Jackson stepped into the room. He carried a brown bag imprinted with the name of the nearby bagel chain.
This informal breakfast looked prearranged to Derrick. Jackson didn’t just stop in with snacks. His smirk didn’t make his surprise appearance any less annoying.
“What’s going on?” Jackson asked the room in general as he unloaded the contents of the bag onto the counter.
“I’m digging into my brother’s odd relationship to figure out why it’s odd,” Spence said.
Jackson hesitated for a second before reaching in and pulling out a tub of cream cheese. “Aren’t we all?”
“He’s got it bad for her.”
Derrick put his mug down and took a step toward the staircase, making sure they didn’t have nosy company hovering around upstairs. “Keep your voices low.”
“Are you sure it’s not that you’re making this complicated?” Spence shook his head. “Because, I gotta tell you. From where I’m sitting, you seem to be messing this up.”
Jackson opened two drawers before he found a knife for the cream cheese. Derrick was pretty sure it was a steak knife, but it worked.
“He’s not wrong about the ‘messing up’ part,” Jackson noted.
“You like her. A lot.” Jackson pointed to the bagels and kept pointing until Spence picked up a specific one. “You’re kind of stupid with how much you like her.”
Jackson took care of slathering the spread on one side of the bagel then handed it to Spence before giving Derrick a quick glance. “Notice he’s refraining from using the bigger L-word.”
“I don’t want to send him running.” This time Spence focused on Derrick, too. “But, really, you’ve got it bad for her. You’re living together. So what’s the holdup? Why all the weirdness?”
Derrick didn’t bother answering because they really weren’t talking to him. This show was for the two of them and they really seemed to be enjoying it.
Jackson shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I’m waiting for an answer, too.”
“Well, you both think on it while I jump in the shower.” Spence shoved a large piece of bagel into his mouth and took off for the stairs.
Derrick waited until the thumping on the steps faded and Spence disappeared upstairs before saying anything. “You didn’t exactly help me there.”
“You need to tell him the truth.” Jackson dropped the uneaten half of the bagel on the counter. “Carter is on the way. You need to tell them both. They came back to town because you asked them to. They are trying to help you, even though neither wants back in the business as your dad is insisting.”
Despite the annoying display of friends-gone-wild this morning, the advice was good. Derrick knew he had to come clean. He hated lying to his brothers, anyway. But he wasn’t sure what to tell them now. The thing with Ellie had started off fake. Now it felt anything but. How the hell did he describe that state?
“I will. When they’re together. There’s no need to tell this tale more than once.” And maybe he would know the right words to say when that day came.
“And Ellie? Are you going to tell her all of it?”
“One problem at a time.” Derrick leaned over and picked up the uneaten bagel half. “Until I find the right opportunity, I’ll continue to fumble my way through all of this.”
“I told you this would be fun to watch.”
Suddenly, Derrick wasn’t that hungry. “Did you?”
“Maybe I just thought it.”
“I could fire you.”
Jackson laughed. “But you won’t.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The DC Insider: Word on the street is Ellie Gold is working miracles with Derrick Jameson. Is he getting soft? There are no signs of that in business, of course, but she has him jumping to her commands in private. So maybe those nasty rumors we’re hearing aren’t true?
Two days later Ellie was still in a good mood. She even managed to ignore the guy taking her photo as she walked into the coffee shop a few blocks from Derrick’s house.
They had hit a bit of a bump at the charity event but they’d ridden through it. She wanted that to mean something. They could talk about work and their arrangement and even their families. Right from the beginning they’d vowed not to lie to each other.
Despite all that, she couldn’t think of a way to broach what, a few weeks ago when they’d first met, would have been unthinkable—talking about them. She knew it was easier to ignore the elephant standing in not only the room but also right on top of them than to deal with him. “Going along as is” meant dating and living together and getting to know each other.