Page 44 of The Perfect Deal

“If you didn’t always hole yourself up in Australia where no one can reach you, you wouldn’t be so hard to beat,” he argued.

“That’s my strategy,” Sophia said with a shrug while Landon shook his head at her.

“That sounds fun,” I interjected, preventing them from going back and forth. “I’ll go get the game and get it set up.” Finished with my food, I took the container to the trash and grabbed the game on my way back. Even though there were things about Landon I’d like to change, he was still a great brother, and I knew the three of us would have a great time tonight like we used to do when we were younger. Talking to Sophia had taken a bit of the burden off my heart, but the hole was still there.

I missed Joshua.

27

JOSHUA

Abunch of guys from the street carpooled to the airport so we wouldn’t have a bunch of cars sitting in the hangar over the long weekend. We were only going to be gone for a couple of days, but it was easier this way anyway.

I was riding with Landon, Luke, William, and Arlo. The only girl in our vehicle was our sister, Hannah, who’d gotten in with us instead of arranging a less testosterone-filled transport.

I’d hoped that Poppy and Liberty would be in the car with us, but when Landon pulled up in front of my house, he mentioned that the girls were riding in a separate vehicle. “Poppy is taking her van so they can fit more girls in,” he’d said, rolling his eyes. I had snickered because I knew how much he despised that tenement on wheels.

Now, we were coming to a stop near the private jet Landon had chartered for the excursion. A nice size, it would definitely fit the twenty of us, though I had a feeling Luke’s family would be sending something twice as big to take all of us to Bali. There’d be a lot more people going on that trip.

Popping the door open, I got out and went around to the back to grab my suitcase. I’d managed to fit everything into one bag. As I waited for Arlo to take his bag off the top of mine, I heard someone shout, “There he is, the dude of the hour!”

Turning around, I saw a couple of guys I hardly knew that had met Landon in college coming over to shake his hand and half hug. “Ethan, Anthony, how are you?” Landon asked, greeting them both. “How was your drive?”

“Long,” Ethan, a blond, muscular dude who had always sort of rubbed me the wrong way, said with a smirk on his face. “But we’re here.”

“It would’ve been better if Ethan would’ve let me choose the tunes,” Anthony said, a smirk on his face. He had dark wavy hair, and while I could see some of the girls thinking he was attractive, he didn’t quite measure up to Ethan. It seemed pretty obvious who the star of the show was here. Irritated, I took a deep breath and prepared myself for fake niceties.

“Joshua, you remember Ethan and Anthony?” Landon said.

“Sure do. How’s it going?” I shook their hands, pretending to be happy to see the pair. Anthony was fine, but he was always part of the pair.

“If it isn’t the best man.” Ethan sized me up, and I had a feeling he thought he should’ve gotten that position, which was ridiculous since he’d only known Landon a few years, not his whole life. “Good to see you.”

I managed a nod, then disentangled myself to go put my bag on the plane when Poppy’s van pulled in.

The sound of the girls laughing as they piled out made us all stop and stare. Liberty hopped out of the passenger side, her long hair blowing in the breeze, a big grin on her beautiful face. My breath caught in my throat as I begged the universe to have her look my way.

“Is that your sister, Landon?” I heard Ethan say behind me. “Damn.”

The sound of Landon’s hand smacking him in the chest had me turning around. “Knock it off, bro,” he said, but it was a playful punch, not the slaughter Ethan would experience if he actually made a move on Liberty. Courtesy of her big brother—and me.

We piled into the plane, and I ended up sitting next to my brother, William, who would be serving as an usher along with Poppy’s little brothers, Arlo and August. Somehow the youngest of the brothers had managed to weasel his way into the girls’ van.

“We’re just waiting on Vanessa, Samantha, and Joyce,” Poppy said from her seat behind me where she was sitting next to Landon. “They should be here soon.”

“Your college friends are slower than mine,” Landon teased.

“Knowing Samantha, they’re probably lost,” Poppy replied.

We waited a few more minutes, and then another vehicle pulled in. Poppy squealed and rushed out to meet them, and within a half hour, we were on our way.

Liberty was sitting near the front of the plane. I wished it was her next to me and not my kid brother, but at least I could see her. Every once in a while, she’d turn her head and catch my eye, and every time, I found myself gasping in response.

“Dude, are you all right?” William asked. “You sound like you’re having trouble breathing.”

“I’m fine,” I told him, giving him a look that was enough for him to let it go. I needed to figure out a way to be with Liberty without Landon noticing.

But then, hadn’t I decided not to sneak around anymore? Confusion washed over me as I puzzled through what the right choice was and still didn’t know.