Brother’s Best Friends Are My Mates novel Chapter 14

Colby

The smell of burnt food filled the house for at least an hour after Rain’s cooking attempt. I plugged in one of those air fresheners and it seemed to do the job.

No one was even shocked to smell the burning or hear Rain swearing from down in the kitchen. All of us, including Michael, were used to him setting random things on fire. I honestly don’t know how the hell he managed to set so many things on fire. It was a skill that no one should have.

But then I heard laughter and hushed voices. Lia and Rain were having a suitable time. Matt hadn’t spoken much about his date with Lia but he had a small smile on his face when he came in the other day.

I tried to ask him about it. Matt just huffed, going back inside his room. We all thought it would help him open and be more willing to accept that this was our life now. But Matt was even closed off than before!

Jesse was his roommate. Let Jesse deal with Matt and try to make some sense to him. Hell, if he had to do it then go ahead. The guy was the most stubborn out of all of us. People liked to say I was stubborn, but that was not the case. He was much worse than I was.

“So, what are you and Lia up to today?” Rain asked later that morning after returning to our room.

I blinked. “Gonna just go for a walk and have a picnic in the park. Don’t worry, I don’t need any help from you Rain to prepare the food.”

“Haha, so funny! Pick on the guy who has a cooking deficit.”

“A cooking deficiency is a funny way to put it.”

Rain sighed. “It’s hard to live with this deficiency, Colby. Can you understand how that feels?”

Leave it to Rain to try to make me laugh. It helped lighten how I was feeling knowing that Lia and I were going to need to have a serious talk.

“How did your morning with Lia go?”

“It was pretty good. We didn’t discuss anything serious, which in retrospect I believe we should have done.”

“The two of you will have a chance to talk sooner rather than later.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, here’s hoping. But you two should talk and see where you stand.”

“I’m looking forward to that.”

The sarcasm was obvious in my voice. But that wasn’t going to help with anything about the situation. I needed to keep looking forward and not fall into the trap my friends did. Matt preferred to keep things out of his mind while Rain used his humor to deal with the situation. Neither was confronting it head-on!

“I need to start getting ready. Lia’s set to meet me out front a little past noon and I need to make sure the food is ready.” “I can help-“

“No!” I shouted, not meaning to yell at him so loudly but letting Rain anywhere near the kitchen again was a bad idea. “I mean, no I got it.”

Rain poured. “Dude, are you serious right now? I can’t screw up packing for a picnic. All you’re having is sandwiches and finger foods, right?”

“Yeah, but that’s not the point-“

“Don’t worry I got this!”

Sighing, I sent a quick text to Michael. He hadn’t yet left to hang out with his girlfriend who he had been spending time with more lately. The two of them were probably going to move in together soon, which Lia wasn’t going to like. At least this wouldn’t be for a few more months.

***

Lia

Colby and I always had a strained relationship with one another. He was the one who was always usually front and center when it came to bullying me. Going out with him, one-on-one was making me feel uneasy, but I wanted to do it.

The two of us needed to talk, to figure out where we stood with one another. I hated the fact that I was mated to my four brothers’ friends. It didn’t feel like this would change, but I was trying my best to make the most of it.

I was already in the car waiting for Colby when he slid into the driver’s seat. He put a bag in the back, making me lift a brow. “Oh, so you did plan a picnic.”

“Why are you surprised?” Colby asked, offended. “I said I was going to plan a picnic for you. Did you think I was lying or something?”

I gave a weak shrug. “Colby, sometimes you would lie to tease me in the past. I don’t know when it comes to you.”

“Fair enough.”

I stared out the window, trying to distract myself from the cars and houses we were passing by. Colby kept glancing over at me. A few times I caught his gaze so I was able to catch him in the act.

This was not what I was expecting from Colby. He was being so honest and straightforward, catching me off guard. “Thank you for being honest.”

“Well, the least I can be right now is honest. The other guys want to be too.”

Suddenly, I paled. “That means Jesse is going to want to spend time with me tonight.”

“Yes, he is, but he’s not as scary as you think he is, Lia.”

“You’ve said you were scared of him in the past!”

Colby shrugged. “Yes, but that was when I pissed him off. Have you pissed him off?”

“No, I don’t think so but he always has the same, blank expression on his face. How am I supposed to discern anything but anger from that?”

“Fair enough, but Jesse is just a quiet and controlled guy. Rumor has it that he didn’t cry when he was a child. He just screamed.”

I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to laugh or be afraid of what he just said to me. Instead, I chose to look down at my food and take a bite.

Other than the talk of Jesse, Colby and I had a fine time. He opened on me a bit more and I did a bit, but there was still a large part of me I was keeping hidden from my future mates. They were slowly changing their tune. It was something I could recognize. 1

My mind just kept producing what-ifs. What if they decided to change their tune unexpectedly and go back to bullying?

It kept me from wanting to trust them completely. I know that was a problem and something I had to try to get past at some point. Or I hoped I could.

“Do you want to go for a short walk?” Colby suggested after we finished eating.

I nodded. “Yes, let’s go for a quick walk. It will help me walk off all that dessert.”

“Hey, I’m a professional college athlete. If anyone must worry about it then it’s me.