Page 28 of Forever Only Once

“Yes, I know, but I could really use some legal advice.”

“I bet we know someone,” Prior added.

“I thought once Liam got back from his tour, I’d talk to him.”

“Or you can shoot him an email now,” Nate said. “And not wait until he gets back. It’s going to be what, a couple of weeks?”

“I know, but then I’ll have to talk to Chris, and I don’t want to,” I grumbled.

“Very mature of you,” Macon said. “Anyway, I still have the name of the lawyer I used for my practice,” he said.

“Maybe. Thanks. The guy I used retired,” I said.

“They tend to do that once they reach seventy,” Prior said. I rolled my eyes.

“Anyway, the lasagna will be a bit. I was late because I was into my work, then I got delayed even more with Chris.”

“No worries,” Nate said. “I could probably eat this entire salad on my own, though.”

“That’s why I brought a shit ton of bread,” Prior said.

“I’m going to have to work out twice as hard tomorrow morning before my shift if I’m going to work this off,” Macon said, tapping his flat abs.

“I’m sorry it’s happening this way,” Prior said, his voice soft as Macon and Nate began to set the table.

“Me, too,” I said, sighing. “I honestly didn’t know it was like this until I looked up at him one day and realized I hated him. Like, what the fuck?”

“He was always a bit egotistical, but who wasn’t?” Prior said.

“I hope I wasn’t that bad,” I said wryly.

“No, you were too self-deprecating to be that bad,” Nate said surprisingly.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“It took Arden practically shoving your art in your face for you to realize that you had talent,” Nate explained.

“That’s not true.” At least, I didn’t think it was.

“Totally true,” Macon added.

“You’ve always put others before yourself, and thought that what you did on the side when you were in high school working at that carpenter shop to help pay for your car was just a fun little hobby. I know you went to school for business, thinking that you were going to open a shop with your art. But we all know that wasn’t the case,” Prior said.

I stood there, shocked. “What? Of course, I went in knowing what I wanted to do.”

“No, you went in telling yourself that you were going to go for your dreams, but you always had a fallback plan of some form of business. Something that you could contribute to, but that wasn’t about art on the surface. Because you were too damn scared,” Nate said, and I frowned.

“Scared?”

Macon rolled his eyes. “See. You went too damn far with that. Now, he’s going to be a growly asshole all night. Look at him with that big beard of his. Oh, like a big bear with a thorn in his paw.”

I flipped them all off. “You know what? Fuck you. So I don’t always believe in myself.”

“But you believed in us,” Prior said softly, and I looked up at him.

“You always did,” Nate said. “And if Mom and Dad hadn’t saved for college as they did, and if we hadn’t gotten scholarships and gone to smaller state schools, you probably would have found a way to pay for all of us.”

“I mean, we’re still trying to find ways to shove money into Arden’s hands, and she’s married to a millionaire,” Prior said sarcastically.