More Than Friends (Kingsley #4) (30 page)

“
So
,
” Evan said, steering his SUV out of the parking lot of The Slip and onto the street
.“
You know the stripper, huh
?
” Smirking, he leaned over to dig his elbow into Michae
l’
s side. In the backseat, Drew and Xander laughed, while Adam shook his head in disapproval.

“
Yeah, I know her
,
” Michael grumbled.

“
Yeah, I bet you do
,
” Evan answered, laughing
.“
Ow
!
” he exclaimed, jerking the wheel as Michael punched him in the arm.

“I’
d rather not have to explain to your mother why you two idiots wrecked the car, if you do
n’
t mind
,
” Adam said from the backseat
.“
Are you sure you want to marry into this bunch
?
” he asked, turning to Xander.

Xander laughed again
.“
I would
n’
t miss it
,
” he said
.“
Seriously, you guys, thanks for doing this with me
.
”

“
No need for thanks, son
,
” Adam answered, bumping shoulders with his soon-to-be son-in-law
.“
We wanted to welcome you into the family
.
”

“
Well, we tried to
,
” Evan added
,“
until Michael came and scared away the tits
.
”

“
Wanna get punched
?
” Michael grouched, curling his lip
.“
Come on, man, have a little respect. Sh
e’
s somebod
y’
s daughter, somebod
y’
s sister
.
”

“
Somebod
y’
s hot piece o
f
– ow, damn you
!
”

Evan glared across the seat at Michael, who had punched him agai
n
– harder this tim
e
– but his eyes gleamed with amusement, and even as Michael glared back, he could feel the tremble of a smile threatening at the corners of his mouth
.“
Well, knock it off about her
,
” he said warningly.

“
My brother, the man with the double life
,
” Evan teased, not letting up. He grinned as Michael sighed in frustration, following Dre
w’
s instructions to their next location
.“
Are
n’
t you doin
g
– ahe
m
– I mean, dating Renee now? Cas
s’
s sister
?
”

“
Maybe
.
” Michael shot a glare into the backseat at Drew, who apparently could
n’
t keep his mouth shut. He and Renee had talked a few times over the past weeks about going public with their dating, but they had wanted to keep things low key at first, to make sure the transition would be a smooth one without any outside interference. Drew was the only person Michael had talked to about it, and that had only been after the first time h
e’
d kissed Renee.

“
Wait, what
?
” Leaning forward, Xander reached out to rest a hand on Michae
l’
s shoulder
.“
Yo
u’
re dating who
?
”

“
Renee
,
” Evan answered, still smiling widely. Drew reached forward and tapped Eva
n’
s right shoulder, muttering a quiet direction; Evan took the next turn and pulled into the parking lot of a rowdy sports bar
.“
I saw them together the other night at Alfons
o’
s when I was there wit
h
… one of the tea
m’
s girls
.
”

“
The tea
m’
s girls?
!
” The exclamation was in double stereo, with even Xander joining in as Adam, Michael, and Drew all shouted in surprise.

“
What the hell, man
?
” Drew went on, slapping Evan in the back of the head
.“
The tea
m’
s girls? What, you share them like class notes or what
?
”

Adam stared, shaking his head slowly
.“
If tha
t’
s true,
I’
m disappointed, Evan
,
” he said quietly. He turned to open his door and stepped out into the night, grumbling quietly to himself. Before he closed the door, he turned back to shake his head again at his youngest son
.“
You know, Ev
,
” he said
,“
I really thought your mother and I had done a better job than that. And you know what happens to those girls, how they get treated. You know what happened with your sister an
d
–“ he broke off, sighing disgustedly
.“
I just thought yo
u’
d do better than that
.
” And with that, he closed the door and walked away from the car.

On the other side of the backseat, Drew sighed
.“I’
ll go after him. W
e’
ll meet you guys in there
.
”

“I’
m gonna go on, too
,
” Xander said, obviously uncomfortable with the tension
,“
and make sure the
y’
ve got enough space set out for all of us. Give you guys time to work things out. And Mac and the other guys just got here, s
o
… yeah
.
” Sliding out of the car, Xander closed the door with a quiet thump, shoved his hands into his pockets, and headed over to the rest of their party, who was climbing out of Ma
c’
s SUV.

Alone together, Michael and Evan stared across the parking lot, watching Adam and Drew talktogether at the edge of the building
.“
Sorry, dude
,
” Evan said, nudging Michael with a pointed elbow.

“
You need to learn when to shut up
.
” Still angry, Michael held himself away from his brother, the tension of their argument keeping his muscles tight and his blood singing.

The overhead light dimmed and then turned off, the shadows falling heavily on the dark stubble that covered Eva
n’
s jaw. He scraped a hand over his face, sighing, and finally dropped his head back against the seat
.“
Fine. Fair enough. Look, Michael, i
t’
s not what you think though. It wa
s
–“

“
No, you look
,
” Michael broke in, glaring across the seat at his brother, the young boy who had once looked up to him, who was now showing a side Michael did
n’
t think he could reconcile
.“
I do
n’
t know what the hel
l’
s wrong with you, but stay the hell out of The Slip, Evan. And stop screwing the tea
m’
s girls like you own them. God, I know college kids do some dumb shit, but really
?
”

“
Tell me what you would do if you had hot chicks throwing themselves at
you
all the time, then
,
” Evan retorted
.“
Come on, Mr. Righteous, tell me how to be a goody two shoes like you. Tell me how yo
u’
ll keep being the sensitive Mr. Perfect when they shake their asses all over you and whisper shit in your ears and they tell you all they want in the world at any given moment is to suck you
r
–“

Clenching his hands into fists, Michael twisted away from his brother, his chest heaving with frustrated breaths
.“
Jesus Christ, yo
u’
re a pig," he spat
.“
How the hell do we have the same parents?
!
” Evan laughed bitterly and Michael clenched his hands tighter, digging the edges of his fingernails into his palms, fighting the urge to turn around in the seat and punch his little brother in the mouth
.“
You know what
?
” he said instead, opening the door and stepping out of the car
.“I’
m not doing this right now. You want to be some kind of shit womanizer? Go ahead
.
”

“
Right. At least the
y’
re coming toward me, not running in the other direction
.
”

Turning back, Michael looked into the car, stared into the belligerent eyes of the same young man who had walked close to him as they approached their mothe
r’
s hospital room, the same young man who had once worshiped Michael. He took in the arrogant tilt of the chin, the stiff set of his shoulders, the slight tremble of rage that ran through the fingers gripping the steering wheel. He licked his lips, biting back the harsh words he wanted to say, the muscles in his neck and shoulders straining with violence. The staredown could
n’
t have lasted more than a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity to Michae
l
– an eternity during which he lost a valued friend, a brother. His chest was aching, straining to contain a breath he had
n’
t realized he was still holding, and he could hear his blood rushing in his ears, could feel it racing just beneath his skin.

When he turned away, he heard Evan sigh, heard him take a breath, did
n’
t care
.“
Mik
e
–“ Evan started. He never finished though; Michael slammed the door with a resounding clap that drew the attention of everyone in the parking lot, turned, and walked away.

He was halfway across the parking lot before he realized what he was doing, and he stopped in a pool of light under a street lamp at the edge of the property. The light flickered slightly as a bird flew under the lamp and Michael stopped walking, his chest still heaving with angry breaths, his shoulders beginning to ache with tension. He leaned against the light pole, facing the street, and dropped his head back against the wood. Below the street light, moths flew in ragged circles, crazily weaving closer and then farther away from the dangerous warmth of the light, and Michael thought of Evan, thought of Sherry and The Slip. Thought of Renee, and what his brother had said about women running away from him.

“
You okay
?
”

Michael turned around slowly, glad his temper had had time to cool. Evan stood behind him, his arms at his sides, his hands in his pockets
.“
Yeah
I’
m alright
,
” Michael said
.“
But yo
u’
re a dick
.
”

Evan lowered his face, frowning
.“
I know
,
” he answered, shrugging
.“I’
m sorry.
I’
m jus
t
… stressed. But i
t’
s not your fault, and I went too far. So
I’
m sorry
.
”

“
You know Da
d’
s gonna call us out about it, right? Arguing in front of everybody
?
”

“I’
ll shoulder it
,
” Evan said
.“
It was my fault anyway. Jus
t
… school stuff got me messed up right now. End of the football season, I guess
.
” He shrugged again, dragging his hand from his pocket and offering it to Michael
.“
Bros
?
”

Sighing, Michael took his brothe
r’
s hand and gave it a squeeze, stepping forward to clap Evan on the back with his other hand
.“
Alright, then. Bros
.
”

They walked back to the sports bar together, talking quietly, mending the crack that had opened briefly between them, and as they stepped up to the door, they found Drew waiting outside
.“
You guys done
?
” he asked, grinning
.“
I
t’
s bullshit that it was my turn to pick and Dad still made me sit out here and watch for you so he could play host inside with Xander and his boys
.
”

Michael looked at Evan, found Evan looking back at him, the ghost of a smile on his lips
.“
Yeah, w
e’
re good. Sorry, dude
.
”

“
Good. But now yo
u’
ve killed my buzz and made me waste my beer money, you owe me. So pony up, boys
,
” Drew said, holding his hands out to his brothers, palms-up
.“
Come on
,
” he added, with a nod to Evan
.“
I know you got a pocketful of ones, and you owe me five o
f‘
em. Pay up
.
”

Exchanging grins, Michael and Evan both pulled their wallets from their pockets. True to Dre
w’
s guess, Eva
n’
s wallet was stuffed with single dollar bills, while Michael pulled a folded five dollar bill from the pocket of his wallet
.“
I knew I was gonna need this
,
” he said, laughing
.“
I
t’
s the same one you had to pay me after losing our last bet
.
”

“
I still say that was a dude in that dress
,
” Drew answered
.“
Come on, w
e’
re down to forty minutes left, and ther
e’
s a hockey game
.
”

The three Kingsley boys walked into the bar together and it did
n’
t take long for Michael to notice the way women took notice of them. They were an imposing trio, with Dre
w’
s confident carriage as a police officer and Eva
n’
s bulky football muscles flanking Michae
l’
s narrower, more chiseled body. It did
n’
t take Evan long to notice the women, either, and by the time Michael and Drew got to the table Xande
r’
s party was seated at, Evan had veered off to flirt with anyone that would flirt back.

“
Alright
?
” Adam asked quietly, sliding a beer across the table to Michael.

“
Yeah, Dad. W
e’
re alright
.
” It had
n’
t been long since h
e’
d had a drink, but it still felt good to close his hand around the icy cold glass. The beer was flowing, the food was good, and the hockey game was energetic; so Michael settled in to celebrate Xande
r’
s upcoming wedding, getting to know his friends, joking about Xande
r’
s career as a professional wrestler, and trying not to obsess over what Evan had said earlier.

Eventually, a cheer went up around the table as the Chicago Blackhawks scored a goal that tied their game againstthe Buffalo Sabres, and beer foam spilled down Michae
l’
s wrist as he held his glass up to click against Dre
w’
s bottle beer. He might not have noticed the change in Dre
w’
s expression if he had
n’
t been looking at him just then, and perhaps the moment would have passed, but he
was
looking, and he
did
notice.

Forgetting the timeclock and the last few seconds of the game, Michael arched an eyebrow and cocked his head
.“
Wha
t’
s up? You look like yo
u’
ve see
n
…
a
… ghos
t
…” His voice trailed away as he turned to follow the line of his brothe
r’
s sight; he noticed her before she even stood up, the swell of her belly jutting out beneath the tray she carried in her hands
.“
Oh my God, this is
not
my night
,
” he muttered.

“
Is tha
t
– dude, Michael, I swear I did
n’
t know she worked here.
I’
ve never seen her here and
I’
m here all the time, man, I swear
.
”

Still watching as Nicolette turned and made her way back to the kitchen, Michael sipped his beer. Seeing her agai
n
– for the second time in so many week
s
– had sent a jolt of awareness up his spine that careened through his bloodstream like a drug. Even after she disappeared through the doors to the kitchen, he could
n’
t tear his eyes away from the place where h
e’
d last seen her, could
n’
t blink enough times to erase the image of her pregnancy from his mind.

“
Michael
?
” Drew nudged his shoulder lightly, drawing his attention but not his eyes
.“
That was her, right
?
”

“
It was her
,
” Michael answered. There was another shout around the table as the Blackhawks scored again, a goal that would win them the game. He did
n’
t care though, his voice had gone rough suddenly and his throat had tightened like a vice around his airways as he had watched her walk away; he cleared his throat and dragged his eyes way from the swinging door she had disappeared behind
.“
Yeah
,
” he said
.“
It was her
.
”

“
But sh
e’s
–“

“
I can tell
,
” Michael growled
.“
And I knew, anyway. I saw her recently. At the mall
.
” His mind was a tangle of words and feelings, and he could
n’
t seem to catch one to hold onto, so he let the words come out in fits and starts, leaning close so that he could be heard over the roar of hockey fans in the sports bar
.“
With Renee. We were shoppin
g
– for this, my shirt
.
” He plucked at his shirt in illustration, watched Dre
w’
s eyes shoot upward, and went on
.“
She was coming out of a store. A maternity store. She saw me, we talked. About her letter
.
”

“
Letter? What letter? You were with Renee? Ho
w’
d she react to running into Nicolette
?
” Drew had leaned close, his elbows braced on the edge of the table as he listened. His eyebrows had come down too, furrowing together over narrowed eyes.

“
Come on
.
” Michael stood up, leaned across the table to speak into his fathe
r’
s ear
.“
I
t’
s too loud in here, and i
t’
s almost time to go
,
” he said
.“
Drew and I are headed out to warm up the cars; w
e’
ll meet everyone out there
.
”

Adam nodded, leaning over to ask Mac for the keys to their second SUV. Michael straightened, waiting, and once he had the keys he turned to Drew
.“
Find Evan and get his keys,
I’
ll meet you at the cars
,
” he said. Walking through the bar felt like navigating a minefield, with Michael peering over every head, peeking back over his shoulder to see if Nicolette had come back from the kitchen. By the time he got to the door, h
e’
d been bumped into, narrowly escaped having a beer spilled down his shirt, and almost ploughed over a waitress as she made her way through the crowd.

She was standing there, waiting next to the table beside the door; Michael froze in place as he saw her, unsure of what to do. He had meant what h
e’
d said to Renee, had meant it when h
e’
d told her that Nicolette was his past. He had meant every word, when h
e’
d said them.

But now, standing in front of her, the chaos of the bar seemed to fade away, the noise of the crowd disappeared, and all he saw was her blonde hair gleaming as it poured down her back, the delicate length of her wrist as she stroked the swollen curve of her unborn child. He had meant it when he had placed his marriage to Nicolette in the past and opened his heart to Rene
e
…

But that did
n’
t stop it from hurting to see her, standing there on feet that were probably aching, stroking a belly that was probably terribly uncomfortable, with a glow in her face that had nothing to do with him
.“
I think
I’
m cursed
,
” he said, taking her elbow and steering her gently outside.

“
I saw Drew just now
,
” she answered, looking up at him as she fell into step beside him
.“
He said he was headed out to meet you at your cars. Bachelor party, huh
?
”