Page 39 of The Arrangement

Andy’s tentative smile gave me hope.

“I remember how much you used to love going to the beach, but you always hated how cold the water was. I suspect that won’t be as much of an issue here.”

Marc crossed his arms and looked at me. “So now you’re saying I owe you a visit to McSharry’sandthe beach? Greedy much?”

I snorted a laugh. “You said it, not me.” I was still smiling like a goof at Marc when I clocked Andy watching us with amusement.“Oh, shit, I didn’t introduce everyone. Marc, this is my younger brother, Anderson, and his boyfriend, Mitchum.”

“Andy, please,” my brother said, shaking Marc’s hand.

“Mitch. Did you serve with James?” Mitch asked after Marc finished shaking his hand as well.

“Yep, though never directly. JD, he, uh, he led the USAR team that rescued my unit.” Marc’s gaze darted to me, but he quickly looked away and plastered a smile on his face. “For the record, there’s no mistaking that you two are related. Do his freckles multiply, too?” he asked Mitch, who promptly let out a guffaw, while Andy looked like someone had stepped on his tail.

“Yes!” Mitch replied enthusiastically.

“They do not!” Andy argued.

Mitch pulled him into a side hug and smacked his cheek with a kiss. “They absolutely do, kitten. Now go hug your brother like you came here to do.” Andy rolled his eyes but dutifully stepped away, clearly muttering to himself.

“So, um, sorry I didn’t check my phone,” I said awkwardly, shoving my hands in my pockets and trying not to be so fuckingtallnext to my little brother.

He gave me a side-eye, complete with a raised eyebrow, and continued walking past me until he stood on the other side of the counter where he could blatantly keep an eye on his boyfriend. Not sure what else to do, I followed his lead and rested my forearms on the counter, making our drastic height difference far less noticeable. Once I joined him, he tilted his chin toward where Marc was animatedly talking with his hands.

“I can see why you didn’t. Your boyfriend’s cute, though I’m pointedly refusing to acknowledge how we apparently have similar tastes in men.”

I did a double take at the pair, now apparently debating the best placement of one of the lizards I’d relocated. The two did share a striking resemblance, right down to their lean build,brown hair, hazel eyes, and their names starting with “M”. But where Mitch’s features were square, Marc’s were softer, sweeter.Like the petals of a flower. I smiled to myself at the silly thought. Marc was very much like a flower, resilient and beautiful.

“Does he know that you’re in love with him?” Andy asked softly.

I turned to look at him so fast that I was seriously worried about whiplash. “What? Why would you ask that?”

Both of his eyebrows shot up. “Whoa. Take a deep breath. No need to go all ogre on me.”

“Shut it, leprechaun.”

“I hate you.”

“You started it,” I sniped back.

“I’ll take that as a no. How long have you been dating?”

I clasped my hands together and stared at them so I wouldn’t have to see the judgement in his eyes. Anyone who saw him and Mitch together for five seconds could tell they were endgame. They weren’t just die-for-each-other love. They were burn-the-world-down-for-each-other love. While I couldn’t list a single relationship that had survived longer than a few weeks, if it could even be called a relationship.

“James? Did I say something wrong? I know I came in hot, but I promise I didn’t actually come here to start trouble. It’s a little silly, but I wanted to—”

“We’re not,” I admitted quietly. “We’re not dating and,” I took a ragged breath, “and Marc’s not my boyfriend.” Even if I wanted him to be. Even if I wanted him to be so much more. The conversation with my CO hung like a black cloud over me. My value lay in being a soldier. That’s all I was good for.

“Are you sure? Because it didn’t look like that when we—”

I cut him off before he could pump me full of false hope. I’d been down that road before. It only led to heartache, and I was already well on my way to a doozy of one without extra help.“I’m sure. Look, Andy, why are you really here? I doubt it was to pick apart my love life. You’d have to give a shit about your idiot brother first.” I turned the full force of my anger on him, and if I hadn’t already known that lashing out was a mistake, seeing the shocked hurt on his face would have sealed it.

“I… I…” He swallowed thickly and looked away.

“Andy, I—”

“No, it’s… it’s okay.” He sniffled. It was such a small sound, but it gutted me as well as any bayonet would, and to top it off, Mitch’s head swung around like he had fucking bat hearing. “You’re right, I have no business prying into your life like that. We haven’t been… close for a really long time. I’m hoping we can fix that?”

His phone chimed with an incoming message. He checked it and looked across the room, leaving little doubt as to its origin. “It seems your uh… Marc found us a decent place to stay for a couple of nights. If you’re up for it, maybe we can all have dinner together? See how we feel ‌about tomorrow?”