A Long Time Coming (Cane Brothers, #3)(21)

“Yeah, can’t really talk about it for legal reasons, but thanks for the support.” Wouldn’t talk to him about it anyway. Not going to willingly hand him fodder to hurt me with somehow.

“Aw, sure, yeah. I get it. I’m sure your team is handling things.”

“Like they always do.” I smile just as the server comes up to our table. We put in a quick order of sodas as well as two steak salads, and then she takes off.

“So,” Brian starts. “Lia told me she told you about the big news.” Unfortunately.

“Yeah, congrats, dude,” I say, feeling so fucking awkward that I actually despise myself at the moment. The fakeness is making me feel icky. “You already know this, but you’re going to marry the best girl out there.”

“I do know it. I’m really fucking lucky and so glad she said yes. When I proposed, there was a bit of a pause in her answer, and I thought she was going to say no. But I chalked it up to a hitch in her breath from excitement before she said yes.”

Huh, interesting.

Bet you there was a pause for a reason.

In my hopes of hopes, it’s because deep down she knows . . . the guy is not meant for her.

“The ring is amazing, too,” I say, even though I don’t mean it. The ring is an abomination.

“Thanks. When I saw it, I immediately thought of Lia.”

Not sure how, but whatever.

“So five weeks? That’s pretty quick,” I say.

“My mom is pressing it to be five weeks. There’s a reason behind it. Lia must have told you she was apprehensive about the timeline.”

“Yup,” I say, not wanting to speak for Lia but also wanting to stand up for her.

“Yeah, it’s quick for me too, but the reason is all there. I’m just glad you’ll help her through it. Lia said now that you have time off with the investigation, you can go to the appointments with her. My mother can be strong-willed, so it will be good that you’re there to help Lia. Just wish I could, but I’m totally slammed at work.”

“I’m sure.” I rub my hand over my jaw. It’s time to be the bigger man. I mean, I’m the better man of course. “So since you guys are going to be married soon, I thought it would be good if we got together and, I don’t know . . . just talked. Maybe get some grievances off our chest that we might have and start on a clean slate. I feel like there’s been some tension between us. Or have I been reading the situation wrong?”

“Nah, things have been weird,” he admits. “I think it was after that chatter about the stocks. Things went downhill from there.”

Well, hell, I didn’t expect him to be so honest and upfront. Got to give the man credit for that.

“Yeah.” I twist my glass on the table, the condensation collecting on the wood. “That was when things got weird.”

He leans back against his booth seat and undoes the buttons of his jacket. “I’ll be honest. I felt intimidated by your friendship with Lia and of course your success with your brothers, and I went about it in all the wrong ways. I’m sorry about that.”

Huh . . .

This is, well, this is not what I anticipated. I expected him to maybe place blame on me, or say nothing was wrong, or even pick a fight, but this . . . yeah, I don’t know how to handle such honesty.

I grip the back of my neck. “Thank you for the apology. That, uh, that means a lot, man.”

“Yeah, I should have done it a while ago, maybe things wouldn’t have been so awkward between us and we could have hung out more, but pride is a funny thing.”

“I get that. I probably should have approached you earlier too.”

“Why are you approaching me now? Besides the wedding coming in close.”

I shrug. “Just thought that maybe it would be best for everyone. I think Lia sensed the tension between us, and she’s already stressed, so I didn’t want to stress her out even more. I thought if I could remove a stressor for her, it might ease her mind.” I want to say ease her apprehension, but fuck would that open a door I don’t want to walk through with Brian.

“Thoughtful,” he says with an edge. Now that was the kind of tone I was expecting, not the happy-go-lucky guy I was just talking to. In seconds, I watch his posture stiffen, his expression grow hard, and the smooth edges of his jaw become jagged.

Sound the alarm . . . the man is on alert and ready to strike.

And here I thought he was going to be mature.

*Mentally rubs hands* This is what I was waiting for.

Keeping an easy-breezy tone, I say, “And with you guys getting married, I don’t want to lose her. I know things will change because she will be your wife, and I’m going to respect that. I won’t be able to drop in all the time as I do now, and I know our friend dates will be few and far between. I just don’t want any awkwardness to get between us.”

Brian nods. “I can understand that.”

It’s all he says.

He doesn’t reassure me.

He doesn’t offer up a plan that could solve my anxieties over losing Lia.

Just a simple understanding. My suspicions were correct. Once they get married, it’s going to be hell on earth to hang out with Lia. And let’s be honest. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn’t want the best friend to crowd my marriage either. Especially if I was marrying Lia—which would be weird—but I wouldn’t let him near her.