“What are you doing?” I asked from the doorway.
Juliet dropped her phone, her eyes finding mine in the mirror before she turned around to face me.
“Jesus, Luke. Did you have to sneak up on me like that?”
Her playful smile was gone, replaced with irritation and defensiveness.
Right. That sparkle wasn’t for me. She hadn’t looked at me like that in a while now. A long while.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt. I was just looking for you to let you know that I’m heading to Reid’s. He needs to talk to me about something.”
“That’s fine. I have a yoga class later, so I probably won’t be here when you get back.”
I looked around the room, cataloging all of the equipment. A yoga mat was laid out on the floor. Blocks, straps, and bolster pillows were still out rather than put away where they usually were.
“Did you not just do a yoga class?”
“This was just a warm-up, Luke. It wasn’t a class, where there are other people and socialization. I can’t be locked up in the house all the time.”
Anger tried to flare through me, but I held it back. Getting into a fight wasn’t going to solve anything. I should know. It was all we had been doing for years, and it hadn’t solved a damn thing yet.
“Right. Well, I’m heading to Reid’s. I’ll see you later.”
I spun around and made my way downstairs—through themess of clothes, shoes, and empty boxes that I would need to clean up even though new shit just kept appearing anyway—without a backward glance. I wasn’t one to relish in other people’s problems, but I couldn’t help but feel a little grateful to have something to take my mind off my own troubles. Whatever my younger brother needed help with, I would be there for him.
The July sun glinted off the passing cars on my way to his house, staying high in the sky well into the evening. Claire’s SUV was parked in the driveway in front of Reid’s work truck. Wyatt’s truck was parked along the street outside his house.
That was a little surprising. Not so much that Wyatt was here. Wyatt was the oldest of us Wilders and was usually the brother to lean on when someone needed to talk things out, but if Reid’s issues were relationship-based, then Claire being here might make open conversation more difficult. We could always head to Harpoon’s if we needed to.
Harpoon’s Tavern was the best bar and restaurant in Calla Bay. Granted, there were only two, not counting Millie’s Pizza, which had a liquor license, but it was still my favorite place to throw some back when I had a chance.
I parked behind Wyatt and strolled up to the house, knock-and-walking my way in rather than waiting for the door to be answered. Wyatt and Reid both turned to look at the same time. Their resemblance was uncanny in the way they moved. Claire was sitting with Maeve at the small breakfast table.
“Hey, Luke,” Maeve said, everyone else chiming in after her in greeting.
“What’s going on? I didn’t realize everyone was going to be here. Where’s Jane?” I asked, looking around for my one-year-old niece.
“Josie’s watching her for a few hours,” Maeve said, referring to her mother.
Reid’s eyes shifted to Wyatt’s, the silence immediately putting me on edge.
“Maeve, do you want to come see the house plans that Reid and I have been working on?” Claire asked.
“Yup. Sure do,” Maeve replied quickly.
After a solid thirty seconds of watching Maeve struggle out of her seat, her eight-month-pregnant belly throwing off her equilibrium and center of gravity, waving away Claire’s hand to help her up, the two of them made their way down the hall to the master bedroom.
“You want a drink? I’ve got beer,” Reid asked me.
“No, I’m good.”
“Take the beer, brother,” Wyatt offered.
“Am I going to need one?” My brows quirked.
Reid’s lips flattened into a tight line. Wyatt scrubbed at the scruff on his face. A single nod from each of them told me whatever I was here for wasn’t anything good.
I grabbed the offered beer and sat on the couch. Reid pulled up a chair from his dining table and looked at Wyatt again.
