“One more thing,” Gray said. “I’d give anything to be able to go back and protect you. I’m your big brother.”

“I can out-bench-press you. I don’t need protection.”

“Too bad,” Gray said. “I’m right here standing at your back and always will be. Got it?”

Aidan stared into Gray’s very serious eyes and nodded.

“Good,” Gray said. “So. We do this the way we’ve done everything. Without him.”

The relief almost knocked Aidan on his ass. “Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me for that. We’re a family. And speaking of that, I know you only stick around here for me.”

This was way too deep to handle on utter exhaustion. “Well, and also to watch Penny boss you around,” Aidan said, trying to lighten the mood.

Gray let out a rough laugh and dropped his head for a beat before lifting it and looking at Aidan. “I don’t want you to stay just because you feel you have to.”

“I don’t,” Aidan said. “I stay for you. And Mom. And Hud and Kenna. You guys mean something to me. I stay because I believe in us, dammit. We belong here. Together.”

Gray started to step into Aidan, no doubt to hug him, but Aidan slapped a hand on his brother’s chest. “What’s with you and Hud and all the chick flick moments?”

“Suck it up,” Gray said, and hauled him in anyway. And then for good measure he lifted Aidan off his feet and shook him like he used to do when they were kids, proving Gray could at least tie Aidan in a bench-press competition after all.

Aidan sighed. “We’re right on the side of the road for chrissakes,” he grumbled. “Anyone can see us.”

Gray laughed and tightened his arms, refusing to let him go until Aidan managed to give him a head noogie and they shoved clear of each other.

A few minutes later they were back on the road, their silence much more comfortable now. Aidan was the first to break it. “How much of a shot do we really have at handling this ourselves?”

“We have a year,” Gray said. “And there’s nothing us Kincaids are good at if it’s not saving our own asses in the home stretch.”

Aidan nodded and hoped that was really true. But he was too tired to give it much thought. He rested his head back and closed his eyes until Gray pulled up in front of their building, his gaze locking on the sight of Penny’s car parked in the lot. “Nothing like coming home to a good woman.”

They got out and Aidan stared at the building, wishing that he had even a half a percent chance at finding Lily in his bed waiting for him. “You’re a lucky son of a bitch, having Penny decide on you way back in middle school, when you were actually decent-looking.”