The Good Brother

by Nia Arthurs

  “Exactly.” Lauren grips Dad’s hand.

  “What do you think, Reece?” Dad leans in. “Are you happy?”

  She shrugs. “I guess.”

  “Here you go!” Dawn barrels back to our table. “Ice cream!”

  Logan glances at me. I return her stare. A silent message passes between us.

  Things just got complicated.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Logan

  “So Harry’s ex-lover moved to town. Why should we care again? We buried him last week. It’s not like she can get him back.” Tanya stocks the new bottles of shampoo we ordered in bulk from Europe on the shelf.

  I follow her as she strolls across the room to the cash register. “Yeah, but since then, she’s been coming over everyday trying to take over my job.”

  “And what exactly is your job?” Tanya arches an eyebrow. “I thought it was here at Curl Me Chic. Was I wrong?”

  I swat her hand down. “That’s the problem. I work hard everyday. I’m on my feet for hours. When I come home and want to unwind alone with a bottle of wine and a home-cooked meal, guess what I find?”

  “What?”

  “Lauren all up in my kitchen with a lasagna in the oven and the wine Harry bought for me open on the table. It’s like she’s taken over the house. Reece is spending all her time with Lauren and her grandfather. I never see her anymore.”

  “You know what you sound like?”

  “What?”

  Tanya wiggles her finger at me. “You remember the Proud Family on Disney Channel? There was this episode where the mom got jealous of the nanny because she was too perfect. Remember that?”

  “No I do not.” I fold my arms over my chest and look away. I do remember, but I’m not in the mood to give Tanya the victory.

  “I hate to break it to you, Logan, but you’re not Reece’s mother. You’re not even her aunt. It doesn’t matter how many years you spent babysitting her or helping Harry out when he needed it. On paper, you are just the hairdresser.”

  “Why do I keep you around?” I mumble. “You never make me feel better.”

  “Sorry.” She grabs a lollipop from the bucket of treats we keep for the kids and pops it into her mouth. “What about Ben?”

  “What about him?” I snap.

  “I thought you two were doing better since he agreed to take Harry’s room?”

  “Don’t even get me started, Tan.”

  “What? What’d he do?”

  “He takes his dad’s side. Every time I warn him that maybe, just maybe, leaving Reece in Lauren and Kurt’s care might not be a good idea, he shuts me down.”

  Tanya snorts. “What do you think they’ll do? Kidnap her?”

  I round the counter and lean over. “It could happen!”

  “Logan, you need to chill. Think about something else for a change. Like Anthony. What’s the news on his front? You two still texting?”

  “It’s more like he texts me and I answer a few days later.” I turn around as Tanya shoots me a death glare. “I’ve been busy.”

  “Busy with what?” She shrieks. “Competing with Reece’s biological family? Envying the joy that is coming home to a delicious meal and a kid that’s been tucked in for you? Anthony is a great guy. Stop doing this to yourself.”

  “Doing what?”

  Tanya grabs my shoulder, urging me to whirl around and face her. “Wasting energy on a family that you’ll never be a part of. It was bad enough back then, but particularly now that Harry’s gone and Anthony is interested in you.”

  “What do you want me to do, Tanya? Forget all about Harry? Pretend I don’t love Reece like she’s my own?”

  “But she’s not your own!”

  “I know that. Geez, don’t you think I know? But I can’t help how I feel. She’s important to me. And so was her father. So much has changed. I don’t want to lose Reece too.”

  Tanya looks at me and clucks her tongue. “Well, it looks like there’s only one solution.”

  “What’s that?”

  “You’ve got to marry Ben.”

  I laugh and then start choking mid-way when Tanya’s serious expression does not falter. I finally compose myself and drag in a deep gulp of air. “You’re crazy.”

  “That’s the only way you’ll have any legal right to call Reece your own. If you’re going to be this obsessive about it, you might as well go all the way.”

  “You’re insane.” My jaw drops. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

  “I’m right.” Tanya smugly lifts a shoulder.

  “If you wanted to shut me up, you should have just said so.” I grab the lollipop from her mouth and run like the wind.

  “Hey!” Tanya sprints after me.

  I skate into the office and slam the door shut before she can enter. Her fists pound against the door with such force it shudders but holds firm. I press my back against the door and let out a slow breath.

  Tanya gives up on banging the door down. In the silence, her voice rings loud and clear. “Ben can decide to up and leave and he has every right to take Reece with him. That’s inevitable. I don’t want you to fall apart when that day comes.”

  “It won’t,” I say with false confidence.

  My best friend does not reply.

  After locking up the shop that night, Tanya and I part ways at the bus stop. Our official closing time is at seven but, for the past week, customers have been walking in fifteen minutes before the hour. We still service them. Which means I don’t get home until after ten o’clock most nights.

  Tonight was an exception. I’m excited to head home and hang with Reece before bedtime. We should have a solid hour before my mom-instincts kick in and I shoo her to bed.

  The bus lets me off a couple blocks from the house. I stroll down the sidewalk thoughtfully. The moon is full in the sky, lighting my path. Toads and crickets belt out their nocturnal songs with the enthusiasm of a boom box.

  I smile at the stars and think of my father. We haven’t spoken that much since he and Mom moved to San Pedro after his retirement.

  Dad used to love watching the stars. We had a telescope on the first floor and, whenever we got a chance, we would admire the sky.

  He wanted to be an astronomer when he was younger, but he couldn’t afford to study it and Belize had no astronomy scholarships available in his day. Dad gave up on his dream as a career, but he never lost his love for the stars.

  I’ll call him later. When my heart and head isn’t in so much turmoil. Tanya’s suggestion that I marry Ben has been banging around in my mind all day.

  As crazy as it is, it’s an option. One that would make a lot of sense if it wasn’t completely unrealistic.

  Ben’s made it clear from Day One that I’m not his type and, frankly, he’s not mine either. Though I’ve softened toward him, living in the same house has exposed some habits of his that aren’t exactly endearing.

  Like those stupid webtoons he watches without end.

  And his complete lack of drive and ambition to do anything with his life.

  And his checkered past when it comes to women.

  They’re all red flags.

  So even if marriage was on Ben’s mind, which it isn’t, I would be stupid to propose that kind of commitment between the two of us.

  A moment later the house comes into view. I jog up the stairs. The sound of laughter disguises the jangle of my keys as I crack the front door open.

  When I step inside, my gaze lands on Reece, mouth open mid-chortle. She’s sitting on the floor, legs tucked under her, a spread of UNO cards in her hands.

  Lauren, Kurt and Ben are sitting around her. They’re all focused on the game, but their smiles are no less beaming. A knot forms in my throat, threatening to cut off my breath.

  They look like a family…

  Reece’s skin tone is a pale brown shade, but even so… it’s lighter than me. She fits in with these white people more than I do. She belongs.

  Who am I trying to kid here?


  “Logan!” Reece spots me and tosses her cards down. She leaps over her grandfather’s legs like a gazelle and races over. Her hands wrap around my hips, and she flings her little body against my legs. “You’re home early!”

  “Hey, Reece.” I smooth my fingers down the strands of her poofy ponytail. The new hairdo was a gift from ‘Nana’ Lauren.

  A few days ago, I came back home and caught the stench of burnt hair. I followed the scent into Reece’s room where I saw her lying down with her brown locks splaying around her head. They were silky straight.

  To say I was shocked would be an understatement.

  Lauren had gone behind my back and taken Reece to another hairdresser.

  She’d straightened Reece’s hair without my permission.

  Beyond the blatant disrespect shown by the previously mentioned offenses, Lauren didn’t even know enough to at least wrap the kid’s hair before she slept.

  The next morning, Reece’s hair was as frizzy and disheveled as a lion’s mane. She cried over it, but refused to take it out less she hurt her grandmother’s feelings.

  I was pissed for days. Ben barely managed to calm me down.

  “Hey.” Ben climbs to his feet and smiles at me. He’s dressed in a blue polo and shorts. For someone who does absolutely nothing with his life, he still manages to look rich and appealing.

  “Would you like to join us?” Kurt gestures to the cards.

  “I’m—”

  “Kurt, we should get going.” Lauren tugs on her husband’s hand. “It’s late and we have to wake up early tomorrow.”

  “What’s going on tomorrow?” I ask, my gaze bouncing between Ben, Lauren, and Kurt.

  “We’re going on a boat ride!” Reece yells. She’s so excited she’ll explode any minute. “Grampa said the boat will have glass at the bottom so we can see the Barrier Reef. After that we’ll be swimming with the fishes.”

  Lauren chuckles. “I don’t think that’s the phrase you want to use in this particular situation…”

  “Swimming, huh?” My eyes flicker to Ben. “Can I talk to you?”

  He goes pale. “Now?”

  I nod. Turn on my heels. March to the guestroom. He follows behind, hands in his pockets.

  As soon as Ben locks the door, I whirl on him. “When were you going to tell me your dad was taking Reece outside the city?”

  “I’m going with them,” Ben says, hands extended. “So there’s no chance of them running away with her while we aren’t looking.”

  “I don’t care that you’re going with them. I don’t care if that boat’s made of gold. Why didn’t you ask me?”

  His eyebrows slant together. “I didn’t know I needed your permission to take Reece anywhere.”

  “I mean, you don’t.” I falter. “But you could have given me a heads up.”

  “Dad mentioned it this morning. Everything happened at the last minute. I was planning to tell you. I swear. You were at work. I didn’t want to bother you.”

  “I have a phone, you know. You could have called. Texted.”

  His blue eyes soften. “I know. But ever since Lauren and Dad have been around, you seemed so stressed. I thought it would be better if I didn’t mention everything Reece was doing with them.”

  “Well, you thought wrong.” Tears glisten in my eyes, furthering my embarrassment.

  Ben places his hand on my shoulders. His thumb grazes my T-shirt in a tiny circle. “You can come if you want.”

  “I can’t. I have appointments.”

  He nods. “I figured.”

  I shake his hands off and turn away so I can wipe the tear that falls from my eye in peace.

  Ben’s voice sounds from behind me. “Logan? Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine.” I open the door and whisper over my shoulder. “Have fun on your trip tomorrow.”

  “Logan!” Ben calls. “Logan!”

  I run from him and lock myself in the bathroom. A glance at the mirror shows a pathetic woman with brown skin and big, red-rimmed eyes. I look away, disgusted with myself.

  Lauren and Kurt aren’t just wooing Reece. They’re trying to win Ben over too. And there’s a real chance that he’ll decide to take Reece away from Belize when they’re through.

  I’m at my wits end. Is marriage all I can do to stop him?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Ben

  “Reece, why aren’t you wearing your life vest? I told you to keep it on at all times.”

  Reece turns around and flashes her grey eyes, mouth pouting slightly. “It’s too sweaty.”

  I walk over to her. “Where is it?”

  She points to the corner where her life vest has been abandoned beside the duffel bags of our fellow travellers. I sprint over, grab it and then return to her.

  “Uncle Ben, do I have to?”

  “Here.” I grab my bag and yank a T-shirt out of it. “Hand me the vest.” She does and I wipe it down with my shirt. “It shouldn’t be too sweaty now. You need to put it on and leave it on, okay?”

  “Why?” She makes a face. “I’m not going to die.”

  I kneel in front of her. “True, but if Logan finds out that you were on this boat without your life vest, she’s going to yell at me. Help your uncle out, would you?”

  “Alright.” Reece accepts the life vest and pulls it over her shoulder. I snap it into place.

  “Thanks.”

  A squawk breaks out from the front of the boat. The tour guide yells through his megaphone, “We’re almost there everyone. Please gather your things and head downstairs to the viewing room.”

  “Can I go?” she asks, bouncing on the tips of her white tennis shoes.

  “I’ll take her,” Dad says, hand extended and a huge smile on his face. He’s lightened up a lot over the past few weeks. Well… figuratively. Technically, Dad’s darkened about two shades.

  Reece enjoys his company and he’s devoted more time to her over the past few days than he has to me over the course of my lifetime.

  Maybe he really is getting old. Or maybe he loves his granddaughter more than me.

  “You coming, Lauren?” Dad asks. His eyes are hidden behind square-shaped sunshades. A baseball cap sits atop his greying hair. The wind flaps his open shirt and green shorts.

  “I’ll take the next tour.” Lauren shoos him away. “You two go ahead.”

  Reece waves at me. I wave back and turn around to join Lauren on the bench. She scoots to make room for me, pulling the fabric of her long, see-through peach dress. The white bikini beneath probably drew the eye of every heterosexual man on the boat.

  “You’re getting the hang of this,” Lauren says.

  “The hang of what?” I pull my phone out and swipe through the pictures of Reece that I’ve taken so far.

  “Being a father.”

  My thumbs freeze. I glance up at her face.

  Her green eyes fasten on mine. “What?”

  I look away. “I wouldn’t say that.”

  “That’s how you’ve been acting today. You’re overprotective. Fussy. Taking a million pictures of Reece—”

  “To be fair, Logan demanded I take the pictures.”

  “I see.” Lauren stares straight ahead. “Logan, huh?”

  “Mm-hm.” I notice a shot of Reece with her mouth open in laughter. The sky is a brilliant blue backdrop and the Caribbean Sea sparkles like green glass. She’s got her skinny arms extended over the railing, enjoying the feel of the breeze.

  I send the picture to Logan.

  “Aren’t you going to set your boundaries with her?”

  “What boundaries?” I ask, still focused on my phone.

  “Logan is living in your house. Rent free. She’s taking care of Reece. Mothering her. It’s unnatural. And harmful in the long run. How will Logan survive when you and Reece return to the States?”

  “I’m sorry. Return where?”

  Lauren smiles innocently. “You didn’t think you’d live here in Belize forever, did you?”

 
“I wasn’t really thinking about it.”

  “Exactly. That’s why you need us, Ben. A part of being a parent is thinking about the future.”

  I stiffen. I’ve never enjoyed being lectured to. Especially by Lauren. “I’ve already told you that I’m not giving up my guardianship rights.”

  “I’m not asking you to.” She places a hand on my arm. Her fingernails are long and tipped with white. “We’d continue just like we have been for the past month. We can all live at the house and enjoy life together.”

  The thought of returning to my old bedroom to live with my father and his younger wife—who happens to be my brother’s ex—makes me ill. “That’s not going to happen.”

  “Alright. Alright.” Lauren chuckles nervously. “Calm down. It was just a thought. Nothing’s set in stone. What’s important right now is that Reece is happy and safe. With us. Her family. Now that your father and I are here, you don’t need Logan around anymore.”

  I shift on the bench so I can look squarely at Lauren. “What’s your problem with Logan?”

  “Problem? I don’t have a problem.”

  I arch an eyebrow.

  Lauren clears her throat. “I just don’t like it when people force themselves where they aren’t welcome. Logan’s bond with Reece is commendable, but now that things have changed I think she should back off. For Reece’s sake.”

  “You’re overanalyzing.”

  Lauren shakes her head. “If I didn’t know better, I would say Logan was Reece’s mother and she and Harry have been playing us all along.”

  “She’s not.”

  “That’s the point. She’s not her mother.” Lauren meets my gaze. “I’m curious about something. Why did she start living at the house in the first place?”

  “She didn’t trust me.” I smile fondly at the memory of Logan barging into the bungalow with her suitcase and her sass. “She wanted to make sure that I wouldn’t hurt Reece. That’s how much she cared.”

  “But Logan trusts you now right?”

  “Look, I’m not going to kick her out just because you said so. Logan is Reece’s family. She loves her like a daughter. And the feeling is mutual. I’m not getting in the way of that.”