“I’m going to talk to my parents.”

And, now he was in knots again. “Not yet. I’m not ready to tell people.”

Bryce leaned up and stared down at him. “Chill out. You’re going to give yourself a heart attack before we even get to the rest of the fun stuff. I’m telling them about Christi, not you. They need to know. I can’t keep it from them any longer.”

Nick knew what he was saying—because this was the beginning of them. Because it would make things easier when he eventually told his parents they were...what? Dating?

Yeah, this was definitely just the beginning, and Nick knew it would be one hell of a ride—one he hoped didn’t wreck them.

***

One day later that week, Bryce left work early. It was a pussy move, but he wanted to be sure he spoke with his mom without the chance of anyone else being there. His dad worked, because the man would probably never retire, and both his brothers and their wives would be busy. Even though Jamie, Mitch and their wives knew about Christi, they’d give him shit about waiting so long to tell his parents.

His dad wouldn’t be nearly as affected as his mom. Sure, he wanted Bryce to settle down, and often times lectured him on “growing up,” as he put it, and taking things more seriously, but his father let Bryce live his own life. Dad didn’t count on Bryce to give him grandkids.

Mom did.

He knew he was too damn old to live his life for other people, but he also felt an obligation to the people he loved.

And now he was about to tell his mom he’d changed his mind about something else—someone else. Someone she loved. This wasn’t going to go over well.

He knocked, opened the door, and stuck his head in. “Hey, Ma. It’s the best looking Tanner boy. You here?”

“Hey! I’m in the living room. What are you doing off work early?”

He walked into the room to see her sitting on the floor surrounded by photo albums. “Just wanted to come and see you. What are you up to?” He sat down on the floor next to her.

“I’m trying to figure out something to do for Christi. When I had all three of the girls over the other day to help with the scrapbook I’m making for your father, she seemed to really like it.”

Christi was over at his parents’ house? He hadn’t even known.

“I’m sure she talks to you about this, but I think it’s hard for her. She’s never had much family besides us, so I thought maybe she might enjoy it if I made a scrapbook for her, too. I have a thousand pictures of you kids growing up. Maybe you can grab some more recent ones of the two of you. What do you think? Will she like that?” His mom looked over at him with the same brown eyes that Bryce had, and a smile from ear to ear. She had no idea Bryce’s gut dropped. That he’d come over here to disappoint her.

“Yeah...that’s a good idea. Listen, Ma—”

“Wait. I want to say something first. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I just...” she shrugged. “Your father and I want you to know how proud we are of you. We always worried about you. You’ve always had your head in the clouds more than your brothers. It took you a little longer to find your way, and if I’m being honest, I worried if you ever would. You have, though—first with how hard you’ve worked at starting your shop, and now you’ve settled into a relationship with Christi.” She reached over and squeezed his leg. “I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m glad it’s her. She’s a special girl. She’s always felt like a part of this family, and now with the two of you together, it feels more official. You waited for the right girl, and she’s so lucky to have you, too, Bryce. It was worth all the worry, and the ups and downs, because they brought us here. You’re happier than I’ve ever seen you. A mom knows those things.”

She pulled away and winked. “Now we just have to hope for a wedding and babies and everything will be perfect.”

Bryce tried to smile at her, but he was pretty sure he probably just looked constipated. He was happy, but as much as he loved Christi, it wasn’t because of her. In a lot of ways, he felt like his life really was coming together. He hadn’t realized he wanted that until recently—but with the shop, his new house, and Nick, yeah, he did feel settled. He was about to shake all of that up, though—this situation with Nick made things different. Bryce wanted it, he knew he did, but he also didn’t want to hurt his family.

And that’s exactly what he would be doing. He fucked up big time with this whole thing with Christi. He’d waited too long and done something he hadn’t thought about in the beginning. He’d gotten his mom’s hopes up. He made her believe something that wasn’t true, and now he had to break her heart by telling her what a fraud he was.