Page 42 of The Other Brother

Cody’s eyebrows shoot up, and I’m sure mine match his.

“Seriously? I thought you loved it in Wellington,” I say.

“Yeah, I do love it here. But now with the baby, I thought it would be nice to be close to family.”

“That’s so great,” Cody says.

“I’m assuming Chris also wants to come?” I ask.

“Yes, Ryan, of course Chris wants to move. Do you think I’d make the decision without talking to him?”

Ha. Kate’s fiancé Chris is one of the most laid-back guys on the planet. I’m sure he’s just continuing his philosophy of doing whatever Kate wants. It’s a way to guarantee his peaceful existence.

“When are you moving?” Cody asks. “Are you going to work remotely or look for something here?”

Kate and Cody chat about logistics and maternity leave, and I tune out. I should be pissed that Cody’s showing me up as usual. He’s got all the right questions to ask Kate, and she’s using her affectionate tone with him that I hear once a year if I’m lucky.

But his face is lit up, and he’s talking animatedly, so buried under my resentment something else flickers.

Happiness.

Cody being happy makes me happy. Yeah, I don’t want to examine that one too closely.

“Ryan, you there?” Kate asks.

“Yeah, I’m here.”

“Well, what do you think about the whole thing?”

“I’m just planning all the pranks I will teach your kid,” I say. “I hear that’s what all good uncles do.”

I can almost hear Kate rolling her eyes.

“God help the child if they don’t like raisins,” Cody says, sneaking me a grin.

“This child has some of my genes. There’s no way they’ll have such freakish phobias,” I reply.

“Are you two getting along okay?” Kate cuts in, sounding like her typical bossy older sister self. “Ryan, are you behaving yourself?”

“He’s been remarkably well behaved,” Mel says.

“What am I, some pet you’re trying to house train?” I mutter.

“You said it, not me,” Mel replies. “And yeah, they’re getting on fine.”

Fine is not the word I personally would have used to describe my friendship with Cody. It’s a few levels above fine. But I’m not going to disagree with Mel’s assessment right now.

“Did you hear Ryan saved a kid from drowning?” Cody asks.

“What? When did that happen?”

Cody launches into the account of me rescuing the kid, turning it into a dramatic action movie. Seriously, the way he describes it, I’m Captain America, Superman, and Hercules all rolled into one.

“Holy shit, Ryan, that’s incredible,” Kate says when he finishes up the story.

“All in a day’s work,” I say.

Cody throws me an exasperated look.