Falling for My Brother's Best Friend

Chapter two

Riley.

The flight was long and tiring. As I finally touched down in London, my heavy suitcase felt even heavier, a reflection of the weight in my heart.

As I stand in the plane's aisle waiting for everyone to disembark, I take my phone from my pocket, switch off airplane mode, and sigh in frustration.

Liam has called me over fifty times. Why can’t he get the hint that I don’t want to speak? To him?

There is nothing more to say. I have cleared everything up, made my decision, and I won’t change it—neither for him nor anyone else.

My life is my own, and I deserve so much better than this than him; as everyone says, once a cheater, always a cheater.

The line begins to move just as my phone rings again; this time, it’s my brother, Jackson.

For the first time in eight hours, a smile spreads across my face. Without hesitation, I slide my finger across the screen and answer.

“Rye,” he says, his voice as loving as it always is towards me.

“Hi Jack,” I respond as I walk through the door leading into the tunnel.

"I see that you answered my call, so I’m guessing you have landed."

I let out a small laugh. “Yes, I have landed and am in one piece.”

“Well, good, because I’ve been waiting outside this airport for the last five hours.”

He knew it would take me more than five hours to get here, but that’s my big brother—always striving to be on time to pick me up, even when I don’t ask him to. That’s why I love him. He always makes sure I’m taken care of, even though I’m twenty-seven years old and can look after myself.

“You didn’t need to pick me up, Jack. I could have taken an Uber or something to Mom's.”

He chuckles, "You do realize it's one in the morning, which means Mom and Dad are asleep. Besides, I don't mind coming to get you."

I probably should have booked a hotel in Chicago and left the next day, but I didn’t want to stay any longer. However, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if I stayed at his place for the night.

“Hello earth to Riley”

“Huh yeah sorry I’m still here”

The line is silent for a moment before he finally says what I was hoping he wouldn’t: “What’s going on with you, Rye?”

I can never hide anything from him; we are so in tune that I'm sure he would know something was wrong before I even reached out to him. But what should I tell him?

“Can we discuss this when we reach your house? It's not urgent right now.”

I hear him take a deep breath before blowing it down the speaker. “Fine, but don’t lie to me about it when I ask again. I’ll be holding you to your word when we get there.”

With a roll of my eyes, I make my way to the exit. "Okay, big brother, always so bossy. You know, I thought I would be used to it by now, but nope."

I hear a low chuckle before the line goes dead. Then I understand why: right outside the doors is his black Nissan, waiting patiently for me. Leaning against the trunk is my brother, standing tall at 6 feet 2 inches.

Once my eyes meet him, all my sadness fades away, and a surge of happiness rushes in, even if just for a moment. Letting go of my troubles, I instinctively run towards him. His arms are open wide, and I crash into his strong embrace, burying my face in his chest and closing my eyes.

“Rye, it's wonderful to have you back home. We've missed you more than you realize.”

They have no idea how much I’ve missed them too. Last year, I couldn’t come because Liam was ill, and I didn’t want to leave him alone. Now, I feel like a complete jerk because I worry they might think I abandoned them.

No, Riley, stop it. You're being foolish. Inhaling deeply, I step out of his embrace and smile up at him. "I forgot how cold it is in London."

He laughs while placing his arm around my shoulders, "Yep, good old London; it never changes. Every November, the weather will give you the flu."

I groan loudly as he opens the passenger side door for me to step inside. "Don’t worry, I will make your favorite when we get home; it will warm you right up.”

Excitement blooms in my chest as he discusses our tradition during November and December: hot chocolate made with hot milk, cocoa powder, topped off with whipped cream, marshmallows, and chocolate sprinkles.

The way to my heart is through my favorite drink, and it always will be. The only time I get to enjoy it is when I visit here. He never liked it, so I never brought it in chicago. To say I've missed this enjoyable drink would be an understatement.

I close my door and watch as he picks up my suitcase, which I left at the airport entrance. He places it in the back of the car, climbs inside, starts the engine, and turns the heater up to full before driving away.

I didn't realize how cold I was until I started to shiver from the heat.

“how's mom and dad been”

He glances at me and then at the road. "Mom is fine, and Dad..."

“Dad, what?” I demand, worry evident in my tone.

He lets out a sigh as he takes a right turn. "He was trying to get the decorations from the attic when he missed a step on the ladder and fell.”

“WHAT!!! Is he okay”

Grabbing my hand, he draws a circle to soothe me. "Calm down, Ryan, he's okay; it's just a broken arm. He'll get the cast off in about three weeks.”

With my free left hand, I rub my forehead in worry. My dad is the kind of person who never asks for help, even when he really needs it. He has broken things and cut himself while working on projects; he can be quite clumsy. Despite his age, he is a proud man who insists on doing things himself.

“He is very stubborn,” I mutter as I remind myself to give him a lecture tomorrow; I don’t want him in a hospital bed.

“Where do you think you get it from”

I slapped his arm and said, “I am not stubborn.”

He raises a brow at me. "Oh no, why aren't you telling me the secret you're so desperate to hide from me?"

My good mood has vanished; the reminder has returned me to the sadness I felt before seeing Jackson.

Lowering my head, I adjust the hem of my top and remain silent, thankfully Jackson doesn’t say anything else for the rest of the ride.

Once we arrive at his home, I grab my case before he can and wait for him to open the door. Without me having to ask, he tells me that I have the room upstairs and to the right.

Maintaining my silence, I make my way inside. Once I enter, I set the case down by the door before locking it and sliding down the frame. Finally, the weight of the situation catches up to me. I release a cry that I had wanted to express back in Chicago, and I instinctively cover my mouth with my hand.

It's raw and ungly. I didn’t want to cry; I wanted to be happy and forget about everything. However, I know that if I'm going to talk to Jackson about this, I need to get everything off my chest first.

Hugging my legs tightly, I bury my face in my knees and let the tears fall freely.

I don't know how long it's been, but the weight I feel on my shoulders seems to be lifting little by little.

A knock on the door behind me startles me. Standing quickly, I wipe my eyes before I look in the mirror.

Oh god, I can't open the door like this. My eyes and nose are red, and my lip still trembles with the threat of crying again.

Damn you, Liam Reed! Look what you've done to me.

I’ve decided the façade is over, so I reach for the lock and slowly open the door. But instead of Jackson, as I had expected, it's Stacy—his wife—who stands before me.

She greets me with a gentle smile. “Are you okay, honey?”

She and my brother have been married for ten years now, and they have two beautiful kids together. Ever since I met her, I've seen how deeply in love they are. We have always gotten along, even when we disagree on certain things; we remain respectful and don’t let it affect our relationship. She's like the sister I never had, and she has always offered great advice, no matter the topic.

Biting my lower lip, I nod my head before turning around and flopping down on the bed. I lean my elbow on my knee and place my head in my hand. "Liam cheated on me with his assistant."

She quietly enters and closes the door, shuffling her feet along the cream carpet before sitting down next to me and placing her hand on my shoulder.

“he was never good enough for you rye I could tell he was a dirtbag from the get-go but you were so happy and I didn’t want to ruin that for you”

It seemed that I was the only one who was blind. I couldn’t see anything about that man; I had love goggles on. I'm so stupid.

Covering my eyes, I start to cry again. "What do I do now? After Christmas, there’s nowhere to go, and I don’t want to burden my parents. I’m an adult; I shouldn’t be bringing them into my mess."

Her warm hands grasp my wrists and gently pull them away from my face. Then she cups my face in her hands and says, "You always have a place to stay. you're my sister and I will help you through this. The first thing we need to do is call a lawyer and request divorce papers. From there, we'll figure out the next steps. You won’t let this man make you cry anymore. You are beautiful and deserve so much more than this."

I laugh and say, "Yeah right! If I were so beautiful, he would have never gone somewhere else for his pleasure."

“like I said, dirtbag now,” She says, getting up from the bed, "Wipe your eyes, get into something more comfortable, and I will be waiting downstairs for you."

I would prefer to be alone right now, but I’m a guest in their home, and I don’t want to be disrespectful, even though they are my family. So, I do as she says and head back into the bathroom. I look in the mirror one more time, grab a washcloth, rinse it under warm water, and then press it against my face.

As I prepare to grab my toothbrush and a pair of fluffy pajamas, I suddenly hear...“I’m going to f*****g kill him”

"Great," she told him. "At least I don’t have to explain everything now."

“Shhh,” she says. “Keep it down; the kids are asleep.”

I hear a sigh, and I can imagine Stacy rubbing my brother's shoulders to help calm him down. "She’s okay, baby, but we need to be here for her and not lose our composure over some low-life. He isn’t worth it. She will find a way to get her revenge."

Revenge? I'm not the kind of girl who seeks it; I'm too soft for that.

It goes quiet after that, so I finish what I started and head downstairs into the living room, where I find my sister-in-law and brother sitting together with three mugs on the coffee table.

He reaches for the mug with the reindeer, its nose glowing red like Rudolph's. As I take the cup from his hands, I place it by my nose and take a big sniff, closing my eyes in satisfaction. I whisper, “Thank you.”

“Come take a seat, Riley,” he said, tapping the spot next to him.

"I don’t like that I can't do anything about this. I can't go and smash his teeth down his throat because my wife won't let me. He hurt you, Rye—my little sister—and it kills me to have to sit back and do nothing." He lets out a sigh when he sees the sadness on my face.

Grabbing my hand, he says, “But I hope you have somewhere to stay until you are back on your feet. I hope that you will be staying in London and not going back to Chicago.”

Of course, I'm not going back. I have nothing there for me anymore; I never did. It was all his, not mine. I give him a head shake as I take a sip of my drink.

He nods and pats the back of my hand. "Good, I'm glad to hear it because six years of not teasing you everyday has been killing me."

He always makes me laugh. It's nice to know I have them by my side through all of this.

“Just don't tell Mom and Dad just yet. I'm not ready for them, and you know how Mom is; she'll say, 'I told you so.'”

She tried to tell me before my wedding that she had a bad feeling. I interpreted it as her being a protective mother since my dad never mentioned anything.

I never got mad at her because that’s what parents are like, right? They just want to keep their kids safe and happy, so I reassured her that everything was fine.

She is an amazing mother, but sometimes she is too open with her opinions.

Although I would love to go to bed and sleep off the nightmare of a day I've had, it would be rude to do so. Instead, I decide to catch up with them for a while. I learn that my niece Mia, who is four years old, has a role as Mary in her Christmas school play.

She is super excited and carrying around her dolly claiming it's her baby Jesus she’s so damn cute and I can't wait to see them when they wake up they mean the world to me.She is super excited and carrying her dolly, claiming it's her baby Jesus. She's so cute, and I can't wait to see them when they wake up. They mean the world to me.

I spoil them a little too much whenever I visit but Jackson and Stacey dont seem to mind.

The smile I gave while speaking about them was genuine; I love my niece and nephew, and I've missed them just as much. ive also learned that Nathan, who is six, is going to earn his yellow belt in judo next week.

I'm so proud to be an auntie to these two kids, which is why I go to my room with a wide smile on my face.

Climbing into bed and turning off the bedside lamp, I snuggle down into the blanket and close my eyes, reminding myself that.

Stacey was right; I shouldn’t cry over someone who wouldn’t cry for me. From now on, I'm going to be strong because that’s all I can do.