Chapter 46 Asher Nash

Two More Brochachos

I stare at Grayson and Lincoln on the screen as we hold a video chat at Spencer’s place. This might be a strange situation, but it’s exactly the sort of brotherly bonding our parents raised us to have.

Which is why it’s so goddamn weird that our dad had an entire other family that he never told us about. That he chose us and wrote off his other two kids.

Two more brochachos in the Nash mix.

Are there more?

Maybe. Who knows…and who knows whether we’ll ever learn the truth?

Would he have told me the truth if I hadn’t gotten someone pregnant? I doubt it, but maybe he would have. It’s part of the unspoken bond of closeness we shared—at least I thought it was. Now I feel more than a little betrayed by the man.

“Brochachos,” I say in greeting, and they both grin at me.

“I hear congratulations are in order,” Grayson says to me.

I lift my glass of whiskey, and Spencer does, too. Grayson and Lincoln do the same on the other side of the screen.

“To surviving each other,” Grayson quips, and Spencer and I touch glasses before we each take a sip.

“So what’s the plan?” Spencer asks, directing his question to Lincoln.

It makes sense. Lincoln’s the oldest, and he’s the natural leader.

But Lincoln nods toward me. “This is Asher’s gig.”

I twist my lips as my three brothers turn their attention to me. It’s a rare sight, if I’m being honest. I was always sort of brushed aside. I was the one getting in the way. I was the baby, and now they’re looking at me in earnest as they wait for me to take the stage.

I clear my throat as I try to step up into the shoes Lincoln just left out for me. “I think we should meet them. I think they deserve to know who their father is…who their brothers are.”

“Was there some reason Dad didn’t want them to know?” Spencer asks, trying to look at it from all angles like he always does.

“I don’t have a solid answer to that, to be honest,” I say. “I think he didn’t want to fuck with the balance of the four of us and Mom. Mom didn’t even find out until the twins were teenagers.”

“What did she say?” Grayson asks.

“She knew about them because their mom tracked down Dad when they started showing real talent in football. She wanted him to help them break in, and somehow Mom got wind of it. I think that might be when things started to crumble for Mom and Dad, but she didn’t say as much.” I shrug. “She said they’ve never known who their father was.”

“So they don’t have the last name Nash?” Grayson asks.

I shake my head. “Banks. Tanner and Miller Banks.”

All three of my brothers have recognition in their eyes at the name—just like I did.

They both play for the Cardinals now, and the Cards are at home this weekend.

“I think we should go to Arizona and introduce ourselves to our brothers,” I say.

“I’m in,” Lincoln says.

“I’m down,” Grayson says.

“Depends when,” Spencer says. “I don’t want to miss out, but I need to be at practice Wednesday since I play you assholes next weekend.”

Our bye week is over, and we have practice on Wednesday, too—my birthday, and I’m planning to call in sick so I can spend the day with my pregnant secret girlfriend.

Is that what she is? My girlfriend?

I think she’s somehow more than that, but we haven’t defined it.

“Let’s go now,” I suggest. “It’s a short enough flight.”

He nods. “And I have tomorrow off.”

“So do we. Let’s do it,” I say. They all look at me like I’m a little crazy, and maybe I am. I’m the one who’s spontaneous, who will hop a flight with no baggage, who will leave at the drop of a hat.

It’s not their style—any of them.

I’ve strived my entire life to be more of a leader like Lincoln, to be outgoing and fun like Grayson, to be smart and responsible like Spencer. But I’m not them.

I’m Asher, and maybe it’s time these three be a little more impulsive like me.

“Let’s do it,” Lincoln echoes, and Spencer and Grayson agree.

I guess that means we’re off to meet our long-lost twin brothers.

Now there’s a sentence I never thought I’d say.

Lincoln says he’ll get in touch with the head coach in Arizona, and he texts our group chat to let us know that the coach called in Tanner and Miller, and they’ll be there waiting for us. I feel bad that we’re ambushing them with this news, but the four of us don’t want to go another day without knowing our family.

Spencer and I land a little before eight, and Lincoln and Grayson are already at the airport waiting for us. The team sent a car service to greet us, and we’re taken straight to the team’s practice facility.

The second I walk in, I’m distracted by the twin boys who share so many of my own characteristics.

Blue eyes. Dark hair. Height. Athleticism. There’s some unspoken characteristic about both of them that immediately tells me we’re related to them. They look quite similar, but I can still tell one is more of a combination between Lincoln and Spencer, and the other is a mix of Grayson and me. These two are very well known around the league. Tanner is an incredible quarterback, and I know he’s the taller one. The other one has ridiculous leg muscles, and that’s Miller, the running back.

The coach is there, too, and Lincoln looks at me to take the floor. We haven’t really discussed how we’re going to broach this topic, but now we’re here, and this is where the negative impacts of being spontaneous start to step in.

I think about nodding to him—about letting him take the lead here. But Lincoln is a coach, and there’s a careful line he can’t cross when it comes to coaches talking to players from other teams outside of the appropriate times.

This was my idea, and it’s me who initiated all of this. The responsibility to drop the truth falls squarely on me.

I think about Desiree, and somehow the image of her face in my mind calms and centers me.

“Hi.” I draw in a deep breath. “I’m Asher,” I begin a little awkwardly. They know I’m Asher, and I don’t know how to just blurt out that we know who their father is. “And you may already know Lincoln, Grayson, and Spencer.” I point to each of my brothers.

What the fuck do I say here?

“We, uh…” I glance at Grayson, and he nods encouragingly. “Would you like to maybe go to dinner with us so we can talk?”

“Talk about what?” Tanner asks. He’s definitely a take-control-of-the-situation kind of guy, a trait that translates well to his role on the field.

“It’s kind of…well, we found out some news earlier today, and we wanted to share it with you, but I’m not quite sure how to say it,” I admit.

Tanner glances at Miller before he looks back at me. “Just say it. You came all this way, and this is intense.”

I have no idea what they know and what they don’t know, and he told me to just say it, so I do. “I found out earlier today who your biological father is.”

The twins look at each other and have some sort of secret conversation with their eyes before they both turn back silently toward me.

“You what ?” Tanner asks.

I clear my throat. “It’s Eddie Nash. You’re our half-brothers.”

Their eyes widen as they both stand a bit dumbfounded at the news. Miller backs up and sits on a chair, and Tanner takes a step toward us. “I’m sorry. What did you just say?”

“We’re your brothers,” I say softly, as if a softer voice will soften the shock.

It doesn’t.

Neither of them says a word, and Lincoln nods to me as if to tell me to keep talking.

“I know this is a shock, and I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” I continue. “So do I, to be honest. We’ve gone our whole lives not knowing about you, and all four of us agreed we don’t want to let another moment pass with the six of us in the dark. Our brotherhood is everything to us, and you are a part of that. But we also understand and respect however you want to handle this news going forward.”

The four of us wait with bated breath for a reaction, and finally Tanner glances back at Miller.

“I think we need a minute to let this sink in,” Tanner says.

“Can I talk to the two of you in my office?” their coach finally says, piping into the conversation.

They glance at each other before they follow him into his office, and they shut the door in privacy.

I look to Lincoln to take the lead, but even he seems to be at a loss for words.

“I see the resemblance,” Spencer finally says.

“Between each other?” Grayson asks. “They’re twins, dipshit.”

Spencer rolls his eyes and huffs out a breath. “To us, you idiot.”

He’s not wrong, though both Lincoln and I laugh at the ridiculousness of their conversation. The twins have blue eyes and dark hair like Spencer, Grayson, and me. Lincoln’s the odd man out with slightly lighter hair and darker eyes like Mom, where the rest of us have a stronger resemblance to Dad. And so do the twins.

I shake my head. I discovered my twin brothers on the same day I found out I’m going to be a father.

I still can’t believe it. Any of it.

“Want me to find a place for dinner?” Lincoln asks while we wait for the twins to come back.

He’s met with nods of agreement from the rest of us, and the twins emerge from the office with the coach a few minutes later.

Tanner clears his throat and nods toward his brother. “Miller and I—well, we both feel a little…shocked, I think. We’d love the chance to get to know our brothers, but we’re not quite ready to go public with any of this.”

“We won’t tell a soul until you’re ready,” Lincoln says.

Tanner nods. “We appreciate that.”

“I made reservations at Culinary Dropout for six. You two in?” Lincoln asks.

They glance at each other and nod at the same time.

“We’d like that,” Tanner says.

A quick beat of awkwardness follows, but good ol’ Grayson smashes it with his next question. “What’s the key to telling you two apart? Because you look exactly the same to me.”

All six of us laugh at that.

“I’ve got about three inches on Miller,” Tanner says.

“And I’m the better-looking one,” Miller adds, and it’s the first time we’ve heard him speak—a reminder to always watch out for the quiet ones.

We get another laugh out of that.

“When did you find out about this?” Tanner asks.

“Earlier today, actually,” I say. “I, uh, found out some news, told my dad, and he sort of let it slip.”

“Twenty-nine years, and this was his first slip?” Miller asks.

I glance at my brothers, and they’re nodding along with me.

“He had to know this would come out eventually,” I admit.

What other secrets has he been keeping?

We head toward the restaurant, and on the way, I text Desiree.

Me: Just wanted to update you. I met the twins, and we’re on our way to dinner with them now. I’m in Arizona. Probably spending the night here, but should be back tomorrow. You feeling okay?

Desiree: Better now that I heard from you. Be safe. I hope you get what you need out of meeting them. I’ll be here waiting for you to return.

My heart feels full as I read her words. We might still be on shaky ground, but somehow it feels like everything’s going to be okay.

Someday.

I learned a hard truth today, and it’s going to change the entire dynamic of my family.

Anxiety pierces into my guts as I wonder how the news about Desiree and me is going to change the dynamic of her family, too.