Head Over Heels

by Crystal B. Bright

  He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his body. “You’re still naked. Let’s get in the shower and—”

  She put her hand to his chest and gave him a gentle nudge back. “I’m going to get dressed. I’ll see you downstairs.”

  Before he allowed her to leave, he held her hand. “I want you in every room in this house, including the elevator.”

  “Good to know.” She winked before getting dressed and leaving the bedroom.

  Thane could make this the perfect weekend. He had to get his whole family on board. To do that, he had to be honest.

  After his shower and throwing on jeans and a T-shirt, he sauntered downstairs to find the group all eating lunch. It looked like someone had found the lunchmeat he and Kari had purchased along with the bread, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and condiments. He stood at the opening to the dining room and watched Gunnar making fun of Gideon, Gideon feeding Janelle, and Eboni chatting with Kari.

  Thane wanted this. He’d always wanted a house filled with family.

  “It’s about time you made your way down.” Gideon smiled. “Kari made you a plate.” He pointed to a sandwich on a plate on the breakfast bar with a salad next to it.

  “Thanks.” He kissed Kari first before retrieving the plate.

  When he noticed Gunnar looking away from him after he’d kissed her, he felt a fire in his belly. To extinguish it, he would have to address his brothers. Not now. Not in front of the ladies.

  As soon as Thane finished his lunch, he stood from the table. No time like the present.

  “Why don’t you ladies go for a walk on the beach? It’s a beautiful day.” Thane started collecting the dishes from the table.

  “I know what that’s code for.” Eboni stood.

  “The guys want to talk.” Janelle squeezed Gideon’s hand.

  “And not in front of us.” Kari regarded Thane.

  A silent conversation happened between them. As he stared at her, she raised her eyebrow and made a slight turn with her head. Thane nodded before going into the kitchen.

  Kari stood. “Sounds like a great idea. Grab your cameras. The views are absolutely to die for.”

  After each woman outfitted herself with her jacket and phone, they each kissed their man and made their way out back.

  Gideon barely waited for the door to close before he addressed Thane. “So what’s up? I know this is more than you showing us the house, which is awesome, by the way.”

  “It is.” Thane took a deep breath before he turned to his brothers. “I know I’ve been standoffish for the last few years.”

  “Yeah. More like a spoiled brat.” Gunnar went over to the bar and sat on a stool.

  “I’ve had a lot of things on my mind that I let get to me. It’s that behavior that made me sick. I can’t do that anymore.” He glanced at Gideon first. “Gid, I did go to the Super Bowl.”

  Gideon blinked. “I thought you couldn’t—”

  “I could. I apologize for interrupting you, and for making it seem like I didn’t care. I was there and I invited some folks to join me in the suite. That girl you heard was someone else’s girlfriend. I said what I did to push you away. I was proud of you for that game and how you played.” Thane rinsed off each plate before loading them in the dishwasher.

  “Wow. I didn’t think you cared about any of us. Why would you want us thinking that?” Gideon sat next to Gunnar.

  They looked like a section of the Supreme Court gazing down on Thane and judging him.

  “I figured the more pissed off you two got with me, the more you would leave me alone.” Thane wiped his hands on a dishtowel.

  He would have sat next to them, but he wanted to look them in the eyes as he spoke.

  “Did you know Gid rushed home after the game when I got shot?” Gunnar planted his large hands on the counter.

  Thane shook his head. “I saw him bolting from the field. I figured he was going home because of Mom. I had talked to Mom and she told me she was okay.”

  “Guess we all had our secrets.” Gideon lowered his gaze.

  “So you and the other women?” Gunnar pressed.

  Thane shook his head. “More of me acting like a jerk to you all, but I never used women.” He turned to Gunnar. “The day you flew down to tell me about Mom, I was set to be interviewed by a magazine writer who got drunk and begged me to stay with her until she slept it off. I never touched her. When I nodded off waiting for her to sleep, she unbuttoned my shirt and undid my pants. By the time I woke up, she had taken off her clothes and was coming at me.”

  Gideon wagged his finger at Thane. “Was she a tall blonde?”

  Thane blinked. “Yes.”

  “Laughed like a donkey?” Gideon asked.

  “Oh, shit. That’s right. What was her name?” Gunnar snapped his fingers. “Lorelei? Loretta Lynn?”

  “Lora Ann.” Thane ran his hand over his head.

  “That’s it,” Gunnar and Gideon said at the same time.

  “She’s a piece of work.” Gunnar shook his head. “She’s the reason I don’t do interviews. She tried getting me with that whole drunk bit.”

  “Yeah, Gun told me about her. When she got to me, I was wise to her. I told her I would only do an interview at the Wolves training camp or at my old high school. No alcohol in either place.” Gideon shook his head.

  “Had you said something to one of us about being interviewed by her, we could have warned you.” Gunnar’s tone came out harsh. He glared at Thane.

  “So why the cold shoulder?” Gideon rested his elbows on the counter.

  Thane stared at both men before directing his full attention to Gunnar. “I was bitter and angry at something Gunnar had said.”

  Gunnar blinked. “Me? When?”

  “You remember that day you wanted to hang out with your old group of friends and Mom tried stopping you?” Thane wrung the dishtowel in his hand. If he didn’t get his feelings out now, it would kill him.

  Gunnar rolled his eyes. “You’re really bringing that up now? That was twelve or thirteen years ago. I apologized to Mom for every stupid thing I said.”

  “Yeah, you did. But what about me?” Thane pointed to himself.

  He felt his blood pressure rising. He had to calm himself down. Making himself sick wouldn’t do him any good.

  “You? Why should I apologize to you?” Gunnar cocked his head.

  “You told Mom that you didn’t care about me because I wasn’t even your real brother.” Saying it felt like he had ripped a Band-Aid off a wound.

  “What?” Gideon looked at Gunnar, who remained quiet and stoic. “That’s bullshit.”

  “The story might not be true, but he said it.” Thane pointed to Gunnar. “Mom never refuted it. So I started really looking at the three of us. You two look alike. Both tall, same body build, blond, blue eyes.”

  “You have blue eyes.” Gideon raised his voice.

  “Yeah, but not like your blue.” When Thane noticed how quiet Gunnar had become, he kept on him. “After that, I started pulling away.” He glanced at Gideon. “I’m sorry I did that to you. I saw you both as a package deal. Both of your names start with G. Mine doesn’t. Hell, your businesses even sound the same. Press ’N Curl. Pick ’N Clip. I got Sharp. You two always were close. I always felt left out. When you both left home, Mom and I had this bond. We were a team. She had my back more than I thought you two did.”

  “Unbelievable.” Gideon stood from his stool. “Excuse me.” He went out the front door and slammed it behind him.

  With only Gunnar and Thane in the room, the silence hung heavy in the air. Thane wanted to relay this story and move on. Now that he said it out loud, he still felt a weightiness in the air. If Gunnar had said something, maybe Thane wouldn’t feel that way.

  “You’re right.” Gunnar’s normally booming voice became light, small. “I did say that to hurt you and Mom.” He brought his gaze up. “I was a little shit back then. I can�
�t believe you heard me.”

  “I did.” Thane released the towel. “I was so hurt. I figured that with everything we’d been through, at least you two were my blood brothers. Now I don’t know who I am.” He chuckled. “You know why I got into baseball? You two had your own thing. You were on the wrestling team in high school and went off to become an MMA fighter. Gideon had football. I wanted so desperately to fit in with you two somehow. So I did baseball. Even that didn’t seem to matter to you.”

  Gunnar nodded. “It did. I was so proud of you. Mom told me about all of your accomplishments.” He cleared his throat. “I never meant to hurt you with all the stupid stuff I said and did. Before you were born, our biological mother would have every kind of lowlife in our trailer. They would bring stuff for her to get high, or they would get high and drunk and crash there. I remember there was one woman that we had to call Auntie Katie. I don’t know what she was to our mother, but she stayed with us for a long time.”

  Thane hung onto every word. His heart started pounding as soon as he started the story.

  “Auntie Katie was a thin woman, except for one time.” Gunnar held up his finger. “Once I saw her getting out of the shower and it looked like she had a belly.”

  Thane had to brace his hands on the bar as he listened to Gunnar.

  “I was a kid. I’m sure I was wrong. But I knew what to say to hurt Mom. I shouldn’t have said anything then. In every sense of the word, you and Gideon are my brothers. Nothing will ever change that.”

  The front door slammed again. Gideon marched back to the breakfast bar where Gunnar sat. He carried a stack of papers in his hand.

  “You remember at the will reading that I got the contents of Mom’s safe deposit box?” Gideon waved the papers in the air.

  “Yeah.” Thane kept his gaze on the folder.

  “As usual, Mom has made me the mediator.” Gideon slammed the papers onto the bar. “I went there a few weeks ago and found some of Mom’s jewelry and important documents. Then I came across this.” He pointed to the papers. “It has your birth information. You really want to know if you’re our blood brother? Take a look.” He put his hand on top of the folder. “I haven’t looked at it because it doesn’t matter what it says. You’re my brother. I love you. Even if what it says in there is that you’re the long lost son of an alien, I wouldn’t care. You will always be my brother.” He pushed the documents toward Thane. “If you really want to know, open that up and find out. But you’re going to have to ask yourself if this will make a difference in our family. I will always see you as that kid who ran around the gym at all the dances.”

  Gunnar stood. “And you will always be my baby brother who knew I was sneaking out to see Eboni but could be bought off with chocolates and candies.” He glanced down at the folder. “If you need to know for yourself, go ahead. No matter what it says, you’ll always be my brother.”

  “Same here.” Gideon removed his hand.

  Thane stared at the folder like it would grow legs and start dancing. All those years he had ignored Gunnar and Gideon because of his unanswered question. Now he could get the truth.

  He looked up and really regarded the two men. All three had the same experiences. They all shared Queen Elizabeth as a mother. If he did find out that his actual birth mother had been someone else, he knew his brothers would still love him. He loved them just as much.

  Thane put his hand on the folder, waited a beat before pushing it back to Gideon. “Lock that back up or burn it.” He smiled. “As far as I’m concerned, I have my brothers here. Knowing or not knowing won’t change that.”

  Gunnar nodded. He made his way around the bar to Thane. Without a word, he pulled him into a tight embrace. “You keep talking to me, okay?”

  Thane nodded.

  “No secrets from each other.” Gunnar looked at Gideon. “Understand?”

  “Crystal clear.” Gideon scooped up the papers and tucked them under his arm.

  “So if we’re not keeping secrets, when were you going to tell us that Eboni’s pregnant?” Thane glared at his brother, who now looked confused.

  “Eboni’s not pregnant. Why would you think that?” Gunnar asked.

  “When you were giving your speech at the funeral, you mentioned that Mom would have made a wonderful grandmother.” Thane scratched his head.

  “She would have. But we’re not at that point yet to bring kids into the mix.” Gunnar put his hand on Thane’s shoulder. “I would have told you if Eboni and I were expecting.”

  “One more thing.” Thane held up his hand. “Be nice to Kari.”

  Gunnar rolled his eyes. “If she hadn’t come into your life, all the bad stuff that happened to you wouldn’t have happened.”

  “Bad stuff? You mean like me finding love? Having her tell me that I needed to make up with my brothers because she knows how important family is?” Thane took a step back. “Or me deciding to give up baseball?”

  “What?” Gunnar put his hand to his head. “Are you serious?”

  Thane nodded. “After the next season, I’m going to put my full concentration into designing clothes.” He smiled. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I pulled away from it because you guys didn’t give up your careers to be a hair stylist and a florist.”

  “Uh, yeah. I did. I have one more fight and that’s it. My full concentration has been on the salon and the hair product line I’ve developed.” Gunnar leaned against the bar.

  “I haven’t stopped playing football. But I love the store and I’ve already got plans to expand it and build a nursery. I never thought about doing that until I got with Janelle. She makes me better.” Gideon nodded.

  “Same with me and Kari. She’s an excellent mother and has been a great woman for me. I love her.” Thane felt more at ease than he’d ever felt.

  “If she makes you happy, then I’m happy.” Gunnar slapped Thane on his shoulder. “You old dog.”

  Thane laughed. He felt relief to finally get his feelings out. With his brothers back in his life and his woman by his side, nothing could conquer him.

  * * * *

  Kari couldn’t imagine a more perfect day, unless Michael had been there with her. She sat next to Thane while they watched a fire in a fire pit erupt in a tall flame. Gunnar sat next to Eboni with his arm around her. Gideon sat on the other side of Thane with his arms around Janelle.

  “Mom was a smart woman.” Gunnar tapped his temple. “She knew what to do to bring us all together.”

  Gideon nodded.

  “I miss her.” Thane confessed. “I miss our talks.”

  “I miss the way she would give advice at inappropriate times.” Gideon chuckled.

  “I miss her teasing.” Gunnar smiled.

  “I hate to do this without her, but I have to.” Thane stood up in front of Kari.

  She stared at him before glancing at the other four in attendance. “What are you doing?”

  Before Kari could figure it out, Thane dropped down to one knee. Eboni and Janelle gasped. Kari couldn’t breathe. She kept her stare on Thane as he smiled at her.

  “When I first saw you, I knew you were the woman for me. Strong-willed, smart, sexy. You are everything I want in a woman and more. The fact that you have a child already makes you even more appealing.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring. “I already asked the man in your life for permission. Michael approved.”

  Kari laughed. She’d wondered why Michael kept texting her and asking her how she was doing. Michael always cared about Kari’s wellbeing, but this level of interest seemed out of place.

  “Kari Meyers, will you make me the happiest man in the world by being my wife?” Thane opened up a ring box and showed off a large princess-cut, canary-yellow diamond in a platinum setting.

  She couldn’t speak. Nodding seemed to be the only thing she could do. As soon as she did that, he slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her.

  “Three weddings,” J
anelle said from behind Thane.

  “I know. Baby brother, you had better get to work.” Gunnar nudged his foot against Thane’s leg. “You have three wedding dresses to design and make.”

  Thane laughed. “I can do that.” He held Kari’s hand. “For my family, I’ll do anything.”

  “I love you so much. I’m so glad I dropped my dating rules for you.” She stood. “I need to see this ring in a better light. I think the bedroom has the best lighting.”

  Thane draped his arm around her. “I think you’re right.” He leaned down to her ear. “Be gentle.”

  Kari laughed. As long as she had her man by her side, she felt loved and invincible.

  Epilogue

  Seven years later

  Thane allowed Kari to grip his hand as hard as she could as he guided her into a Virginia Beach elementary school auditorium. She rested her hand on her protruding belly as she waddled down the aisle.

  “People are staring at me.” Kari started to sniff.

  Gunnar had warned Thane about the raging hormones. Thane learned how to deal with Kari’s mommy brain and rage by talking calmly and agreeing with everything she said.

  “You are the most beautiful woman in here.” Thane took her to the front row of seats where Gideon said they would be. “That’s why they’re staring. You’re too stunning for words.”

  “No, I’m not. I’m fat and too old to have a child. That’s what they’re thinking.”

  He saw the tears coming. “You’re only thirty-three. You still look like you’re in high school yourself. I’m worried I’ll get arrested for taking liberties with a minor.”

  A group of people overhead the last portion of his speech and gasped.

  “No, I meant her.” He pointed to his wife. “Never mind.”

  Once they got to the front of the auditorium, he noticed right away that Gunnar sat at one end and Gideon sat at the other. Like guarding gargoyles, they refused to let anyone else sit in the row. Not that they had any room. With Gunnar, Eboni, and their two young children, and Gideon, Janelle, and two of their kids seated with them, it only left three seats.