“Which is a shame, because I don’t think Ryder can see beyond the end of the cell phone that’s constantly in his hand long enough to realize.”
She stopped walking. “You’re joking, right? Were you not paying attention tonight?”
Colm gave her a confused look. “Paying attention to what?”
“Ryder was looking at Darcy like she was a chocolate cake. And he wasn’t sharing it with anybody.”
She instantly regretted her comment when Colm scowled. She dropped his hand and raised her own quickly. “Oh no you don’t.”
“Don’t what?” he asked, his tone a bit darker than it had been before.
“You and Paddy and those Neanderthal cousins of yours don’t need to start circling the wagons around sweet, innocent Darcy. She’s fine.”
And with that statement, she’d gone from sticking her foot in her mouth to swallowing all the way up to her knee.
“Innocent?” Colm sounded more curious.
She waved him off and started walking again. “Forget it.”
“She’s still a virgin, isn’t she? I have to admit, I always wondered. She’s never had a sleepover with a guy at the apartment, and she’s lived there nearly three years.”
“We’re not talking about that. I’m sure there’s a girlfriend code, and I’d rattle off the legal number to you if I knew it.”
Colm chuckled, then mercifully let the subject drop.
“Ollie and Gavin weren’t their usual loud, boisterous, frat-boy selves,” she observed, determined to make sure Colm dropped the Darcy conversation for good.
“Yeah. I noticed. They’ve been quiet the last couple of days. Ollie met a girl, and I think he really likes her. I get the impression Gavin is jealous.”
“He likes her too?”
Colm had reclaimed her hand, but this time, it was he who pulled them to a stop. “I think Gavin is jealous of the girl.”
Kelli let that sink in. “Ollie and Gavin? No. They’re just friends, brothers even.”
“You don’t live in the Collins Dorm full-time like I do. I’ve seen some things that make me think the ‘just friends’ line has been crossed a few times. I mean, it’s not like they’re a couple, but…I don’t know. There’s something there.”
“Wow. I had no idea. They both go out on dates with girls all the time.”
“Yeah, but look at how they were raised. Three parents. Sean and Chad are bi, and as much with each other as they are Aunt Lauren. If Ollie’s said it once, he’s said it a million times. He wants a marriage just like his parents have.”
“And he’s picked Gavin as part of that threesome?”
“Gavin’s been a part of that family since he was eleven years old. Maybe he wants the same thing.”
“Maybe, but…” Kelli wasn’t as convinced.
“But what?” Colm prompted.
“I’ve had a few conversations with just Gavin, and I don’t get the impression he wants that at all.”
She and Colm started walking again, both of them quiet. She suspected Colm was digesting that information, weighing it against his own opinions. He’d always been an introspective guy, even back in school. While she and Padraig were more verbal, typically expressing every thought the second they had it, Colm was quieter, and when he spoke, his thoughts were fully formed and measured.
The second she thought his name, she said it aloud—proving she hadn’t changed much from when she was younger.
“Paddy.”
Colm sighed. “Yeah.”
Those two words proved just how in synch Colm and Kelli were when it came to Padraig.
“We knew this was coming, Kell.”
She nodded. She had. Padraig had been very quiet at Friendsgiving, withdrawn. Too many times, she’d caught sight of that vacant, faraway look in his eyes. The one he always managed to shutter away and hide when he realized she was looking at him. Then he’d paste on a fake smile that didn’t fool her one bit and give her a wink she was certain he thought set her mind at ease.
It didn’t.
“I miss Mia,” she whispered, her voice breaking slightly. She hadn’t said those words—hadn’t even allowed herself to think them—in a long time, because the second she did, a heavy weight settled on her chest and she usually wound up crying herself to sleep.
“So do I. I miss my brother too,” Colm confessed.
Kelli turned her face away, trying to wipe away a tear without him seeing. He didn’t let her get away with it. Using the grip on her hand, he tugged her toward him, wrapping her up in a big, strong hug, giving her a second to get herself under control.
They didn’t say anything more. The past two years, they’d said it all…a thousand times. Talked until they were hoarse, trying to figure out how to heal Padraig’s shattered heart. It was the only time the two of them waved the white flag and called a truce, speaking about something that genuinely worried them both, though Kelli hadn’t realized that was what they were doing until just now. The moments when they talked about Padraig were the only times she’d felt some level of solidarity with Colm prior to Halloween.
And this was the first time Colm had ever hugged her after one of these talks, ever offered comfort through touch rather than words.
His silent strength soaked in deeper than anything he could ever say. She sucked in several deep breaths, squeezing him tighter for a second before releasing him. She looked up, giving him a weak attempt at a smile. “Thanks. I needed that.”
He cupped her cheek affectionately, giving her the same sad smile. “So did I.”
Then he bent lower and kissed her. It was a soft, sweet, gentle touch of his lips against hers, but it packed a punch. It didn’t last more than a few seconds, then he pressed his forehead to hers and gave her his signature cocky-ass grin. “We’re here.”
Kelli straightened and looked over her shoulder at her apartment building. “You know, you didn’t have to walk me home. I could have grabbed an Uber.”
“I needed to walk off that dinner. We haven’t even hit Thanksgiving and I’ve already packed on a couple extra pounds.”
Colm was built like
