“No.”
His jaw ticks. Then he steps back just enough. “I’m not sure that’s appropriate, then, Bro.”
“I owe you an explanation. Just give me a few minutes.”
“Cile will be back in ten. You’ve got that long.”
I step inside. The house smells like a Christmas tree. The photos on the wall make my chest tighten. I’ve been a part of most of them—family vacations, birthdays, holidays. And now I’m standing here like an outsider.
“I fucked up,” I start. “With her. With Beckett. With you.”
Blake’s jaw tightens, but he doesn’t flinch. “You think I give a damn that you slept with my sister? We’re not kids. What I care about is you stringing her along and blindsiding her with paperwork.”
“I withdrew it this morning,” I tell him.
Blake doesn’t soften. “Doesn’t change what you did. I watched her walk around, gutted, these past weeks. She deserved your honesty, not legal maneuvering. So whatever comes next? You’d better make sure it’s about her and Beckett, not about you covering your own ass.”
I nod once, the weight of it settling. “I hear you.”
The words are flimsy, but they’re the only truth I’ve got left.
One brow lifts, but he doesn’t pull any punches. “You know I'm not an idiot, right? I figured it out when your truck was at her house and your boots were in her foyer. So, why are you here?”
“I wanted to talk to you myself. About everything.”
He rubs a hand over his face, exhaling sharply. Then he raises his eyebrows, like he's telling me to go for it. Heisn't doing anything to make it any easier, which I expected, and in a weird way, I appreciate.
"I don't really care to talk about my sister's sex life. I will get involved when someone treats her badly. You used to be my best friend. Feels like I barely know you now."
“I stayed away for years because I was ashamed. Wanting her meant losing you. And you’re my brother. By being a shitbag, I lost both of you.”
His arms stay folded, but his eyes flicker. “She’s a grown woman. She can make her own decisions, Warren. Don't blame this on me. You chose to do all of it half-ass.”
My chest tightens. “I know. And I hate that I fucked all of this up.”
He shakes his head. “She deserves a man who shows up. That's all I care about. So either be that man or walk away.”
I swallow hard, throat raw. “I love her. I love Beckett.”
For the first time, his jaw eases, just slightly. “Then stop being a pussy about it and do something. She doesn’t need your guilt. She needs your spine. Fucking be a man.”
We stand there a beat, silence heavy between us.
“I know.” My throat tightens. “I’m going to make it right.”
He studies me, long and hard, like he’s weighing whether he can believe it. “You don’t have to prove anything to me. But she deserves that.”
Not guilty, not innocent. Just conditional.
“I will,” I say quietly.
Blake nods once, clipped. “Good. Because I’ll back her before I ever back you. Don’t make me choose.”
He’s given me both a boundary and a way through. Now it’s on me.
The elementary schoolparking lot is jammed, parents circling like vultures for an open space. I end up half on the grass, straighten my tie in the rearview, and fight the insecurity creeping up.
Inside, the auditorium slams into me like a wall.