Page 97 of The Dance

I rubbed the back of my neck because I had no idea, but replied, “A few days—maybe a week tops, if that’s okay?”

“That’s fine with me. You and Brandon can have quality brother time.” She smiled at both of us.

“Spencer and I are getting a hotel room in the city tonight. Can you take care of Niner until tomorrow? You can take Spencer’s car and meet us for lunch, and then we can spend the afternoon with you—give you a mini tour of San Francisco,” Brandon suggested.

“Nah, I should be the one to get a hotel room.” I took my phone out of my pocket, ready to call for another ride and find a hotel to book.

“It’s okay, really. This way, I don’t have to cook and can spend more time naked with Spencer.” Brandon slapped Spencer’s ass.

“Whoa, TMI, babe. T-M-I.” She giggled.

“Well, if you insist, but let me see the rock before you leave.” I reached for Spencer’s hand, assuming she said yes.

Spencer stuck out her hand, her diamond sparkling in the light with a smile that matched.

“Damn, bro, you’re going to make me compete with that?” I teased, looking over at him. Why the fuck was I even considering I would be married one day? What was wrong with me?

“You’re proposing to Stacey?” Spencer asked.

I shook my head rapidly. “Oh, no, no, no, I will never get married. I’m just messin’ with Brandon.” I slapped him on the shoulder.

“You two broke up again?” Spencer asked.

There was no need to lie to the happy couple, so I shooed them toward the door. “You guys go enjoy your night. We’ll talk about this tomorrow.”

Once they were on their way, I found the spare bedroom and made myself at home. I had a feeling being in San Francisco was going to be life changing.

* * *

The following morning,Brandon called, asking me to meet him and Spencer for lunch at their favorite restaurant. I jumped into Spencer’s Beemer and headed toward the city. The previous evening, the rideshare driver hadn’t gone over the Golden Gate Bridge, but as I drove across, I took in the bridge that was once the tallest and longest suspension bridge in the world. We didn’t have that sort of thing in Texas. Sure, we had bridges, but nothing like the Golden Gate.

Once in the city, I found my way to the restaurant. I parked along the street a few blocks away and headed down toward the stadium where the San Francisco Giants played their games. The eating establishment where I was meeting my brother and his fiancée was across the street. Given Brandon was a converted Giants fan and his first home in San Francisco was near the field, it made sense their favorite eatery wouldn’t be far away.

I spotted my family as they waited outside the doors of the restaurant. Beaming as I neared, I said, “Thanks for inviting me. I’m starving.”

“You’re welcome. Let’s grab a table,” Brandon replied as I hugged Spencer and then him.

We went inside and made our way to the high-top tables near the bar. After we placed our drink order, I asked, “So, how was last night?”

“None of your business,” Brandon replied with a smirk at Spencer.

Getting the hint, I said, “Thanks again for letting me crash for a few days.”

“Of course, anytime,” Brandon responded.

“So, what happened with Stacey? I thought you guys were going to last this time?” Spencer questioned.

I gave a heavy sigh and knew I had to keep up the lying because, for some reason, I couldn’t tell them that Stacey was off living her dream. There would be questions about her tour I couldn’t answer, given I had no idea her schedule, and I didn’t want to go down that road. “I don’t know, Spence. We have a love-hate relationship.”

“But things were going good, right?”

“We were—we are. I don’t know. She started talking about moving in together, and it freaked me out.” And the lies kept coming.

“Why did you have to fly halfway across the country?” Brandon asked with a slight chuckle. “Just don’t move in with her.”

“Dude, Mom and Dad are breathing down my neck to move out, and Stacey thought it was the best idea in the world. I just … I just needed to get away from them all. Again, I’m really sorry I didn’t call.” Stacey told me once that I was a good liar, and apparently, she was right. But why couldn’t I utter the words that we were broken up? Essentially, we were.

“It’s okay, Blake—really,” Spencer said, setting down my menu.