Slow Burn (Dynasties Seven Sins #7) - Janice Maynard Page 0,26

his heels.

At last, exhaustion claimed him. Back in his room, he showered and tumbled into bed, comatose almost instantly. When the alarm went off at eight, he opened his eyes and groaned. Insomnia had rarely been a problem in his adult life, except for the occasional bout of jet lag. Clearly, being back in Falling Brook was bad for his health.

He sat up on the side of the bed and reached for his phone. If peace and closure were his aims, he needed to work his list. Oliver was Jake’s next priority. After thinking for a moment, he sent a text asking if his younger sibling could meet him at the Drayhill Quarry at ten thirty. It was a spot where the three Lowell brothers had often hiked and played around.

On one memorable hot summer day, they had even taken a dip despite the warning signs posted everywhere. Their mother had found out and grounded them for a month. After that, they still returned now and again to the abandoned quarry, but not to swim.

What appealed most was the isolation. At the quarry, they were free to be on their own. No parents breathing down their necks. No teachers demanding excellence.

But that was a long time ago.

Jake dragged his attention back to the present. While he was brushing his teeth, the text ding came through. Oliver would be there.

Jake was nervous. Once upon a time, the three brothers had been tight. But Jake had let his father’s actions drive him away. He’d lost Nikki, his brothers, everything. Now a chance for reconciliation beckoned. Jake knew he didn’t deserve anyone’s forgiveness—least of all, his baby brother’s.

After a few sprinkles of rain overnight, the mild weather had continued today. A weak sun shone down, making the morning slightly more cheerful. The drive out to the quarry was familiar but different. The old rutted road was worse now. Jake’s fancy rental car took a beating. He parked by the gated fence and waited.

Soon, Oliver showed up in a late-model sedan. When the other man climbed out, Jake felt a wave of emotion he rarely allowed himself to acknowledge. This was his sibling, the man who was part of him. His blood and kin.

The two men embraced without speaking. Jake’s eyes were damp when he pulled back. “Good to see you, Ol.”

Oliver’s brilliant blue eyes twinkled with happiness. “Took you long enough to contact me. I started to think you hadn’t really come home at all.”

“Sorry about that. I had to deal with some urgent business first.”

“Yeah. Joshua told me. You have a baby. Right?”

“Well, Emma is four. But yes.”

“Must have been quite a shock.” Oliver’s eyes held empathy.

Again, Jake’s throat was tight. “On a scale of one to ten, I’d say a fifty. I don’t know what I’m going to do about it.”

“Joshua told me Nikki Reardon is the mother?”

Jake nodded. “I assume you remember her?”

Oliver snorted. “Are you kidding me? Of course I remember Nikki. You panted after her for years. It was painfully obvious that you were a one-woman kind of guy.”

“Well, I screwed that up, too. I abandoned her just like I abandoned my brothers. I’m sorry, Oliver. Sorry for what happened to you.”

“I doubt you could have done anything. Josh tried to reach me. Mom did, too. But I was so damn angry. The anger ate me alive.”

“Will you tell me what happened? If you want to,” Jake said quickly. “I only had snippets from Josh.”

“Sure,” Oliver said. “But do you mind if we walk out to the falcon? I need to stretch my legs.”

They climbed the fence and set off, striding along the makeshift trail that wound around the quarry. The underbrush was heavy. At times they had to scale fallen trees. After three quarters of a mile, they reached their destination. The falcon was an enormous boulder, shaped vaguely like Han Solo’s famous spaceship. The broad, flat surface was perfect for hanging out, drinking beer or simply enjoying the summer sun.

Today, the November water below wasn’t blue. It was murky and threatening. No temptation at all to chance a swim.

They sat down and got comfortable.

Oliver pitched a pebble into the quarry, his expression pensive. “I headed out for Harvard just a few weeks after you left. I was glad to leave Falling Brook, even though my tuition was only paid up for a year. I was furious with Dad. That anger moved with me, fueling the usual freshman-year screwing around. But I couldn’t let it go, even