Page 127 of Headstrong Like Us

Charlie cringes. “Moffy, of all people, is the one who grew up never wanting a relationship. So is it aggravating seeing him in love?Yes.” He pulls at his sandy-brown hair. “If you want my permission to intervene, you can save him all you want.”

“I don’t need your permission to save my husband.”

Technically, we’re not married yet, but I don’t give a flying fuck right now.

And I also tell Charlie, “He would let you murder him if it made you feel better. You understand that, right?” My muscles are on fire.

Charlie sighs out a knotted breath. “Sounds like Maximoff is too self-sacrificing to me. You should probably talk to him about that.”

“How about you don’t beat him down anymore?” Territorial heat simmers my blood, but I stay relatively at ease and suck on a cigarette.

His eyes redden. “I’m trying. It’s not as easy as counting one, two,three.” He snaps his fingers, then tosses the wadded paper towels in a trashcan.

I roll my eyes and blow smoke at the floor.

“It might be hard to believe, Farrow,” Charlie says, “but I don’t want to hurt him. I need Moffy.”

“As a punching bag?”

He cocks his head. “Well…I can’t blame you for drawing that conclusion, butno.All of our families wouldn’t function without him. And despite how annoying his position in the families is—I need him to fillthatposition. It’s not one I want.” He takes another breath before saying, “I don’t want to be him.”

I tap ash into the sink. “That’smore of what I wanted to talk to you about.”

Charlie adds the pieces startlingly fast. “The move to New York.”

“Yeah. Are you planning on sticking around?” I wonder. “Because that’s what Maximoff and Jane think.”

He un-tucks his wrinkled white button-down from his black slacks. “I never promised that.”

I raise my brows. “You implied it somewhere along the way, Charlie. They believe you’re going to be around. That it’s going to be like the good old high school days.”

“How is it my fault that they have the wrong expectations?”

Oh my God. “Because you set them.Youare responsible for that.” I shake my head at him. “Are you planning to stay or aren’t you?”

“I’mnotstaying.” Charlie slouches on the counter. “I’m just facilitating the inevitable. If my brothers need help, Maximoff will pick up the pieces like he always does, and he’ll do a better job than I can.”

I snuff the cigarette on the sink. “No, see, you have it wrong. Your brothers don’t need Maximoff. They needyou.”

“They can’t have me,” Charlie says, voice caged.

“I’m telling you right now, Maximoff is not going to move to New York. Your sister is not moving to New York.”

Charlie wears mock surprise. “You’re forcing them to stay in Philly?” He tilts his head. “Sounds controlling.”

Controlling.

My muscles flex. He’s trying to set me off, but I stare him down. “I’m not going to act like I have you all figured out, because I don’t. But I know Maximoff. And he will make this easy for you. He will take all the weight off your shoulders, so you can go jet-set to wherever for however long, and he won’t mind.”

“I know.”

“But you have it wrong, Charlie,” I repeat again. “Because Maximoff isn’t your replacement. You’re two different people, and you’ll be leaving your brothers. They will notice your absence. You didn’t stick around for them. You didn’t try. Beckett needs you. Eliot needs you. Tom needs you. In another year, Ben might be in New York and need you too. Man, don’t bail on them because you think Maximoff can do it better. Or because he enjoys it more or any other fucking reason you’re telling yourself. Because at the end of the day, you’ll look back and wish it were you.”

Really, I’d like to just grab him, shake him and yell at him togrow the fuck up.

But he’d just get pissed, and I need him to understand that he’s worth more.

Charlie looks me over, but before he can answer, the door swings open, and Tom and Eliot slip inside, laughing about something.