36. Chapter Thirty-Six

Chapter Thirty-Six

Eric

I look at the large logo that I made to hang on the outside of my barn and compare it to the picture on the page. Mia did a great job designing this. Looking down at it, I get a tingle of excitement for what’s to come. I don’t remember the last time I felt this way about my career. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way. It’s a new and welcome feeling to have a sense of thrill at the possibilities that lie ahead of me.

As great as it feels, the joy is dampened by the permanent cloud that hangs over me. It’s been a week since I came back from Cleveland, and everyday feels just as depressing as the last. No matter what I do, I think about how much better it would be with Mia there.

After another hour of working on some projects in my barn, I decide to head inside for lunch. Just as I’m making myself a sandwich, my front door opens, and I hear my brothers shuffle inside.

Asher and Liam walk ahead of three other men that I’ve never seen before. I’m really not in the mood to entertain them and their friends at the moment. They know all about what happened when I went to Cleveland. They should know I just want to be alone right now.

“Hey, bro.” Liam smiles as he takes a seat at my island. “We ran into some strangers in your driveway. They say they’re Mia’s brothers.”

I drop the piece of bread in my hand. I look up and can definitely see a striking resemblance between Mia and the three strangers standing in my kitchen. They all have dark hair and olive skin, but more importantly—they are scowling at me.

I can instantly tell who the leader of the pack is as he stands slightly in front of the other two with his arms crossed over his chest. He is looking at me like he is trying to figure out the best way to end me with the most amount of pain and torture involved. I swallow down my anxiety as I stare back.

“Well, this is awkward,” Liam laughs. “Would you like to join me? I’m guessing you have a few things to say to my brother, and I for one would love to witness it.”

I roll my eyes. “Liam, shut up.” I look over at the man standing closest to me. “Would you like to take a seat outside on the patio?”

It’s a little cold out there but it’s feeling a bit squished in here. I never had that feeling before in this house. It’s very spacious, but it feels like there are six large personalities in here, and my house can’t contain all of them.

Plus, I’ll be closer to the tools in my barn if I need them for self-defense.

“Outside is fine,” he says deeply.

I lead them outside, disregarding my lunch which doesn’t matter since my appetite has vanished. We all sit around my large table. As I wait for everyone to take a seat, my annoying brothers included, I try to think of why they could be here.

Could they be pissed that while I was supposed to protect their sister from harm, I couldn’t keep my hands to myself. Not only that but ended up hurting her. Maybe they want to scare me and make me suffer before they kick my ass.

It’s a little extreme to fly all the way out here to kick my ass.

After we all sit in silence, everyone refusing to speak first, I decide I’m not in the mood for this powerplay bullshit.

“I take it you didn’t travel all the way down here to sit in silence,” I say directly to the guy who seems to be leading this.

“Eric,” Asher says, giving me a look of warning.

I nod my head to him like I know what I’m doing, although I don’t. I don’t even care. If they want to beat me up, go for it. I doubt I’ll feel much of anything since everything has felt numb since I’ve been back.

“We’ll talk when we’re ready to talk,” one of the other brothers bites at me.

The other one gives him a look that I know well. It means shut the hell up. Then he turns his head towards me. “We did come here to get a couple of things straight. I’m Gabe, Mia’s oldest brother.”

Oldest brother. Makes sense. Then he points to the man on his left. “This is Lucas and that’s Marcus.”

I respond with a nod of my head. They all look at me with blank stares now. It’s hard to tell if they are mad or just have great poker faces.

“So, what things do we need to get straight?” I ask as I lean forward and fold my arms over the table.

“We came here to talk to you about our sister,” Gabe starts. “She’s been pretty upset ever since she came back from Savannah, even before the incident that landed her in the hospital.”

My eyes close as shame washes over me. I hate to think that I’m the reason for that incident even occurring.

“I’m sorry,” I reply, no other words come to me.

Should I explain? How much do they know?

“Well, since it’s your fault that she’s miserable, I imagine you should be sorry,” Gabe replies, jaw set tight. “The question we came here for is what are you going to do about it?”

My eyebrows raise, mouth falls slightly. “What am I going to do about it?” I repeat.

“Yes,” Lucas, her other brother, replies. “What are you going to do about it?”

“Well, I don’t think she wants me to do anything. Did she tell you that I came to see her in the hospital?”

“Yes,” Marcus answers me. “She told us that. You told her you loved her.”

“Yes, but she told me to leave. She doesn’t trust me, doesn’t believe that I love her.”

“So, that’s it?” Gabe answers loudly. “You’re just going to give up? If she’s that easy to give up, then I don’t think you actually love her.”

That pisses me off. I slam my hand down on the table. “That’s bullshit. I gave her up because I love her. I’ve spent every miserable minute in this place since she left trying to keep myself away. Once I finally realized my feelings, I got on the plane, quit my job so I could leave, and got to her as soon as I could. But I couldn’t fight her on it. She was lying in a hospital bed because of a man who didn’t know when to stop fighting for her. I couldn’t do that to her again,” I say, as my throat constricts from emotion.

Everyone at the table sits in silence as my words hang in the air. I don’t fucking care who knows how much I love her or if they judge me for the reasons I left her alone, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to put her through anything else that she doesn’t want.

“Look, I respect that decision. I appreciate you looking out for our sister, but that’s our job,” Lucas declares. “But through all of this, did you ever think about the difference between what you mean to her versus what Don meant to her?”

My forehead turns down as I try to figure out what he means.

“I take it by your reaction that you haven’t considered it,” Lucas replies.

“I’m not sure what you’re getting at,” I reply.

Liam rolls his head back and moans. “Dude, open your eyes! Do you need them to spell it out for you?”

Gabe lets a small smirk break free at Liam’s attitude towards me. Apparently, I’m missing a little detail that they all seem to know.

“The difference is that my sister is in love with you,” Gabe says. “She didn’t love Don. Didn’t even like him. The difference is that she’s been crying daily since you left.”

The words hit me like a jolt. I’m momentarily stunned as time stands still. Could that mean I haven’t lost her yet? A smile threatens to break free at the idea that this thing between us might not be over.

“Are you…are you saying that she still loves me? That she still wants me?” I whisper.

“Of course,” Marcus replies. “She’s just scared. She wants to be sure that you really mean it when you say you love her. You need to fight for her. You need to show her that you love her.”

I sit up straighter as ideas start to bounce around my head. I nod. “I can do that.”

“Now…before you get all kinds of ideas,” Gabe states. “I need to know that you are one hundred percent ready to do whatever it takes to be with her. I mean anything. Would you move to Cleveland to be with her? Because if you’re not willing to work with her on how you two can be together, I don’t want you getting her hopes up for nothing.”

That’s the easiest decision I’ve ever made in my life. “Of course, I’m willing to do absolutely anything to be with her.”

“Can I ask you a question?” I say as I look at her brothers. They all nod their heads. “Why don’t you hate me more? I’ve been such a dumbass throughout all of this.”

They all share in a little chuckle which makes me feel oddly self-conscious. Not something I’m used to feeling around a bunch of guys.

“It would be easy to hate you for hurting our sister, but we’ve all made these stupid mistakes with our women,” Lucas replies. “Mia has opened up to our wives about how she feels like she was always the one helping us out during our stupid moments and making it right. This is our way of returning the favor to her. She deserves all the happiness in the world, and if being with you would make her happy, then it’s a no-brainer for us. We trust our sister and her instincts. If she’s in love with you, there’s probably good reason to be.”

I hate the idea that she felt like she did all the fighting for her brothers without anyone doing the same for her.

After I promise to them that I will be taking the time to make sure I know what I’m doing when I do it, they all stand up and head back inside. When we get to my front door, Marcus turns to me.

“One more thing,” he starts. “Next time an Italian visits your house, offer food, wine…something. You’re a shitty host.”

That makes me laugh. I can see these guys becoming extended brothers. I clap him on the shoulder. “Noted, man. I’ll work on my hosting skills.”

After I close the door, Asher and Liam stand there with their arms crossed.

“So,” Liam states deeply.

“Sooo,” I draw out, not sure what he’s looking for.

He rolls his eyes. “What’s your plan?”

I throw my arms up in the air. “They just left two seconds ago. You think I’ve had time to come up with my plan?”

“Well, don’t take too long,” Asher replies. “Come to think of it, make sure you tell us the plan when you come up with it.”

“Why would I do that?” I ask.

His eyes open wide like I should know. “So, we make sure you don’t do anything stupid.”

I chuckle. “Get the fuck out of my house. I need to be alone and think.”

As they walk out, Asher turns. “And when were you going to tell me that you quit your job?”

“Stop distracting me. I don’t have time for that right now.”

I close the door and for the first time since I left Cleveland, I feel a glimmer of hope.

“Dude, this is so weird,” Liam whines as he holds the camera. “Why the fuck did I agree to do this for you?”

I stand straight in my barn with my hands on my hips. “I already told you. Mia said it was something she would love. I’m grasping at straws here. I just want to put a smile on her face. To remind her that despite the drama of the last couple of weeks, we need to remember our time together and how good it was. I want her to remember why she fell in love with me.”

“Yeah, I didn’t think it would be this weird until now,” he whines.

I roll my eyes and adjust my low hanging jeans. “Just take the fucking picture, asshole.”

He bitches and moans the entire way through, but eventually we get all of the shots that I need. I look around my barn to make sure I have everything. I plan to leave in two days when I have everything that I need to make the trip. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone or if I’ll be returning to pack my stuff up and move, but I’m ready for whatever it takes to win her back.

To say that my mom was happy when I told her what my plans are is an understatement. She’s on cloud nine and so relieved that I’ve opened my heart up to love again. I didn’t realize how much stress my misery was causing her.

I also never thought I’d go through such lengths to be with someone. It’s amazing how much clicked when I heard she was hurt. I’ll forever feel shame when I think about what it took to open my eyes to my feelings, but I can’t dwell on that right now.