Sarah Watson

"We need to talk."

I turned around in the Starbucks line to see Adam standing behind me. His cheeks were flushed red, as though he'd been out in the cold or had just ran a mile.

"We do?"

He nodded before running his fingers through his hair. "What are you doing now?"

I gestured toward the line ahead of me. "What does it look like I'm doing exactly?"

His gaze lowered at me, but before he could continue, Joel came sidling up next to me.

"Sorry I'm late, sis, I-" He quickly stopped when he realized Adam was standing behind us.

"Campbell Two," Adam said, with a sharp nod.

"Watson."

I glanced between them. "You two know each other?"

Joel just shrugged as Adam nodded.

"So you're busy then," Adam said.

"A little."

Joel glanced between us. "Did I interrupt something?"

"No," I said, at the same time Adam said, "Obviously".

I shoved Adam away from me. "No. Adam just decided to try and hijack my afternoon without a single call or text. So he's leaving."

"Are you guys going to order or what?" the girl behind Adam asked.

I turned to see that we were next in line. The Starbucks barista had an eyebrow raised at us, clearly mildly annoyed that we were holding up the line.

"So I'll text you then?" Adam asked, as he stepped out of line.

"If you need to."

And with that Adam was gone.

We placed our order and then snagged a booth in the corner.

"What the fuck was that about?" Joel asked.

I shrugged. "Adam being Adam I guess."

Joel leaned back in his seat, kicking his legs up on the booth seat next to me.

"So you were late why?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Are you questioning me?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "I want to know why I was almost stood up."

Joel's smile faltered a bit. "Aiden was over at my apartment."

"Do you know why he's hanging around all of a sudden?"

Joel shook his head. "Don't get me wrong, I like having him around again. But it's fucking strange."

They called for our orders, and Joel went to get them.

"He says he's back in town for me," Joel said, as he sat back down, "but he's never come into town for me before. So I'm not buying it."

I took my coffee, taking a long sip. "How long does he have off of work?"

Joel shrugged. "He's already been here almost a week."

Something definitely wasn't adding up.

"His kids are adorable," I said, with a slight smile.

"Paisley told me I'm her favorite yesterday."

I let out a long sigh. "Of course she did."

He offered me a cheeky smile. "What can I say? It's a gift."

~*~

"I'm so glad I could schedule an appointment with you," Adam said, as he took a seat next to me.

We were seated on a park bench. I was watching Aiden's kids while they were over at mom and dad's house.

I don't know why they couldn't take the kids with them, but I didn't question it because it gave me quality time with his three kids. That was, until Adam insisted that we meet up.

"Just so you know, I totally beat you in our bet."

Adam raised an eyebrow at me in question.

"I had a more enjoyable experience than you."

He chuckled at that. "I don't know that my experience was enjoyable, but I tried something new."

"Let's hear it."

He shook his head. "Yours first, Campbell. It was your idea."

"I went out for a night on the town."

He stared at me, waiting for me to continue. "That's it? That was your enjoyable experience?"

"I got drunk, I tried to keep up with your usual pace but there was no fucking way that was happening."

He nodded, his face impassive.

"And then I went to some guys house, played strip poker, and passed out in his guest bedroom."

Adam threw back his head in laughter. "You were there with Terrence!"

"How did you know that?"

"Because he told me that there were two girls playing strip poker and running around the house in their underwear. He didn't mention it was you though." He shot me a smile. "Who was your partner in crime?"

"Aubrey. She's been my best friend since middle school."

He laughed again. "Fuck, Campbell. You might have me beat."

"Let's hear it."

He glanced towards the kids, who were playing on the jungle gym in front of us. "I spent the morning with your brother, Campbell Two."

I raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Joel?"

Adam nodded. "Went to wrestling practice with him. He said that wrestling was harder than football, so obviously I had to prove him wrong."

I bit back a smile. "And how did that work out for you?"

"I was sore for days." He shook his head. "I could never be a wrestler, too much conditioning for me."

"So did you admit defeat to Joel?"

"Fuck, no."

This time we both laughed.

"So I win then," I said, with a slight smirk.

"I forgot the wager," Adam said, with a sheepish smile. "What do you win, Campbell?"

"I could tell you anything," I pointed out. "If you forgot then I could make the wager anything I wanted it to be."

He rolled his eyes. "Thanks for pointing out why I don't trust you."

I reached over and nudged his shoulder with mine. "You have to do me a favor, anything I ask."

He began nodding. "That's right, I remember now." Then he glanced toward me with a smirk. "But no sex."

I shoved him, hard, causing him to crack up.

"So what are you going to ask me to do, Campbell?" Adam asked.

"I'm going to save it."

He raised an eyebrow at me in question.

"This is too precious of an opportunity to waste," I explained. "So I'm going to save it for the perfect moment."

Adam slowly nodded. "Evil, but I see where you're coming from."

The two of us lapsed into silence.

I watched as Paisley, Aiden's oldest daughter, helped Madelyn, his youngest daughter, up the stairs to the tallest slide.

"So you're a kid person," Adam commented.

I nodded. "Obviously not as much as Joel, he's the all-time favorite. But I think I rank second."

Silence ensued, and I glanced toward Adam.

"What?" he asked.

"Are you going to tell me why you needed to see me?"

He let out a low sigh, running his fingers through his hair.

I continued to stare at him as he leaned back in his bench seat, folding his arms across his chest. "I know that I told you some dark shit while I was blackout drunk."

I slowly nodded. "I thought you didn't want to talk about it. Like it never happened."

He shook his head. "I didn't know what you were referring to, hence the term blackout drunk. I don't remember what happened, Terrence filled me in."

"Oh."

He cleared his throat, glancing toward me. "I was drunk, Campbell. I didn't mean shit."

"So you don't think I have pretty eyes?"

Adam's eyebrows pinched together. "You what?"

I couldn't help but smile. "You told me, when I was trying to leave, that I have pretty eyes."

"Oh."

"And then called me a bitch."

He choked back a laugh. "Sounds like me."

"Well I expect an apology."

He just shook his head. "Fuck off, Campbell."

Silence stretched between us for a few moments as Adam glanced up toward the sky.

"Whatever I told you about my parents, if I said anything about my brothers, just let it go, okay?"

"I can't promise."

He glanced toward me in confusion.

"I asked you to stop talking," I reminded him. "But you did tell me some stuff that I don't know if I can forget."

He let out a long sigh. "I don't wish early onset dementia upon myself. No worries."

"I don't know if I necessarily believe you."

He shook his head. "And what makes you think that?"

"You drink yourself senseless every day-"

"Not every day," he interrupted.

"Right, okay," I said, rolling my eyes. "You drink every day, which tells me you're obviously trying to forget. And that's why I think that you said you had early onset dementia, that way you wouldn't have to drink it away. The memories just wouldn't be there."

A long stretch of silence passed between us.

"Fuck you, Campbell."

And with that he left.

~*~

"Dinner?" Ryan asked me.

I nodded. "Broke college student here. I'll take all of the free food I can get."

He chuckled before passing me a homemade burrito bowl.

Ryan was placing Lizzie in her high chair when the doorbell rang.

"Expecting someone?" I asked Ryan.

He shook his head. "Mer is working late." He glanced towards Paisley, Noah, and Madelyn. "Maybe it's Aiden or Lindsey coming to get the kids."

"He probably would've called first."

The doorbell rang again.

"Well just go and check it," Ryan said, with a nod.

Ryan's door didn't have a peephole, so I glanced out of the window. An unfamiliar car was sitting in front of his house.

"It's probably someone trying to teach you about Jesus!" I called over my shoulder.

He laughed as I opened up the door.

Xavier was standing on the step before me.

All I could do was stare at him as his eyebrows pinched together in confusion.

"Sarah?"

I slowly nodded.

"Is this Ryan's place?"

I nodded again.

"Who is it?" Ryan called out.

"Your brother!" Xavier called out.

I stepped to the side as Xavier came inside.

The kids all stared at him in question as he made his way through the living room and into the kitchen.

"Holy shit." Ryan threw his arms around Xavier, much to Xavier's shock. "Dude! What the fuck are you doing here?"

He cleared his throat. "Mom called me."

Ryan opened his mouth, glancing toward me, but Xavier cut him off before he could say anything.

"She told me about dad's cancer. I figured I should swing by."

I felt the air leave my lungs, my entire body going still.

"Right," Ryan said, with a long sigh. "Not everyone knows yet."

Xavier glanced toward me, his eyes widening.

"What is cancer?" Paisley asked.

Ryan started toward me.

"Don't touch me," I ordered, my eyes filling with tears.

"Sarah-"

"You do a lot of stupid shit, Ryan. But not telling me about dad?" I reached up and wiped my hand across my cheeks, catching some of the tears. "Fuck you."

"Sarah-"

I slammed my way out of the house, stepping outside to get some fresh air.

Everything made sense. Why Aiden had come back, why Xavier had randomly showed up on Ryan's front porch after years.

My dad has cancer. And nobody bothered to tell me.

So what did you guys think about Sarah's evaluation of Adam? Do you think she was right, or did she go too far? And what about Xavier? You've now met 5 of the brothers, kind of. What about Sarah's dad? Why do you think they haven't told her yet?

The picture up at the top was submitted by 50shadesofpotatoes. What do you guys think?

I'm sorry it's been so long. I have a legitimate excuse this time though. I was in a car accident. I wasn't seriously injured, thank God. And the other driver was okay as well. The worst of it was some bruising on my arm and torso, as well as a pretty nasty gash.

Luckily the bruise has started to yellow now, but the gash is infected. So it's been a bit crazy as you can imagine. I also totaled my car, so I've been dealing with that. I promise I didn't abandon you guys. My life just decided to take over for a bit.

Teaser: Adam's POV. He plays his brother, Michael, in a football game.

This book should update on Mondays.