Page 114

I huffed. “I’m not nervous. I just don’t want to look like Albert Einstein.”

“No one could mistake you for Albert Einstein. Come on. He’s been waiting for this.”

My stomach was turning over and over again, anxiety plowing through my veins with an intensity that threatened to buckle my knees. “I can’t do this,” I whispered, still staring at my reflection.

“Yes, you can. I’ll be right by your side. You don’t have to be nervous to meet Jesse.” He squeezed my shoulders, then turned me away from the mirror and started pushing me through the bathroom door.

My heart was jackhammering in my chest, but I managed to let him lead me out of the room I’d stayed in for three days. As we made our way down the hall, Court took my hand. I let him pull me along until we stopped at a door that was cracked open.

Apprehension crawled through me and I narrowed my eyes at him. With a wry smile, he lifted my hand to his lips and placed a soft kiss on the back of it.

“Court, I’m—I can’t⁠—”

He stepped into my space and cupped my face with his hands. “He’s going to love you.”

I looked up at him, and all my fear and anxious energy must have been bugging out of my eyes because he gave me a sympathetic look and booped me on the nose.

He fucking booped me.

“Everything’s fine, Whit. Just be yourself.”

I opened my mouth to tell him that being myself would probably end up with someone getting stabbed when he pushed me into the room. My heart felt like it was going to explode.

Jesse was sitting in a comfortable-looking armchair set in front of a huge window that looked out into the woods. He turned as we entered, and the joy that lit his eyes—green, exactly like Court’s—made my stomach flip.

He looked so much like Court that it pulled at something in my chest. He was small, too thin, and too pale, but his eyes were green and bright and glowing with a warm affection as he looked up at his older brother.

“You made it,” he said, pushing to his feet. Court walked up to him and wrapped his arms around his brother. He only came up to Court’s shoulder, and he turned his face in my direction as they embraced. His eyes were closed and he looked so content as Court squeezed him, rocking him gently back and forth, that it sent a pang of yearning rushing through me.

It was clear how much they loved each other. It was pouring from them in vibrant waves that danced in the air and made everything seem brighter because of it.

Court murmured something in Jesse’s ear, too low for me to hear, and Jesse nodded. They pulled away from each other and faced me.

“This,” Court said, wrapping an arm around Jesse’s shoulder, “is Jesse.” There was so much fondness and adoration in his voice that it melted something inside me.

“Hi,” I said awkwardly, lifting my hand in a little wave.

“Hi,” he said back, a big smile breaking across his face and showing two adorable dimples on his cheeks. “I’m so happy to finally meet you. Oh!” He turned to pick something up from the windowsill. “I made this for you. Court told me you love flowers, so…” He handed me a small embroidery hoop with a simple yellow daisy in the center.

“You made this for me?” My breath hitched as I took the gift, and when I met his gaze, he was looking at me expectantly.

He nodded, gesturing to the far wall above the bed. There were tons of embroidery hoops filled with different designs hanging on the wall. “I’ve been getting into it lately, I tried knitting but didn’t like it as much.”

I glanced at Court, who had his head tilted to the side, a warm, comforting love in his eyes as he watched me.

I cleared my throat, which had thickened. “Thank you,” I said softly, rubbing my thumb over the flower. “I love it. Thank you, Jesse.”

The blush that spread across his cheeks was endearing, and I already loved him. He really was incredibly kind and sweet. I wondered how he’d grown up to be that way with brothers like Court and Cade.

“Court told me it’s because of you that—” He swallowed hard, then stepped into me and wrapped his arms around me.

For a brief moment, I was stunned. My eyes flew to Court’s, silently asking him what to do, and he just nodded at me, urging me to hug Jesse back.

“It’s because of you that we can afford my treatment, and I wanted to thank you,” he finished quietly. Tears welled in my eyes, and I wrapped my arms around him, hugging him back as a tear spilled down my cheek.

He pulled away, and I brushed off the tear before he could see it. With a big smile, I told him, “It’s not because of me, it’s because you’ve got a brother who loves you more than anything.”

Court made Jesse sit back down—he was out of breath after a few minutes—and when Court sat on the edge of the bed, he pulled me down onto one thigh. I tried to get up, but he just held me down without a word and started talking to Jesse about how his treatments were going, what Frank and the guys in the Sainted had been up to, if he had to beat anybody up, which made Jesse laugh and shake his head.