With Abandon: With or Without, Book 4

feel much better.
    Instead of charging him again, Keaton bent over, braced one hand on his knee and panted for air. With
    a grimace, he shook his other hand, the one he’d just smashed into Aubrey’s face. When had his brother learned to hit that hard? Sweat and blood dripped from his chin and splatted onto the ground by the
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    With Abandon
    fountain. He stood, hunched over next to Aubrey’s right knee, huffing and puffing like a smoker trying to do aerobics. He was way more winded than Aubrey.
    Aubrey debated getting up and going another round. He could take his younger brother if he wanted
    to. He outweighed Keaton, and he was certainly in better shape. Fuck it. He was too damned tired. What
    did fighting solve anyway? So what if Keaton considered it a victory.
    Screw that. No way was he letting Keaton win. Aubrey swept his leg to the side, intent on taking his
    brother’s legs out from under him.
    Surprisingly, Keaton jumped out of the way. He cleared Aubrey’s leg, but lost his balance anyway
    and landed on his ass with a bone-jarring thud that made his teeth clack together. He flopped onto his back and laughed, only he was so winded it sounded more like wheezing.
    Aubrey smiled and lowered his head back to the cobblestones. “Dude, you need to get your ass on the
    treadmill. Your stamina sucks.”
    “I took you down, didn’t I?”
    “Yeah, but you’re breathing a lot harder than I am.”
    Keaton groaned. “I don’t see you getting up.”
    “I could if I wanted to.”
    “Please say you don’t want to,” Keaton whined.
    They both chuckled. Aubrey felt better than he had in years. The fight had been a nice stress reliever, but it wasn’t enough now that everything was out on the table. Well…nearly everything. “Matt is my mate.
    And before you start yelling at me, let me finish. I’m gay, and I’ve known it since before you ever decided to come out.” Spilling his guts was like a weight being lifted off his shoulders. He hadn’t planned it, but it had all come tumbling out, just like when they were kids. They used to always fight like that and end up talking and making up. “You’re sworn to secrecy, by the way.”
    “Why didn’t you come to me years ago? I always wondered. But you threw me for a loop the way you
    acted when I told you I was gay.” Keaton rolled his head to the side, looking right at Aubrey. They were only about a foot apart, and the shimmer of unshed tears in Keaton’s eyes was obvious. “Do you know how bad it hurt to think that you didn’t care anymore?”
    “I’m sorry. I—” Shame washed over Aubrey. He’d let his jealousy get in the way and rob him of his
    brother…his best friend. Yeah, he had Tee and Matt now, but it wasn’t the same. He’d missed Keaton.
    Keaton was the one person who could truly understand him because his brother had shared his life. He may not have had the familial pressure Aubrey had, but Keaton understood the stress. Or he had until Aubrey ran him off. Over the past few years they’d somewhat repaired their relationship, but it was nothing like it used to be. There was still an underlying strain between them.
    Aubrey’s eyes got misty. God, he was an idiot. He’d convinced himself that he’d picked that fight all
    those years ago for Keaton’s sake. And in part, he had. He’d wanted the pack to realize how powerful his

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    brother was so they wouldn’t pick on him. But part of Aubrey had liked taking out his aggression. It was that part that had kept him from apologizing and trying to explain his actions afterward. “I was jealous of you.”
    Keaton rolled his head back toward the sky. “Doesn’t matter now. I forgive you. I know how hard it is
    to tell family.”
    “Ouch.” Aubrey winced. He’d felt that jab, just as Keaton had intended. Aubrey, who should’ve been
    sympathetic, had not made Keaton’s coming out easy. “I don’t deserve forgiveness.”
    “Yeah, you do. It must suck having to be what everybody else wants you to be. I used to be jealous
    that you were the one who will inherit this place, but when I thought about all the other crap that comes with it…” He squeezed Aubrey’s arm. When he spoke again it was soft and heartfelt. “I’ve missed you.”
    He’d missed Keaton too, but he couldn’t say it. If he said it he’d cry, and damn it he was not crying.
    He closed his eyes and nodded, knowing his brother would see