Falling for Him

by Jessica Roe

  When I'd imagined him settling down one day, the girl in my head had been someone more like him – a teacher, or a librarian, or. . .well, someone tame.

  Clearly that was not the case.

  I poke his knee with my toe to get his attention. “You need to tell me all about Blair. I want the goss.”

  An involuntary smile lights up his face, just at the very mention of her name. Okay, this really is love. I feel like a proud momma giving away her boys. “I'm sure Nash told you all about it.”

  That's the problem with being best friends with guys – they suck at sharing details.

  “All Nash told me was that his long lost sister-” The one that I'd only known about because his mom and my mom are life long besties. “-came to live with them and that you perved on her like an even creepier Space Head and then you somehow hypnotized her into falling in love with you. Oh, and he also said he punched you real good.”

  At least, that was the only version he would tell me at first, which I'd known couldn't be right because Silver has always been a down and out good guy. Also, I know what a jerk Nash can be when he's doing his older brother over protective bit. He played big brother for me way too often when we were teens, scaring away any guy that even breathed in my general direction. It was incredibly frustrating.

  Finally I managed to get the real story from Nash after I'd nagged him repeatedly for a week straight. Silver and Blair had met before either of them knew who the other was. Apparently when they learned the truth they did their best to stay apart but they went and fell in love anyway. I'm not usually a romantic kinda gal, but even I swooned a little at that. And Silver, ever the good guy, eventually moved away while Blair finished high school so that when they could finally be together, it would be with the knowledge that they'd done it the right way. Sort of.

  Silver rolls his eyes and elbows Nash in the ribs. “Not quite how it went down. Asshole.”

  “So crazy how you guys met right before she moved here. What are the chances? How did it happen?”

  He lifts a bemused eyebrow at me, like Stop Being Such A Girl, I'm A Man So I'm Busy Shooting Zombies. Growing up with mostly male friends, it's a look I'm familiar with. “How did what happen?”

  “How did you end up falling in love? Come on,” I wheedle in my most annoying voice. “I need details. I want to know everything about what's been going on in your lives since I've been gone.”

  “Then you shoulda picked up the phone,” he jokes, then eyes me wearily. “You're not gonna drop this, are you?”

  “Nope.”

  His smile drops a little as he thinks back – clearly that was a hard point in his life for him, falling in love with a girl who was pretty much the definition of forbidden. “It was. . .unavoidable. Falling in love with Blair was unavoidable. Dude!” He glares at Nash. “You're supposed to be shooting the zombies, not me.”

  “Then stop being so fucking gross about my baby sister.”

  “She's not a baby, ass face.”

  This seems like an argument they've had many times before, but I don't think Nash really means it – he appears to have (mostly) accepted their relationship.

  “You were always such a good boy,” I tease Silver. “How did you end up breaking the rules so brazenly?”

  He smirks – a move that seems so out of character for him. “Blair corrupted me. In ways I definitely don't mind.”

  “You fucking shit head,” Nash grunts, kicking Silver in the leg, hard. Silver bursts into laughter at the look on Nash's face, even as he winces in pain.

  The front door opening startles the three of us, and a cheery voice calls out, “Yoho, dickwads!” Nathan, of course.

  “Where in the fuck did you get a key to my place?” Nash asks suspiciously.

  “I stole one from you,” Nathan replies easily, like that should have been obvious. Which, when it comes to him, probably should have been. He's never been known for his subtlety. There's another armchair free, but he perches on mine and wraps a friendly arm around my shoulders. “Well look at this, the old gang is finally back together again.”

  I grin happily as I look around at my boys, realizing he's right. Though I've spoken to Nash over the years and I've seen Nathan a few times since I've been home, this is the first time the four of us have all been together since our college days.

  Nash, Silver, Nathan and I have known each other since we were kids, but I didn't become friends with any of them until we were in our teens. In fact, Nash and I spent most of our childhoods downright hating on each other. With our moms being bff's, we were forced to suffer through torturous family dinners and get togethers all the time, and they thought it was just so adorable to push the two of us at each other because we were the same age. I think they got it into their heads that we would grow up and fall in love and get married and have a squillion babies so they could be grandmas together, which obviously made the two of us want to puke. Back then, Nash had thought I was a gross, annoying girl, and I'd been firm in the belief that he was a disgusting, smelly boy. I mean, he was a disgusting, smelly boy, but that's besides the point. When we turned thirteen, Nash and I decided it was imperative that we take action and end those family dinners for good. So we temporarily shoved our differences aside, put our heads together and got planning. We made a pact to end family get togethers for good. All of our ideas were stupid awful, and not one of them came into fruition because it was around about that point that we realized that maybe, just maybe, we didn't hate as each other as much as we'd thought. A beautiful friendship was born out of the ashes of some seriously evil little plots, and with his friendship, I immediately gained Silver and Nathan's too. Suddenly I was one of the gang, one of the guys, and I never looked back.

  Nathan disappears into the kitchen to steal some beer and make himself a ham sandwich, because apparently he thinks this place is his second home, and Nash gets up to take his place at my side. He hooks an arm around my neck and brings me in for a one armed hug. “Aw man, it's good to have you home, Ivy. It's good to have you fucking home.”

  Chapter 2

  Nash

  We catch up for a couple of hours, and man does it feel good to have the four of us back together again. Just like old times, except we're older now and less dumb. Slightly less dumb. I mean, Nathan's still here after all. . .

  Eventually we decide to move our reunion to a bar, so we drive by Mom and Dad's place to pick up Blair because apparently my whipped best buddy can't be without my sister for more than a few hours at a time.

  Blair appears outside as soon as I pull up as if she's been listening out for the sound of my car. Before I've even completely come to a stop, Silver is jumping out like his ass is on fire and scooping her up in his arms. They start sucking face like it's been weeks since they last saw each other and not hours.

  “Well that's just fucking disgusting,” I grumble, and Ivy laughs and wraps her arms around my neck from the seat behind me.

  “Naw, poor baby,” she teases, leaning around the seat to grin at me, and I let her get away with it because her hair smells like strawberries – a smell I've always associated with her. Before she can react, I've snapped off my seat-belt and twisted around, pulling her through the gap to the front with me so I can put her on my lap and bury my face in her hair. She giggles manically and slaps me away. “You big freak!”

  Immediately I feel lighter. But then, Ivy's always had the ability to make me happy even when I feel like shit.

  “I think you're both a pair of freaks,” Nathan says dryly from the back, but I ignore him.

  Thinking about it, hanging here to screw around instead of driving away as soon as I could was probably a mistake. Because when my mom realizes we're here, she runs out of the house, full on screeching, and bodily yanks Ivy from the car so she can pull her into her arms.

  I heave a sigh and Nathan guffaws at the sight of Ivy, who has never been into the whole touchy feely affectionate shit, squashed up uncomfortably in Mom's vice like grip. “Mom,” I
complain, but she waves a hand in my face and shushes me.

  She always did love Ivy an insanely ridiculous amount.

  “Hey, Felicia,” Ivy greets, awkwardly patting Mom on the shoulder until she finally lets her go. “Sorry I haven't been by to see you since I got back to town. . .”

  For Christ's sake, Mom's hugging her again. “Mom, get off her,” I say. “We're going now. Seriously, let her go. Now.”

  Mom ignores me, obviously, but finally lets Ivy go in her own sweet time. Then she glances oh so covertly between the two of us with that look in her eyes again; the plotting, evil mastermind look that she and Ivy's mom used to get whenever they'd watched the two of us together as teenagers. Before the dust has even settled on the road after we've left she'll be straight on the phone to Ivy's mom, discussing the floral centerpieces at the make believe wedding they seem to think me and Ivy will be having one day.

  Fucking ridiculous.

  Not that Ivy isn't hot as hell or anything, with all that shining golden hair and those big blue eyes and that peachy skin and those legs. . . Man, those legs. And that dress she's wearing right now, the red one that wraps around each one of her smokin' curves. . .

  But no. Hell no. We've been friends for far too long to ever be thinking crap like that. The last time that road was traveled, it didn't end so well. . .

  “Aw, look at the two of you. Back together again,” Mom coos, and I bang back against the headrest, ignoring Nathan when he sniggers.

  I climb out of the car and kiss Mom's cheek. “You're hopeless,” I tell her, then I pick Ivy up and carry her around the car to shove her in the passenger side myself, because that's the only damn way I'm getting her out of Mom's clutches right now.

  Blair and Silver join Nathan in the back, laughing their asses off at me. I shoot them the middle finger, which only makes Mom cuff me over the ear and give me a five minute lecture on manners like I'm a twelve year old kid instead of a twenty six year old adult.

  I tilt my head to the sky and groan.

  +++

  We hit up a new bar in town. It's busier than usual now that most people have finished work for Christmas, and by the looks of things, their holiday celebrations are already well under way. We grab a circular table while Nathan gets in the drinks. Unfortunately, as designated driver, I'm on water for the rest of night which just royally sucks.

  “No way,” I snap, snatching away Blair's beer when Nathan slides one her way.

  She gives me that I don't give a crap about your opinion ever glare that she's perfected over the years and grabs it back, taking a long drink before I can stop her. “Don't be such a little bitch.”

  “You're not twenty one yet.”

  She scoffs. “Almost.”

  “Not for another ten months.”

  I go to take it off her again, but Ivy slaps my hand out of the air. “She's right, you are being a little bitch.”

  “Right?” Nathan agrees. “Look at the pair of you arguing like kids. What're you tryna to do, make up for lost time?”

  I punch him in the arm when Blair's face falls just the tiniest little bit, almost unnoticeable unless you know her as well as I do. None of us like to remember that Blair didn't get to grow up with the rest of her siblings. “Don't be a dick,” I growl. Sometimes Nathan can be annoyingly blunt.

  “Anyway,” he carries on like an obnoxious ass, unfazed. “Chill out, bro. Your lil' sis could drink you under the table and then some.”

  Blair grins at him. That's the thing about Nathan – he can be an epic fuckbag, but you end up forgetting about whatever reason you were pissed at him moments later. He just has a way about him.

  I, on the other hand, frown at the pair of them, sincerely unamused. “And how in the hell would you know that?” I demand. It's bad enough that one of my buddies has got his grubby hands all over my little sister, but out of all of them, Silver is the only one I'd ever trust with her. He's a good guy, and I know that he worships the ground she walks on. Despite the fact that I give them a hard time, I can rest easy knowing he'll always take care of her.

  Nathan, however, is a heartless douche. He goes through more women than I do, and that's saying something. If I ever found out that he'd touched my sister, I'd have to kill him. Pure and simple.

  He just smirks at me, always happy to stir the shit. He's been this way ever since we were kids. “Blair and I shared a magical night together back in the day, before Silver got her all to himself, that is.”

  My face isn't the only one that grows stony at this. Silver wraps a possessive arm around Blair's waist and pulls her onto his lap, glaring at Nathan. “I will break your face into fucking pieces,” he warns.

  “I'll hold him down,” I offer, and Silver and I bump fists without taking our eyes off our annoying friend.

  Ivy, busy watching us all with amusement, nods. “You are kind of asking for it, Nate.”

  Blair starts laughing because she's an evil little shit who enjoys conflict way too much. She wraps an arm around Silver's neck and plants a kiss on his cheek. “You're so cute when you're jealous. He's talking about the night we did shots before he told you where I was and you picked me up from Corbin's Bar, dummy.”

  This seems to appease Silver, though it does nothing towards making me feel better. What night did Silver pick her up from that shitty, run down bar before they'd gotten together? I don't ask though. I try not too ask too many questions about back when they were falling in love, back when they were hiding things and keeping secrets. Mostly I just don't want to know the answers, don't need to know them. Just because I'm good with them being together now, doesn't mean I like hearing about how they sneaked around behind my back, back when he was her teacher and she was his student. Because at the end of the day, she's still my baby sister and he's still my best buddy and every bro code in existence says that that's just wrong.

  “I have an idea,” Ivy says, interrupting my maudlin thoughts and glancing around at us all with those sparkling blue eyes, the ones that always seem to promise mischief. “Let's do shots!”

  +++

  “So there was this one girl Silver dated back in high school- Oh, how old were you again? Sixteen? Seventeen?” Ivy breaks away from telling Blair to glance at Silver, but his head is buried in his hands. Ever since we vetoed her shots idea, she's been getting us back by telling Blair all our most embarrassing stories from our youths. I'm just about ready to throttle her, and Silver doesn't look much happier. Nathan, on the other hand, is enjoying every moment of it. Mostly because he doesn't embarrass easy, or at all, but also because there's only one major story to his teen years and he knows Ivy would never be so callous as to casually bring it up here. Because that story, it's one that has the ability to sucker punch Nathan right in the gut, every single time. Even now, years later. It's not something we'd wish on him ever, not even when he's being a dick.

  “Ivy,” Silver complains through his hands.

  “Anyway,” Ivy continues to Blair, like she hasn't even heard him. “they were at this girl's house, hooking up in her bedroom because her parents were supposed to be outta town for the night, when suddenly her dad gets home unexpectedly. Now he was a scary guy – a former boxer back in the day. So he barges into her bedroom, shotgun in hand, and Silver here ended up having to jump out of her window in his underwear. He had to reverse call us from a payphone to go pick him up. Classic.”

  Nathan chuckles at the memory. “Yeah, we didn't let him forget that one for a long time.”

  Blair is laughing so hard there are tears in her eyes, but Silver lifts his head and shakes it. “Uncool, Ivy. Seriously uncool. You can't be telling my woman stories about other girls.”

  “Whoa whoa whoa,” Blair interrupts, holding up her hands. “Now wait just a second. Are you saying you had a life before you met me? This is not okay,” she jokes with a mischievous little smile.

  Ivy cracks up. “Okay, I have officially decided that I now like Blair more than I like Silver. Sorry, pal.”

&n
bsp; He shrugs easily and pulls a what can you do face. “Yeah, that's pretty much the theme of everyone in my life.” Pulling Blair tighter into his lap, he grins into her hair.

  “Well, I am stupid awesome,” she replies cheerfully.

  “Stupid being the operative word,” I shoot back, and she sticks out her tongue.

  “Hey jerks, thanks for waiting on me,” a voice calls from behind us, and my other younger sister, Jemma, squeezes down at the table between me and Nathan.

  “When did you get home?” I ask, reaching over to give her a one armed hug in greeting.

  “Like an hour ago.”

  “Where's Reid?” Jemma and her boyfriend are still in that new faze of their relationship where they need to be together twenty four hours a day or the world might come to an end and collapse in on itself. So far he seems like a pretty decent guy. I haven't had to kick his ass yet, so that's always a bonus.

  She pouts and frowns. “He's not coming down 'till Christmas afternoon so he can spend the morning with his mom and her boyfriend.”

  “The inconsiderate bastard,” I say dryly.

  “I know, right! Oh, Nathan, I meant to say thanks for letting him crash at your place while he's here. Mom and Dad are so-” She blinks, noticing Ivy across the table for the first time. “Oh my God, Ivy! You're here! Nash didn't tell me you were back in town. He's such an ass, he never tells me anything!”

  When we were younger, Jemma had hero worshiped Ivy with a serious passion and followed her around the house like a pet puppy. Ivy is comically not a kid person, but she'd always been nice to Jemma in an awkward please let go of me now kind of way.