And that just filled him with rage again because thanks to his brother, he had no choice but to delay his return. Chasing Dave across the country wasn’t going to be a quick and easy task, no matter how much he wished it could be.
Looking at his phone, he did a quick search for car rental places in the area. There weren’t many, and the smarter thing to do would be to just go to the Tahoe airport, but that was wasting time he didn’t have. The sooner he got on the road, the better chance he had of catching up with his wayward brother. Once he made a mental note of the closest place, Finn pulled up the app for Uber and ordered a car to take him there. There was no way he was flying home, even if it was the fastest way to get there. Finn had a fear of flying and just the thought of getting near an airplane was enough to make him feel a little sick. Hell, even walking back to Atlanta was more appealing to him than flying.
It started to rain and he groaned. It was the icing on the cake of the crappiest day ever. He’d already lost all the money he’d brought to gamble with and now he was going to have to pay to rent a car to get home. His luggage was in his car because he and Dave had planned on leaving tonight after dinner. As soon as they had finished eating, his brother excused himself to use the men’s room and never returned.
Just thinking about it pissed Finn off more than he thought possible.
His ride pulled up just as the rain really started to come down, and he’d never been more thankful for anything in his life. Climbing into the car, he thanked the driver and immediately tried calling his brother again.
“Come on, man,” he all but growled into the phone as the call went to voicemail again. “This is bullshit, Dave. It’s my damn car and I can have the cops on your ass for this!” His driver eyed him suspiciously, but Finn didn’t care. “Just…call me back.” Again, the urge to throw his phone was great, but it would hinder more than help him.
Throwing his head back against the seat cushion, he started thinking his plan through. Maybe he should have just stayed at the casino and waited Dave out. His brother was many things, but he wasn’t despicable enough that he’d strand Finn and steal his car.
Or was he?
The phone rang, and he nearly jumped out of his skin. “Dammit, Dave, where are you?”
A low chuckle was the first response. “Just drove through Fallon, but I’m considering heading south and going back to Vegas,” Dave said. “Remember how cool the strip was?”
Finn mentally counted to ten before speaking. “Fallon’s what…an hour from Carson City? How the hell fast are you driving?”
Laughter was the only response.
“Can you please just stay put and I’ll meet you there so we can head home like we planned, okay?”
“No can do, bro. You see, you wanted to lecture me on how irresponsible I am, so you shouldn’t be surprised by all of this. I mean, we all know Perfect Finn is never wrong.”
If his brother were standing in front of him, Finn would strangle him. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that he’d do it. Dave could test the patience of a saint.
“Shouldn’t you be trying to prove me wrong?” he asked through clenched teeth. “I mean, that is what you normally do! Why do you feel the need to prove me right now of all times?”
“Ha-ha!” Dave said, laughing heartily. “I don’t really care what I’m proving. All I want to do is piss you off just like you pissed me off. Doesn’t feel so good, does it?”
“Dave…”
“Dammit, Finn, where do you get off passing judgment on me?”
“Right now, I think I have every right! You stole my car!”
“Technically, I’m borrowing it.”
“No, you’re not. You’re stealing it. Borrowing it implies I gave you permission, which I did not. And how the hell did you get my keys?”
“When you went to the men’s room while we were waiting for our food, I swiped them,” Dave said flippantly. “So really, you have no one to blame but yourself for leaving them lying around like that.”
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Finn had to wonder how he was going to get through this–or better yet, how he was going to keep himself from beating the crap out of his brother when they were both back in Atlanta.
“Dave,” he began, trying to be reasonable, “you know I need to get home. Let’s just agree that things got out of hand and move on, okay? Now, where are you? I’m in an Uber and can meet up with you.”
The low laugh Dave gave as a response did not fill Finn with hope.
Letting out a long breath, he willed himself–again–to stay in control. “It’s getting late and we’re wasting time here.”
“You got that right.”
“It’s already an almost forty-hour drive back to Atlanta, Dave. Four grueling days of driving,” he added. “We weren’t going to get too far tonight, but we can make up time if you just tell me where you are so I can meet you.”
“Vegas.”
“You’re not in Vegas!” Finn yelled. “It is physically impossible for you to be in Vegas already! Now enough is enough! Do not make me call the cops! I’m serious!”
“Sorry…bad…breaking…up…later…”
“Don’t hang up! Don’t hang up!”
Dave hung up.
The things that flew out of Finn’s mouth would make most people blush, but he didn’t care. When he kicked the seat in front of him, the driver yelled, “Hey!” and that instantly snapped him out of his tantrum. He was screwed; there were no two ways about it. His brother had his car and he wasn’t getting it back any time soon. The
