“I’m not trying to. But our lives will veer away from one another, Dad. They have to. It won’t sever the connection, but we each have to find our own happiness. Our own path. Not every part of our lives can involve the others.” I lifted my shoulders. “And we all have to cope with that in a different way. They each found a girl they’re interested in. The fact that they’re twins is just a fluke. But their lives remain on the same track, and right now, mine is on a different path. We’ll come back together. We always will. But I need to step back a little and let them do this without me.”

He shook his head. “I’m still worried. You’re spending a lot of time alone.”

I barked out a laugh. “I’m with them every day. Addi is there. Gracie. Ava. Reed and Heather. Theo now, too. I’m surrounded all day. We had dinner on the weekend, and I saw them last night. I’m hardly alone.”

He met my gaze with a serious one. “You can be alone in a room full of people, Ronan. I know that all too well.”

“Dad, honest, I’m fine. I’m thrilled for Paul and Jeremy, and I liked the girls. I know they’re planning on bringing them out to meet you and Mom soon too.”

“Will you be there when they do?”

“Yes,” I assured him. “I will.”

“You need to find your happiness too, Ronan.”

“I know that. But you can’t expect my schedule to be the same as theirs. We’re not that similar.”

He rubbed his chin. “That’s it, isn’t it? The three of you have always been so synced. Now, life is changing for you in a big way. They’re going in one direction, you’re in another.”

“We’re still close. Them falling in love isn’t going to change that. My time will come,” I added, trying to sound positive for my dad.

“Yes, it will,” he agreed. “You’ll find your heart. I found your mother, and she changed my life.”

I couldn’t help the grin that crossed my face. “Mom says she found you, and you fought her tooth and nail.”

He laughed. “She’s right. I was stupid. But once I got my head out of my ass, I held on tight. You’ll find a girl you feel that way about. I promise.”

“We’ll see what happens.”

He studied me, obviously deciding he’d lectured me enough. “Okay, I’ll drop it for now. But your mother is going to check on you a lot. Be warned.”

“Does that mean she’ll send food?”

He frowned. “I suppose.”

I hooked an arm around his neck, dragging him in for a hug. “Thanks, old man. I know you hate sharing.”

He wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight. For a moment, I let myself draw from his strength. Dad had always been demonstrative with us. With our mom. With the entire extended family. He gave great hugs, and sometimes I thought it was because he needed to feel them as much as he needed to give them. I hugged him back tight.

“Thanks, Dad.”

He stepped back. “Anytime. I’m always here, Ronan.”

I smiled and squeezed his shoulder. “I know.”

He picked up his bag and left, waving at me. I watched him go with a sigh. I hadn’t exactly lied when I told him I was fine, but the truth was, I was feeling off-kilter. I slid down the wall, sipping at my water.

He was right. I was missing my brothers. Even when our lives took us in different directions, we were somehow connected. There was an unbreakable bond between us being triplets. Even when we’d been with our own groups of friends, girlfriends, and internships, somehow we were still together. We knew one another better than anyone. We were so close, we sensed how the others were feeling at times. It was a bond we couldn’t explain and we didn’t try because, for us, it was simply part of being a triplet. We’d all gone to university together, and although we’d done our internships at different companies, we had still been connected on a daily basis. We even shared a condo until we decided it was time to live on our own once we graduated. But now, for the first time, our paths felt as if they were traveling in separate lanes rather than crisscrossing over one another. It was an odd sensation.

I thought of growing up. Even our careers were similar. We shared a deep love for architecture, although in different ways. I preferred commercial architecture, Paul concentrated on sustainable/green architecture, and Jeremy was the interior space expert. Together, we were one hell of a team. In fact, the entire Callaghan clan, aside from my mom, was involved in the BAM/ABC empire in some way.

Our elder brother, Liam, loved the outdoors. He had been into plants and gardens for as long as I could remember. My earliest memory of him was being with him outside as he dug and weeded a vegetable garden, fussing with his plants, showing me how to water them properly. He became a horticulturist and operated his own company. He did a lot of work for BAM and ABC as well as many other companies, and his services were in high demand all the time.

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