Phoenix (Editing)

Chapter 14 *Edited*

Pierce put his truck in park inside Piedmont Cemetery. He sighed; his hands crossed over the steering wheel as he stared out the windshield bleakly.

"You sure you're up for this?" Helena asked.

Pierce looked over at his little sister. "A little late now, isn't it?"

They were at Ethan's grave site. The anniversary of his passing would be coming up soon, but this was the only time that Helena would be able to steal her brother away. "You could always wait in the pick-up." She goaded him.

Pierce scoffed and opened his door, stepping out into the gloomy day. It was going to rain. The air was pregnant with the smell of it. The wind whipped the leaves about the air. A small maelstrom caught Helena, whipping her hair and dress about as she reached back into the cab for her things before rushing after her brother and out of the vortex.

Pierce laid the cover he'd grabbed down in front of his brother's grave once they'd approached and cleared away any debris and leaves. Helena sat a bouquet of flowers before the headstone and took a seat on the blanket, folding her dress under her. Beside her, Pierce plopped down gracelessly.

"Hey, B.B." She said to her deceased brother, calling him by her nickname for him.

"Hey, E." Pierce rapped the headstone lightly with his knuckles "Been a while, buddy."

Suddenly, as his sister spoke and began updating their brother on the on-goings of her life, he knew he would be expected to do the same. This had been her game plan all along. He'd never really been open about his love life with his family before, but that was because he'd never seriously wanted to date anyone before.

He'd had a few serious girlfriends here or there, nothing longer than two years because he knew ultimately, he didn't want to spend his life with any of those women. He hadn't been ready to settle down. Lena always referred to his girlfriends or lovers as 'what's-her-name' anyway. She claimed she could never keep them all straight. One time he was having work done on his house and she'd asked him if he was finally having a revolving door installed.

Claire felt different. He'd mentioned her to Steph, his best friend, a time or two ... or three. Ok, so Steph was the only one who suspected the extent of Pierce's true emotion's concerning Claire.

He wasn't opposed to telling Lena. Hell, he even wanted to, but then Lena would probably get excited or curious and want to meet her. That he wasn't ready for. His sister could be a bit much. He was afraid of her frightening Claire away. Right now, they were in a tenuous, good, but still tenuous place. He was still earning her trust and winning her heart. And her case was a more special case than most. Claire needed to be handled with extreme care.

Helena leaned over and bumped him out of his reverie with her shoulder. "What's been going on with you lately O.B.?" Other Brother. Ethan was Big Brother. "When we speak on the phone you seem happy but guarded. And now you seem ... "

"Ah, hell, Lena. Don't pick at it. I'm good." He leaned back on his hands and looked up at the dark clouds.

"Promise?"

"Promise." He said exasperated.

She side eyed him. "...because if something serious is going on with you, you need to tell me." She dug.

Pierce laughed and swiped a hand over his face. "Ah! I'm okay, Helena! I swear!"

"Then why do you look so troubled?" She asked turning to face him.

"It's complicated."

"Can you tell me about it?"

Pierce looked at her. Really looked at her. She had already lost one brother and she was probably afraid she was going to lose another. It wasn't anything like that. He sighed, unsure of her reaction. She might be flippant; she might be supportive. "If I tell you, this stays between you and me. You can't tell Mom and Dad and certainly not Grandma! And you also have to promise to let me handle this my way."

"Pierce, what is it?" Concern laced her voice.

Oh, God. She'd used his real name. She thought he was dying.

He thought about how he felt this morning waking up in his bed alone, without Claire beside him. Since Lena was in town, she hadn't spent the night. His heart had ached. They'd only been seeing each other for three weeks now, but they'd spent nearly every day together, and he'd spent every night with her curled up in his arms, her scent lulling him to sleep. He wasn't sure what it meant for Clair, but with each passing second, touch, caress Pierce was falling more and more in love with her. He was falling too deep, too fast; he was on a roller-coaster with no brakes.

The realization struck him fast and hard, and he gave Lena lost eyes. She gasped and hugged him. "I never thought I'd see the day." She mumbled into his shoulder as she stroked his hair. Pierce took a deep breath to collect himself before pulling back. "What's her name?"

He cleared his throat. "Claire."

"So, why's it complicated? She married?"

Pierce laughed again as he remembered how Claire had gotten him to previously back off. "No."

"Kids?"

Pierce swallowed hard. "No. Look, like I said it's complicated, but things are good."

Lena gave him an odd look then said, "Okay."