Three years after his mother's death, Noah Reed is lost once again. Unsure of where to go after running from his problems for so long, he ends up back home, wanting a place to finally settle down. He's ready to tie up loose ends and to try and corre...
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When Dylan arrives at my parent's house the following evening, I'm nervous.
Maybe this is due to not having done the whole "dating" thing in a while, so I'm a little rusty when it comes to family introductions. Or maybe my nerves come from the fact that my family tends to be rather embarrassing at times, and I'm not ready to scare Dylan off quite yet.
I'm helping my mom in the kitchen when Dylan arrives, his presence announced by Grayson, who deems it appropriate to cry from the living room, "Blake! Your new play thing is here!"
My face flushes as I enter the living room, glaring at Grayson as he lays sprawled out on the couch, mindlessly staring at the TV. I know my brother is only teasing me, yet I'm still flustered by his words.
"Don't call him that," I hiss, taking a moment to check my reflection in the living room mirror before I have to get the door.
"Sorry." I turn around as Grayson rolls his eyes, clearly unfazed. "I forgot that your fancy new boyfriend is a doctor. My bad."
"He's not a doctor yet, brainless," I counter, wondering why Grayson seems to be in such a mood. Before I can think better of it, I snap, "And he's not my boyfriend, either."
Grayson averts his gaze from the TV to shoot me a skeptical glance, asking, "Then why is he coming over to meet Mom and Dad?"
I can't seem to come up with an answer to his question, so instead I shoot Grayson a glare before returning to the mirror to fluff my hair. "It doesn't matter," I murmur, hurrying toward the door. "Just be nice, okay?"
Grayson merely snorts in response, returning his attention to the TV. I find myself wondering what's wrong with him, as he rarely acts like this. He's normally a pretty pleasant guy to be around, with his comedic personality that can make anyone laugh. He can befriend anyone easily, and is usually a real charmer when it comes to meeting new people. Yet it seems like Grayson would rather not associate with Dylan at all, which I find to be completely unfair, considering he hasn't met him yet.
I snap out of my thoughts as the doorbell rings, hesitating only a moment before swinging the door open for Dylan, trying for a relaxed smile. As my gaze locks with Dylan's, I find that my smile becomes slightly less forced.
"Hey," Dylan says with a grin, his caramel-colored eyes gleaming brightly.
"Hi," I greet shyly. "Uh, come on in." I move out of the doorway so that Dylan can enter the house, my nerves intensifying once Dylan is actually inside. As I close the door behind him, I think to myself: You always felt at ease in Noah's presence.
Stop comparing Dylan to Noah, good Lord.
In the living room, a moody Grayson is still sprawled out on the couch, scowling at the TV. I wish Reeve were also around, as he's the more sensible one between the twins. Unfortunately, Reeve is nowhere in sight. It's too bad the twins aren't still twelve, as back then all you had to do to win them over was play soccer or football with them, just like Noah was somehow able to—
