Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

Mayson

"Orion don't tell me you're wishing you were with the ladies right now," I said, as we sat down on the couch drinking beer.

"No. I needed time away."

That didn't sound good. "Second thoughts?"

"Yes. But not about marrying Raya. More about why I agreed for Kathy to stay with us for two weeks. I think I'm going to go crazy. I thought you talked a lot. You two are nothing alike."

I laughed. "I told you that before. It's too late now. It's not like you can ask her to leave without causing issues between you and Raya. Looks like you're just going to have to suffer through it."

"Or you can ask her to stay here with you. You have room," he said.

"All I have for a guest to sleep on is a fucking couch! And how can I put this? Hell no! You might be my brother, and I would do almost anything for you, but no way in hell am I doing that," I said firmly.

"Yeah. I had a feeling you were going to say that. But that is why I didn't want to go out anyplace tonight. Just sitting here. The quiet works for me. I never thought I'd miss being alone so much."

"Two weeks. That's all. After that, you can go back to the happy little family you have, and she will go back to the States."

"I want to believe that," he sighed.

"Of course you will. You love Raya and things will be back to normal. If you don't believe me, you can ask Crystal. She's pretty good with advice." I'm pretty good at not taking any.

"She can't help me with this," he said.

"You don't know until you ask. And it's not like you to be so...negative. What's really going on? And don't tell me Grandmother had another dream," I warned.

"Worse than that. This morning over breakfast Joey asked Kathy if she would stay here forever. My heart practically stopped when she replied that she would think about it."

Damn it. That is bad.

"You did tell her no, right?"

"How could I do that? Joey was beaming and I know how close she and Raya are. I guess I am just going to have to learn to live like this," he said.

"You mean sitting on my couch drinking beer while avoiding being home?" I asked.

"Not funny. But yeah, maybe. Is it wrong that I don't want her here? I mean, she's nice and has been very supportive of everything. Heck, even a vacation once a year for a week or two is doable. But living here? Too much. I'm not even sure Tabiq can take it, never mind me," he said, forcing a chuckle.

"I know you're going to think I'm crazy, but I know Crystal can talk to Kathy and get her to see that long term, this wouldn't be the right place for her."

He cocked a brow and looked at me. "You seem to be talking a lot about how wonderful Crystal is. Why is that?" he asked.

I needed to do some backpedaling or he was going to put this all on me instead of what was important, him and Raya.

"As you know, we've spent some time together and I have listened to how she is with people. She's good at reading them and also redirecting them when things are going wrong." Like when Raya was having a meltdown that you don't know about. You're welcome. "It's worth a try. I mean what do you have to lose?"

"A long-term unwanted guest," he laughed. "Okay. Sounds good, but when do you think they will cross paths again?"

"Oh yeah. About that. I may have asked her to be my date tomorrow."

"You invited her to the wedding?" he said, surprised.

"Sorry. I meant to mention that earlier. Is it a problem that I'm bringing her?" I asked.

"Of course not. Just a bit surprised. I mean, you've never brought a date to anything with the family."

Don't remind me.

" She is all alone here. I kind of felt bad for her," I lied.

"And that's the story that you're going to tell? I mean, you're my brother and I know you're not a mean person, but I wouldn't go as far as you would take a woman to a family event just because you felt badly for her."

He was being an ass. He was right, but that didn't change the fact that he was intentionally trying to push my buttons.

"It's not too late. I can tell her she's not welcome," I challenged.

"God. Don't do that. I will never be able to go home," he said, raising his hands in defeat.

A small victory, but I'll take it.

"I'll talk to Crystal. I'm sure she will be happy to help. She's really fond of Raya."

"It's mutual. Raya said that Crystal is a gem. Can't wait for her to find out that the two of you are dating."

"Not dating. Just taking her as my date," I corrected.

"There's a difference?" he asked.

"Yes. Means just one date," I stated.

"Funny. I could be wrong, but a little birdy may have mentioned that you were at the resort for dinner earlier. I wonder who you would've been eating with. Anyone I know?" he teased.

Tabiq will never change. They don't like to talk about their own lives but have no problem spreading gossip about others. "Yes, I was with Crystal before picking you up. As I said, she doesn't know anyone here except for us."

"But she must have expected to be alone. I mean she booked a vacation alone so this was no surprise. What was she planning on doing if you hadn't come along?" he asked.

"Read."

"Read? She traveled halfway around the world to read? I'm sure she could've gone to a cafe or a library. Both are a lot cheaper than coming here. Maybe it was the universe bringing the two of you together," he said. Before I could tell him off, he quickly added, "Sorry, that was from Raya and Kathy. I believe their exact words for the two of you are ‘you look so good together'."

"Maybe Crystal shouldn't help you. I'm beginning to think Kathy would fit in just fine in your house," I glared at him.

"You win. I'll shut up," he said.

Good, because I don't need to be thinking about Crystal any more than I already am.

I held up my half-empty beer and said, "Here is to the last night as a single man."

Orion raised his bottle against mine. "And may you be the next to fall."

No way in hell is that going to happen.