Carter. She’s head of the music program. Has a voice like an
angel.”

“Says the man who can’t carry a tune to save his life.”

“Hey, you teach them to sing. I teach them how to blow shit
up through chemistry.”

Dade wasn’t surprised to hear Jasper was settling down. He
was glad to hear that their screwed up family dynamic hadn’t swayed Jasper into
swearing off love and marriage. Maybe Dade had done something right after all.
“Congratulations.”

“Thank you. Jasper goes on about you all the time.”

All the time? Odd. Dade had always assumed his brothers had
blocked out the memory of him. The lack of correspondence sure seemed to
indicate that fact. “Good things, I hope.”

“Of course.” She tilted her heart-shaped face toward Jasper,
tugging on the collar of his shirt to pull him closer. “I should really get to
Steve’s office. He’s trying to cut the music budget to fund the football team.”

“If there’s anyone who can convince him otherwise, it’s
you.” Jasper touched the end of her nose. The love the couple shared was
obvious even to the most jaded observer.

Dade knew when to take a step back. Their family reunion
could wait. “I’m going to head out…”

“No, it’s fine. You two catch up. I insist. I know you
probably had a lot to talk about.” She rolled forward on her toes, kissing
Jasper. “Meet you at the house for dinner around seven?”

Jasper watched her go for a moment, clearly in love. His
eyes twinkled with delight as he faced Dade again and pointed down a path that
arced toward the parking lot. “How have you been?”

“Good.” Dade fell into step beside Jasper. “You seem to have
made a good life for yourself here. Good career. Fiancée. Suppose you have the
house, white picket fence and a dog.”

Jasper grunted. “Cats, actually. Three of them thanks to
Diana’s fascination with taking in strays. One of them is feral. Does his best
to tear up the room he’s kept in while we’re at work.” He nodded to a group of
girls. Giggling broke out as he lifted his hand in greeting. Clearly Jasper was
the object of a few schoolgirl crushes. “What about you?”

“No pets.”

“I mean family.”

“Only recently.” Dade shoved his hands into his pockets as a
gust of wind scattered dead leaves around their feet. “It’s why I’m here
actually. Got me thinking about you. Crane. Gareth. Mom and Dad. I probably
could have done this over the phone. We’re having a big banquet back home right
after the new year. Inviting family to come celebrate. Since you’re—”

“Banquet? Celebrate?” Jasper’s eyes narrowed, his expression
playful. “Are you getting married?”

“That’s not what this is. We—a few good friends and I—are
opening a new business in Gatlin Falls. Whole town is invited to show off the
place. Considering the fact one of the reasons I’m in on this is you—the three
of you—I thought you should be there.”

Jasper appeared to be taken aback. “Us?”

Suddenly Dade regretted his decision to drive clear across
the country and catch a flight to Hawaii from Sea-Tac. He should have just
taken the flight to Maui with Tony and Genevieve and left well enough alone.
“You don’t have to come. I just thought…really not sure what I thought. It was
good to see you.” Dade spun on his heel, a hollowness taking up residence in
the pit of his stomach again. He’d been a fool to think he was capable of this
whole family dynamic. To think he could pull off his desire for a wife and
husband.

“Dade, wait. I’d—we’d love to come. If Diana is invited
too.” Expectation shone in Jasper’s gaze. Dade recognized the eagerness from
when Jasper had been a little boy trying to find his way through the world one
experiment at a time. Back then, Dade had known Jasper was on course for a
career that was based in science. Nice to know he was right about something.

“Of course. Nothing fancy or anything. Just a ribbon cutting
ceremony.”

They fell quiet. Lots of broken bridges and bloody wounds to
mend. And Dade wasn’t sure where to begin. Wasn’t sure he should have started
in the first place.

“Want some coffee? There’s a shop around the corner.”

Dade nodded, thankful his brother had some idea of what to
make of this mess. “Sounds good.”

As they walked, the small town atmosphere of Whiskey Cove
reminded Dade of what he had back home. What his brothers had found was so
eerily similar to what he had in the mountains of Virginia. Odd they’d needed a
whole continent between them in order to find it.

Ten minutes later they headed to a small café table tucked
in the corner of the seating area at a combination coffee house and bookstore
appropriately named Stacks. Rows of bookcases lined the perimeter of the store,
while a staircase lead to a second floor filled with more books. Customers were
free to roam around with their coffee in hand, or take their selection to go.
Patrick would appreciate what the owner had done to create such a warm and
inviting atmosphere.

“This is a nice place.”

Jasper grinned as he sat. “Gareth would like to know you
approve.”

“This is Gareth’s store?” Dade’s gaze swept the shop again,
this time looking with a different perspective. If Gareth really was the owner,
he obviously cared for what he’d made. Pride swelled through Dade.

Jasper waved to someone behind Dade, signaling to come
closer. Dade turned, a tight fist clutching his heart again as he spotted two
men headed their way. More Ellingson heritage slapped Dade in the face. Though
he hadn’t seen them in years, it was easy for him to tell them apart.

Of course, the collection of ink ribboning down both of
Crane’s arms made him easy to pick out. Of the triplets, Crane had the boldest
personality. At fifteen, he’d come home from school complaining of a persistent
ache in his side. Upon further inspection, Dade had discovered a garage tattoo
gone wrong. Crane had always been the troublemaker. The one Dade had to bail
out of trouble more often than not. The five o’clock shadow and ripped jeans
indicated not much had changed.

Gareth was clean-shaven and as well put together as Dade
remember. He was also the only brother who wore glasses. The store’s logo was
blazed across his pale blue shirt, further labeling him as the owner of the
business. No surprise Gareth had made books his life. He’d spent his teenage
years hunkered between the stacks in the library.

The difference between Crane and his brothers was night and
day.

Some things never changed.

“Crane’s repair shop is around the corner, so I thought this
would be a good time for a little family reunion. I messaged them on our way
over. Thought you’d like to see them too. Hope that’s all right.”

As Crane flipped a chair around and straddled the seat,
Gareth placed four coffee mugs in the center of the table and then sat in the
last open chair. He gave everyone a mug before sipping his.

Just like Patrick.

Dade had hoped to face each of his brothers on his own
terms. One at a time would have been better. But now he didn’t have a choice.
At least they were in public. They could only yell at him so much. “You guys
have done well for yourselves.”

“Thanks to you,” Gareth stated.

Dade looked toward each of his brothers, wondering what kind
of alternate universe he’d been transported to. “I did things wrong everywhere
it was possible to screw up. No reason to thank me. The fact you guys didn’t
turn into raving lunatics is a miracle.”

Jasper stirred three packets of sugar into his coffee. He
sipped carefully, testing the temperature. “You did as good of a job as anyone
could have asked for.”

“I could have done better.” A fact that gnawed at his soul
almost daily.

“Why?” Crane snorted. “You weren’t our parents. The fact you
took the responsibility you did was more than anyone expected. You could have just
as easily blamed mom and dad for the hardship as they tried to make ends meet.
You could have left the three of us on the steps of some orphanage. Left us to
fend for ourselves while you went about your life as though there was nothing
wrong at home.”

Dade stared in awe. Somewhere along the way, his
foul-mouthed, tattooed brother had grown up. “I couldn’t do that.”

“Exactly.” Gareth shrugged. “It’s not in your nature to
abandon someone you love because of your own needs. In fact, you usually put us
before yourself. You went above and beyond anything the three of us could have
hoped for, Dade. We all knew you didn’t feel the same, and thought it was best
to leave you alone until you could figure it out on your own.” Gareth thanked
the waitress as she refilled their mugs. “And I would be lying if I said the
three of us didn’t miss our older brother.”

The sense of family that had been missing for Dade grew and
flourished, weaving together to form a strong, unbreakable bond. He knew that
bond would grow even more. But he couldn’t ignore the fact he hadn’t traveled
all this way just to invite them to Gatlin Falls. If he was going to clear the
air, he needed to do it fully. His life was taking a new direction and he
wanted his brothers to be fully invested.

“There’s something else.” Dade played with his crumbled
napkin. “I wanted you three to know. Just so you aren’t caught off guard if you
come to Gatlin Falls. My life doesn’t revolve around a traditional relationship
model.”

Jasper smiled slyly. “If you’re dancing around the issue
you’ve got a guy, it’s not much of a surprise.”

Gareth swept away a scattering of crumbs. “We saw you and
Larry Murdock kissing in the living room when we were eight.”

Dade had been thirteen and confused as hell. So much so, he
still remembered that first kiss as though it had happened recently. Remembered
how it had felt to fumble through embarrassment and raging hormones. It had
felt as right as it had wrong. Like the jagged edge of a broken mirror. The
reflected image misaligned and forever changed. “So much for being discreet.”

“Impetuous young love. See it all the time in my students.”

“He was a horrible kisser. Think I was even more confused
afterward.”

“Dade, your relationship doesn’t matter to us. It never
fucking has.” There was the colorful language from Crane Dade was so used to.
“You could have just asked. You’re our big brother. We just want to see you
happy. You deserved that much after all the shit we put you through.”

“Yeah. I am happy.” Dade played with the rim of his mug.
“It’s not just a guy though.”

“Two guys. Greedy bastard.” Gareth slapped Dade on the back.
“You always did want all you could get out of life.”

“I did, didn’t I?” Dade chuckled. “But no. One of each. Guy
and a girl.”

“And that is how you live life to the fullest.” Crane
offered his hand. “Way to go, big bro.”

He’d expected his brothers to act much the same way as
Genevieve’s mother had. To rant and rage. To tell him he was some kind of
abomination because he was in love with two people. To ask why he’d shut them
out of his life when they’d shipped across the country to college. But they sat
here casually sharing coffee with him as though it was a weekly occurrence.

“Somehow, I think I always knew you would end up that way.”
Jasper finished off the last of his coffee. “Good for you. We should celebrate.
Get something stronger than coffee. Come on over to the house so I can change.
We’ll do dinner. Drinks. The works.”

They all slipped out of the shop, a formidable wall of
Ellingson muscle strolling casually down the sidewalk. A strong breeze blew
through the harbor, carrying the briny scent of sea life. A drastic difference
from Gatlin Falls’ sweet mountain air. And a reminder to Dade how far away from
home he was. A reminder this wasn’t his life. “I don’t want to get in the way.”

“Nonsense. You can’t tell me you flew all this way just to
invite us to your party. To tell us that you found people who accepted you.”

“Drove, actually. Going to catch a flight on Monday morning
to Hawaii. Vacation before Christmas gets here.”