Page 163 of Sinful Like Us

“You want another Fizz?” Easton rises.

“Uh, that’s okay.” He pushes his hair out of his eyes. “I mean, yeah…that’d be good. You want to play again?”

“For sure.” Easton smiles more. “I’ll be right back.” He goes to retrieve a soda, and Xander watches him in deep thought before his head whips to me.

“I suck at this.” His eyes darken. “Like literally,suck.”

My lip curves up. “You’re doing fine, kid.”

He exhales a heavy breath. “Sometimes I think it’s better for everyone if I just stayed in my room and never came out.”

“It’d be worse,” I remind him. “Everyone would be sad.”

He lets this sink in, massaging his sore knuckles from a boxing session.

When Easton returns, we play another round of the geekiest stuff I’ve ever seen. Besides LARPing.

I’d enjoy this more if my migraine weren’t about to blow a hole through my temple. During an intense battle, I slyly pop some Advil.

The pills go down rough without water. It’ll be worth it later.

Once Xander wins, they pack up the board game. And then, we get ready to shove off.

“Hey, Thatcher, thanks for being our third,” Easton tells me, reminding me I’m my brother and wearing these stupid aviators that have no tint. Spoiler alert: they’re not mine. “We’ll probably need you if we play again. Not many people appreciate nerdy shit around here.”

“Only the ‘popular’ nerdy shit,” Xander adds, and these two linger at the back gate. He awkwardly waves Easton goodbye. “Later…or whatever.” He sucks in a tight breath.

Easton stuffs his hands in his preppy khakis. “If you ever want to play again, just text me. I’m free a lot, so…”

“Yeah. Okay. Cool.” Xander nods.

Easton nods. “Cool.”

I suppress a smile and adjust my earpiece. Not interfering, but man, I feel like a proud Mother Goose who sent her little chickadee out into the world.

But you better believe I’m still a bodyguard. I hawk-eye their hand movements, not about to let Xander pass off antidepressants to this kid.

Back in Greece, Thatcher and I (along with most everyone else) found out Xander had been giving away his extra meds to Easton, and the fact that Xander had also been doing it with other kids back when he was thirteen—onourwatch—still puts a rock between my ribcage.

Missed it.

Not that I can really shackle too much blame on me and my brother. Xander is a teenager. If he wants to hide something from us, he’ll find a way. I’m not a motherfucking spy. And he may trust us with serious shit, but he also knows where our trust would end. Had I seen him willfully giving his meds away to gain popularity, I would have called his parents in a heartbeat.

He knew that.

Still, I’m not missing the same thing twice, so I laser focus on their hands.

We’re all good.

They depart, and I walk on the freshly plowed road beside Xander. Constantly surveying the mansions. Christmas lights, wreaths and bows are still up. No threats in sight. Most bodyguards go off-duty in the gated neighborhood—but extra vigilance makes Xander feel safe.

And I like living life on my toes.

Semper Gumby.

“He’s pretty cool, right?” Xander asks, popping a Sprite.

I stare straight ahead. “He’s only cool when he’s not taking your meds.”