“Cage and Hugh know what’s going on, and you’ve left me and Georgie out. That’s sexist. And rude. Have women not been through enough, for God’s sake?”
I groaned. “This is not me being unfair to you for being a woman. You’re acting insane. They don’t know anything.”
The door whipped open, and Hugh stepped inside. With both he and I in the closet and then you add in petite Brinkley, it was getting a little crowded. I stepped deeper into the abyss of all of Georgia’s holiday boxes and luggage.
“Why are we in the closet?” he asked, before taking a long pull from his beer.
“I’m pissed that he told you guys what’s going on but left out me and Georgie. You know how I feel about picking sides between men and women.”
“Ahhh… so you think he’s a sexist pig for telling us that he has real feelings for Reese and not telling you? You aren’t always the best secret keeper, Brinks.”
“For fuck’s sake. Apparently, neither are you. I told her you didn’t know anything.” I threw my hands in the air.
The door opened again, because heaven for-fucking-bid anyone in this family have a private conversation. Now it was Cage stepping inside, with Georgia right behind him, shoving themselves in and pulling the door closed.
“I figured it had to be something good, seeing as you’re all packed into the closet.” Cage pushed Hugh back a little so he could stand all the way up.
“Georgia, apparently, Finn doesn’t feel that we should be in the know about his real feelings for Reese and that their relationship is not fake. Just as I suspected.”
“Actually, I was the one who suspected it first,” Cage hissed. “And don’t be all righteous. He didn’t want to tell you they were banging because you’d tell him that he had to confess his feelings to her first. And that would have run her off.”
“Yes. The Reynolds men should always lead with the penis,” Hugh said, crushing his beer can after taking the last sip.
“You’re sleeping with her? Jesus, Finny. You should have established the relationship before you went there.” Brinkley poked me hard in the chest. “This is why you come to us first and not these jackasses.”
“Way to go, brother. Once again, we hadn’t shared that. And I’d rather not be in the closet discussing this with you guys while Reese is out there.” I ran a hand through my hair. “Her fucking parents are ten feet away. Can we not do this right now?”
“Well, you should have thought of that before you did it. This is just like tip-of-the-penis-gate. You need to think before you act.” Brinkley poked me in the chest again.
“All I do is fucking think about it, okay? This wasn’t something I took lightly. I wouldn’t have gone there with her if it wasn’t—I don’t know…” I hissed, trying to keep my voice low. “It’s just more, okay?”
“Finny.” Georgia wrapped her arms around me. “You love her, don’t you?”
“I’ve always loved her, so I don’t know how to tell what it means. But yeah, I’ve never felt this before.”
“Do you see this as the long game?” Brinkley asked.
“Listen, she still has Carl in the picture. He’s single again. She didn’t want to end things with me early, so maybe that’s a good sign. But at the same time, I’m fucking terrified. I don’t know if I’m any good at this. What if I push for it and then I fuck it up?”
“Then we’ll have to kill you,” Brinkley said, her voice void of all humor before she barked out a laugh.
The door whipped open and in waddled a very pregnant Dylan. “Hey, what is the rule we have about family meetings?”
“Keep the talk short?” Cage asked, and she chuckled.
“If one goes, we all go. I’m offended that you’ve all disappeared and didn’t invite me.”
“Well, no one here was actually invited,” I said. “They just keep coming in.”
Dylan pressed about what was going on, and Georgia and Brinkley took turns bringing her up to speed, and I took Cage’s beer from his hand and chugged it.
“We need to get back out there. Everyone is going to notice we’re gone.” I made an attempt at the door, and this time it was Dylan who pinched me.
“Don’t you dare leave before I give you my two cents,” she said.
“Aren’t pregnant women supposed to be sweet?” Cage asked over his laughter.