It isn’t until Ian stands up that I notice he’s in a pilot’s uniform. Ben immediately motions toward me. I’m not gonna lie, meeting new people is awkward enough. But meeting Ben’s family is a whole new level of awkward.
“Ian, this is Fallon. Fallon, Ian.”
Ian immediately steps forward and grabs my hand, shaking it. He and Ben look so much alike, I can’t help but stare. He’s got Ben’s strong jaw and they have the same mouth, but Ian is slightly taller and has blond hair.
“And Fallon is your . . .” He leaves the sentence hanging, waiting for Ben to finish it. But Ben stares at me and waits for me to finish it.
What the hell? Talk about being put on the spot.
“I’m Ben’s . . . plotline?”
Ben laughs loudly, but Ian cocks a curious eyebrow. He looks even more like Ben when he does this. “You finally writing an actual book?” Ian asks him.
Ben rolls his eyes and grabs my hand to pull me back toward the stairs. “She’s not my plotline, she’s my girlfriend and today is our one-year anniversary.”
Jordyn is in the living room now, standing next to Ian. They’re both looking at Ben like he’s been keeping the world’s biggest secret.
“You’ve been dating for a whole year?” Jordyn asks, directing her question at me. Before I can tell her he’s only kidding, she throws her hands up in defeat. “Ben, you told me you weren’t bringing a plus one! I didn’t order enough chairs and oh, my God, it’s probably too late!” She storms out of the room to go make an unnecessary phone call.
I slap Ben on the arm. “That was so mean! She’s already stressed as it is.”
He laughs and then rolls his eyes dramatically with a groan. “Fine.” He follows after Jordyn and as soon as it’s just me and Ian in the room, the front door opens. Again. Jesus Christ, how many people can fit in this house?
When the next guy walks through the front door, he sees Ian first. They hug and he slaps Ian on the back. “You said you didn’t come in until tomorrow.”
Ian shrugs. “Miles took today’s runs for me so I could get here sooner. Weather is supposed to be bad tomorrow and I didn’t want to get delayed.”
The brother I don’t know yet says, “Dude, if you would have missed the rehearsal dinner, Jordyn would have my . . .” His voice trails off when he notices me standing in the middle of the living room. I expect him to say something, but he just carefully eyes me up and down with suspicion, as if they don’t have visitors very often. Ian steps in and motions toward me.
“Have you met Ben’s girlfriend?”
The guy’s expression doesn’t change, other than an almost unnoticeable arch of his brow. He quickly straightens up and walks toward me. “Kyle Kessler,” he says, extending a hand. “And you are?”
“Fallon,” I say in a slightly intimidated voice. “Fallon O’Neil.”
Unlike Ian and Ben, Kyle doesn’t give off the welcoming vibe. It’s not that he gives off an unfriendly vibe . . . he’s just nothing like his brothers. He’s more serious. More intimidating. For a second, I see him glance at the left side of my face and it makes me wonder what he thinks of Ben for bringing someone like me home. But then I remember Ben’s words to me upstairs, and how lucky Ben is to have brought someone like me home. Rather than follow through with my initial urge to let my hair fall in my face, I stand taller—more confident. Kyle releases my hand when Ben walks back into the living room.
“All is well with Jordyn,” he says. Ben stops short when he sees Kyle. His eyes widen a little, as if he’s shocked to see Kyle, and I notice a shift in his demeanor. He tries to cover it up with a smile. “You said you wouldn’t be home until tonight.”
Kyle drops his keys onto a nearby table and then points at Ben. “We need to talk.”
I can’t place the tone in Kyle’s voice. He doesn’t sound outright angry, but he also doesn’t seem to be pleased with Ben.
Ben shoots me a reassuring smile before following Kyle out of the room. “Be right back,” he says.
I’m left alone with Ian again. I shove my hands in the pockets of my jeans, unsure of what to do with myself while I wait for Ben.
Ian bends down and scoops up the little white dog at his feet. He nods his head toward the stairs. “I haven’t showered in three days. That’s where I’ll be if either of them asks.”
“Yeah,” I say. “It was nice meeting you, Ian.”
He smiles. “You too, Fallon.”
And now I’m alone. These last few minutes have been all kinds of strange. Ben’s family is . . . interesting.
I look around the living room, trying to get a clue as to who Ben is. There are pictures on the mantel of him and his brothers. I pick one up to get a closer look. It’s hard to tell now, but in the earlier pictures it’s clear that Ben is the baby and Ian is the oldest. I just have no idea how many years separate the brothers. Maybe two or three?
I don’t see any pictures of their mother anywhere. It makes me wonder how long ago she died and where their father is. Ben hasn’t mentioned anything about him yet.
I hear a loud thud come from the hallway. Worried it might be Jordyn, I walk in that direction. I immediately pause when I see Ben pressed up against the wall with Kyle’s arm against his throat.
“Are you an idiot?” Kyle says through clenched teeth. Ben is looking at Kyle like he wants to kill him, but he isn’t making an effort to fight back. Just as I’m about to rush down the hallway to pull Kyle off of him, Ben catches sight of me out of the corner of his eye. Kyle then turns to see what caught Ben’s attention and as soon as he sees me, he takes a step back, releasing Ben.
I’m so confused by what just happened. Kyle is standing between Ben and me, looking back and forth between us. Just when it looks as if he’s about to turn and walk away, he spins around and decks Ben right in the eye, slamming him into the wall behind him.
“What the hell!” I yell at Kyle. I rush to Ben and he holds up a hand, keeping me at a distance.
“It’s okay,” he says. “Go upstairs. I’ll be up in a minute.” He’s covering his eye with his hand, and Kyle is still standing there, looking like he wants to hit him again. But he immediately backs down when Jordyn comes rushing around the corner to take in the scene. She looks back and forth from Kyle to Ben in shock, like this is completely out of character for both of them.