The Better Brother

“Of course, I do.”

“He’s old enough to be your father, Penny. You realize how dysfunctional that is?”

“It’s just a number, Mom,” I said. “You, of all people, can’t tell me that an age difference is really that big of deal.”

“We aren’t talking about Dylan here. We are talking about how the hell this happened between the two of you.” She shook her head in dismay. “Dear God, Penny. I thought you had a better head on your shoulders than this. That is Gabriel Bradley you’re kissing. He used to take care of you when you were a baby. He used to—”

“I’m aware of who he is,” I said, glancing around the lobby to find that it was thankfully empty of people. “Can you come upstairs to talk, please?”

“I am not talking in front of him,” she spat out harshly. “He was supposed to be looking out for you, not taking advantage of you!”

“I know it looks like that, but it’s not. He’s not taking advantage of me, Mom. I’m an adult, and I fully consented to everything.”

My mother’s eyes glittered coldly with rage as she weighed out my words. She finally let out a pent-up breath as she nodded stiffly. “Fine. Tell me how this all happened.”

“It just happened, Mom. I don’t know what to tell you. It just happened one night, the way things do, and it kept going on. That’s all I can really tell you.”

“Did he pressure you? Make you think it was a good idea? Play on your vulnerabilities about Dylan?” she asked.

“God, Mom, no! You know Gabriel. He would never do something like that. I know it’s hard for you to wrap your head around, but I’m twenty-one and I’ve been making my own decisions for a long time now.”

“You’re not the first woman to want the thrill of being with an older man, Penny,” she said, her voice softening. “I know it might seem exciting now, but it’s just a passing infatuation. Surely, you can understand what I’m saying.”

I stared into my mother’s narrowed eyes in disbelief. She had spent a majority of her life dating any younger man who would pay attention to her. Dylan had been no exception. I didn’t understand why she viewed it so differently when it came to Gabriel and me.

“Come on, Mom,” I said. “Why is it ok for you to date younger men but not ok when the situation is reversed?”

“That’s different,” she returned harshly. “None of those men I dated were that much younger than me. They weren’t young enough for me to be their mother, and on top of that, I never watched over them when they were children. I didn’t watch them grow up. Unlike Gabriel, who I trusted to watch over you and keep you safe.”

“Well, he definitely kept me safe from Dylan,” I said. “And Gabriel never did anything to hurt me. He didn’t pressure me into anything, or persuade me into—” I didn’t even know what word to label what was going on between us.

Whenever we had a chance to be alone together, passion had overwhelmed our conversations. We never could talk about exactly what we were doing together, but I refused to believe that Gabriel would stoop so low as to just use me. I knew it was more than that. But it was impossible to gauge what our relationship was because we’d been forced to keep things a secret.

“That’s my point, Penny,” she said. “You haven’t talked about what is going on between the two of you, and there’s a reason for that. He doesn’t want a committed relationship with you. He wants a fling while you’re here visiting on winter break. Once you go back to school, I doubt you’ll ever hear from him again.”

“That’s not true,” I said.

“Nikki.”

The sound of Gabriel’s smooth voice echoed in the quiet lobby. I glanced over to find the security guards stepping outside, a polite gesture to give us privacy. I turned to look over at Gabriel as he came from the stairway door as well. My heart swelled with relief at the sight of him. Just by showing up, he proved everything my mother said was wrong.

Gabriel came to a stop behind me. He glanced down at me before placing his hands on my shoulders, giving them a reassuring squeeze.

“This just happened,” he said. “Neither one of us planned it. Penny is an amazing woman, and I think the world of her. I would never do anything to hurt her. I need you to know that, Nikki.”

My mother’s eyes narrowed at Gabriel in disgust. “For God’s sake, Gabriel. I trusted you with my child. I trusted you to help her with whatever she needed while she stayed here with you. And this is how you take care of my baby girl? By seducing her?”

“He didn’t seduce me,” I said defensively. “And it wasn’t one-sided, Mom. I care about him, too.”

“It is one-sided, Penny,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re too young to understand.”

“With all due respect, Nikki,” Gabriel interjected. “You don’t know what in the hell you are talking about. I never intended for any of this to happen, but it did. Penny is not just some hot young thing to boost my ego. She’s an amazing young woman who I happen to care about very much.”

“Young being the operative word,” my mother spat.

“Mom—I started, but Gabriel continued.

“Penny and I haven’t really had a chance to talk things through, but I care about your daughter more than I’ve cared about any woman since Kelly left me. This isn’t just a fling. Not for me, at least.”