Slow Grind (Men of Mornington Book 1) (7 page)

“Speak of the devil. I was just with Sam. What’s going on? Aubrey talking about how sexy I am?” I laugh and wait for his response.

“Actually, no. Aubrey isn’t talking about how sexy you are, but it’s cute of you to think she’s thinking about you since you’re obviously thinking about her,” Aubrey answers instead of Max, and it takes me a few moments to recover.

“Shit, sorry, Aubs,” I mutter, cringing.

“Yes. Yes, you are.”

“I thought you were Max.”

“Well, I
am
calling from his phone.”

“Okay. I’m not getting out of this, am I?”

“Nope. It’s going to follow you forever.” She laughs, and I smile in spite of how stupid I feel. “There’s a reason I’m calling. I need to know if you can pick me and Max up tomorrow afternoon and take us back to his apartment?”

“I thought you were staying in Mornington?”

“That was before my mum became a hovering buffoon. Can you or not? I can call Cam or Emma if you’re not available.”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll be there. Lunchtime good?”

“Perfect. Thanks, Drew.”

The sound of my name on her lips does strange things to me. She’s always called me Andrew, so to hear what I prefer to go by, it’s a new and welcomed feeling. Maybe it shouldn’t be so welcomed. Gosh, maybe the guys were right to worry about me. I may not act on them, but the thoughts in my head are enough to send me straight to Hell.

“I’ll see ya.”

“Bye,” she says and disconnects the call.

Placing my phone on the passenger seat, I spend the rest of my drive home thinking about how I’m going to get my best mate’s little sister out of my head.

Chapter Six
Aubrey

It’s barely been twenty-four hours and I’m ready to fly back to the States.

It’s not that my mum is trying to be overbearing, it’s just the way she is these days. I’m not sure why she waited until we were adults to become “that” parent, but it’s obvious by the way she’s hovering over Max in the day I’ve been here, and now she’s starting on me. I know she’s trying to make amends or whatever with me, but like Max said when he didn’t know I was listening, she has to give me time. I’m not ready for all of this yet. With Max, though, it’s almost worse than him being at a hospital where the nurses are constantly in and out, prodding and poking, never letting anyone get any sleep. Max dropped a book from the bedside table last night and you would have thought the smoke alarms were ringing if you would have seen how quickly she came running into the room.

“Mum, I have an idea,” I say, walking into the kitchen where she’s brewing yet another pot of coffee. It’s probably her third today. That can’t be healthy.

“What is it, Aubrey?” The sugary tone she used over the phone less than a week ago is gone, replaced with the disdain I usually get from her. Then again, she looks pretty ragged, like she hasn’t slept in days.

“I decided I won’t be going back until we figure out what’s going on with Max. The guys think they’ve found something that might be able to help, and I want to be here for them and Max.”

“Okay, and…? What’s your question? I have some errands to run before Max has to be at the doctor’s office,” she snips, and I wince. This is why I can’t let my guard down around her. If I let her back in, she’ll just end up hurting me again.

“Alright,” I sarcastically drawl to mask the hurt. “Basically, it’s not a question, just giving you a heads up. Max and I are going to go back to his apartment. I won’t be working and I’m finishing the last of my courses online. I might as well keep busy and be his built-in nurse.”

“That isn’t going to work. My appointment this afternoon is with the real estate agent. We’re putting the apartment on the market. Max already agreed and signed the papers. I just have to drop them off along with a set of keys.”

“Well, don’t do that. Max and I spoke about it last night. Also, I’m pretty sure Max has been on some serious medication over the last few weeks. I doubt he was even legally able to sign those documents.” The attitude in my own voice shocks me and I consider toning it down but don’t. “And let’s be honest. We can’t live under the same roof. You don’t like me anymore than I like you. This is better for everyone.”

“How can you say I don’t like you, Aubrey? I’m your mother.” I can sense the pain behind her words—her small talk with Max last night ringing in my head—but it doesn’t affect me like it would have nearly a decade ago. I’m no longer the little girl who wants to please everyone. I’ve come to accept there are going to be people who don’t care for me, and it just so happens my mother is one of them.

“Can we not have this conversation? I have to get my suitcase packed back up and get Max’s stuff together. Drew is going to swing by and help me haul everything to the apartment. He should be here within the hour.”

“So that’s it? You and your brother are just leaving?”

“Basically. You’re more than welcome to visit. With notice, though. Max needs to rest comfortably, and you’re hovering. I’ll let you know what the guys find out about whatever it is they think they found.”

“Fine,” she exhales, defeated. “Aubrey,” she calls me back as I walk out of the kitchen to head upstairs.

“Huh?” I answer, wishing I didn’t have to engage in any other conversation with her. This one took just about everything I had in me away. I need to save my patience for Max’s recovery, if he’s going to have one.

“I
do
love you, you know. There’s a lot you don’t know, and one day I’ll fill you in. Just know that I’m your mother and I love you. You’re a part of me. We might not get along all the time, but that doesn’t take away how much I care for you.”

“Okay.” I acknowledge her statement, consider turning and running for a hug, but instead I bolt up the stairs. My mother’s always been concerned about appearances and less about emotion. In twenty-one years, I can’t remember a single time she’s expressed any kind of love like she just did. It could be because the idea of mortality is staring us in the face again, or she’s wanting to put on a show, or maybe she truly means it; unfortunately, it’s going to take some digging to find out and I can’t do that while I’m under her thumb.

*****

“Just like that? She’s letting us leave?” Max asks as I throw the few belongings he brought over from his place into a suitcase when our mum all but kidnapped him.

“Bro, you’re closing in on thirty in a few years. She can’t keep you here.” I laugh and continue packing.

“Still … you know her. If she doesn’t get her way, she turns a little nutty. She’s not even been up here to pull a guilt trip or anything. Did you break her?” While he’s talking, he’s pulling on his socks and shoes, and tossing the few things I found under the bed in his suitcase.

“I might have, but let’s start questioning what’s going on when we’re on the way to your place, okay? She might have a change of heart, and God forbid you break her heart.”

“You guys about ready?” Drew asks, stepping into the room. I swear the guy just shows up. Nobody ever hears a doorbell ring or his footsteps approaching. One second he’s not there, then the next, boom, there he is.

“Yep. My suitcase is on the bed in my room if you want to grab it for me, please,” I ask, finishing off in Max’s room and helping him grab a jacket.

“It’s all zipped up, right? I don’t want to run across anything I shouldn’t see.” Drew waggles his eyebrows, and I can’t help but roll my eyes.

“Actually, I should go check. I have a double-sided dildo I was saving for Emma when she finally came to visit. Wouldn’t want you seeing that, now, would I?” I tease. Drew’s face contorts and Max howls with laughter—a laugh I’ve not heard in so long—but it’s so welcome, I want to keep hearing it.

“You know, there are plenty of other women you could have mentioned. Why my sister? Why put that image in my head?”

“Because your sister has ass for days, Drew.”

“Oh my God, I’m going to pass out,” Max sputters. I glance back at him to give a sly wink. He has tears streaming down his face and he’s clutching his stomach. This might be the best thing I’ve ever seen. Ever.

“Can we get on the road, please?”

“Hold your horses, Drew. I was just getting ready to tell you all the dirty things I was going to do with your sister. First, I was thinking about…”

“No!” Drew cuts me off and my smile widens. “We’re not talking about Emma for at least a week. I’m grabbing your suitcase and I swear, if a dildo pops out, I’m putting it on your mother’s bed with a note about how disturbed her daughter is.”

“You can if you want, but she already knows. And you never know, my mum’s always been into younger guys. She might get a kick out of you leaving a sex toy on her bed,” Max adds to the roast session.

“I can’t win with either of you. There should be a warning sign before you enter this house. ‘CAUTION: The Rosewood siblings are absolute wankers and can’t be trusted.’”

Drew doesn’t wait for either of us to respond before he hauls ass to my room for the suitcase and heads down the stairs. Laughing with Max, I grab his suitcase, and he assures me he doesn’t need any help. I stay by his side, just in case, as he slowly descends the staircase. Together, we get into Drew’s car—me in the front and Max in the back, so he can stretch out.

As the car pulls further away from the neighbourhood we all grew up in, it’s a strange feeling. Australia was home to me for so long, but I never really explored. I spent time at the University with my dad and went to restaurants in the city, but that was the extent of my travels. A nervous excitement settles over me as I realise the fear I had when I got into town about not ever seeing Max in his natural habitat—his apartment, on his own—is no longer a fear. I peek in the backseat to tell him how happy I am to get to see his place, but he’s already asleep. The meds the doctors have him on really do a number on the amount of time he’s actually awake. I know it’s for the best, to keep him out of pain. I’ll just have to remember to cherish the moments, like the one from earlier in his bedroom. They might come few and far between as his illness progresses.

When I turn back around, Drew’s watching the road, but periodically, I notice him looking down at my bare legs.
Has he never seen a girl in a skirt before? Geeze.

“Can I help you?” I ask the next time I see his gaze drift to my knees.

“What?” he chokes out, pulling his eyes back to the road.

“You keep looking at my legs. Did I miss a spot shaving or something?” I ask sarcastically. I’d say one of the best things about spending your teenage years in a big city like New York, you learn a lot about the opposite sex: how to deal with catcalling and owning your body. I wear the clothes I wear because I’m comfortable in them, even if some people think they’re a little too risqué for everyday attire. And even with the looming crush I harbored for Drew as a kid, I love that I can be blunt and honest and even call him out on his creeper stare.

“I didn’t realise I was doing it. I’m sorry.”

“They’re great legs.” I grin. “I might be a little pissed if you weren’t looking.”

“You can’t say shit like that to me, Aubrey,” Drew chokes out, and the old feelings I used to feel when he would look at me, even though he didn’t really see me, resurface.

“He’s right, Aubrey. You can’t say shit like that to him,” Max chimes in from the backseat. I straighten in my seat, feeling uncomfortable, like I did when my dad caught me and my ex-boyfriend making out in the living room during summer break last year. There’s something awkward about family catching you out in such a personal situation.

“Christ, Max. Thought you were asleep.”

“I was resting my eyes, little sister. I wasn’t resting my ears. At least I can count on Drew to be on his best behaviour. It must just be you I need to keep tabs on.”

“I was just joking.” I laugh nervously.

“Uh huh. Sure you were,” Max chastises.

I look over at Drew and mouth “sorry.” He smiles in response and glances at my legs again, knowing I can’t say anything about it this time. With a sly wink and lazy grin, he goes back to exclusively watching the road and I quickly realise playfully flirting with Drew isn’t going to lead anywhere good, especially since he’s won the first round.

Needing to break up the tension, I pull out my phone and text Jacey, hoping she’s awake at this hour. If it’s a little after noon here, it’s the middle of the night in New York. My only saving grace is going to be if she’s out partying or up studying.

Me: I miss your face.

I set the phone in my lap and stare out the front window, refusing to make eye contact with Drew. I feel Max’s gaze burning a hole in the back of my head, but I still ignore it. The feeling ebbs when my phone starts vibrating.

Jacey: More than you’ll know. Why are you up so late?

Me: I’m like 14 hours ahead of you, Jay. It’s Wednesday already.

Jacey: I keep forgetting LOL

Me: Are you studying or partying?

Jacey: Neither. I’m talking Nate off a ledge. The kid misses you and it’s only been a few days.

Me: Oh gosh. Tell him to get a grip and go fuck someone else.

Jacey: I even offered a pity fuck, but he wasn’t having it

Me: Careful. The guy catches feelings quicker than a woman.

Jacey: It’s kind of cute how much he loves you.

Me: It’s kind of cute how I don’t care. He needs to stop. I have over a dozen missed calls and twenty texts.

Jacey: Give the guy a break. He’s in lurve. What are you doing?

Me: Kidnapping my brother from the grips of my mother’s house. We’re heading back to his place.

Jacey: Can he even drive? I know you can’t LOL

It’s true. I never got a driver’s licence. It wasn’t really needed in New York, where you travel by taxis or subway. I also never had the chance to get one in Australia, since I left when I was twelve. I’d have no idea how to operate a vehicle on the wrong side of the road. Or is it the right side? Who the hell knows.

Me: Drew’s driving.

Jacey: Drew? THE Drew? How’s he looking?

Me: Better than he should.

Jacey: Show me!!!

Debating how I can get a picture of Drew without coming off weird, I pause my text session with Jacey to think about it a little. Then, genius hits.

“Hey, guys, take a picture with me so I can send it to Jacey back home. She misses me and doesn’t know what you look like.”

“This
is
your home, Aubrey,” Max pouts in the back seat.

“I know, still… Please? Look, we’re at a stoplight. Get in here, Max.” I lean into Drew, he leans into me and Max sits up. When we’re all in the frame, I stick my tongue out and the guys smile.
Click
. Perfect. I load the picture into the messages and hit send. It’s a few minutes before Jacey responds.

Jacey: Well shit. He’s a god!!!!!