“Still my brother? Yeah. I’m sure. You’re not getting rid of me that easily. I’m sorry if I was a dick last night.”

“I put a lot out there all at once—”

“You did. You really did.” Bruno’s self-effacing laugh was identical to the one Milo did when nervous. “But that took guts. I can respect you for telling me even if it made my head spin with everything all at once.”

“Sorry.” Milo looked down at the tile floor.

“Don’t be sorry. We’re family.” Bruno pulled him into a tight hug that made me fear for Milo’s ribs before he thumped Milo’s back. “How about next time, though, you try talking to me? About everything?”

“I will.” Milo hugged him back before releasing him.

Bruno grabbed a soda and a piece of the cake before turning to me. “Take care of this guy, okay?”

“You don’t have to ask.” I regarded him solemnly, trying to tell him with my eyes that Milo was the most important thing in my life. And maybe he got the message because he nodded sharply before heading back to the living room full of relatives.

“Wow.” Milo gripped the edge of the table hard enough that his knuckles turned white. “That…that was intense.”

I knew him. I’d seen him this shade of pale before. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” He took a shaky breath. I didn’t entirely believe him, and I rubbed his back until he returned to more of a normal color. “Thanks. For being here with me. It…you mean everything to me.”

“Ditto.” I licked my lips. I wasn’t about to kiss him in his mom’s kitchen, but damn, I wanted to. To distract myself, I pulled out two pages I’d printed earlier. “And speaking of going places together…”

His eyes went wide as I handed them over. “The tickets to the launch party?”

“Yeah. You coming, Mr. Viral Celebrity? Still got time for us little people? Alden and Conrad said we can crash at their place after.”

“I wouldn’t miss it.” Putting an arm around me, he pulled me close. “It doesn’t matter how many reshares I get on social media. I’m always going to need you. Always.”

“Good.” And then I really did need to kiss him, but he was already on it, a quick brush of his lips across mine. We were going places. Together. The two of us. Bruno not being a complete ass helped, but it was Milo I was truly proud of in that moment. He was the star I wanted to set my internal compass by, the one constant I needed as we ventured forth into the still uncertain future.

Chapter Forty-Two

Milo