The billionaire's sweet editor
Chapter 28: Iris: Protective brothers and wine

Chapter 28: Iris: Protective brothers and wine

ONE TERRIFYING thing about Jerald is the ginormous love he has for his sister. You might think, umm how is that bad, but it is, because his love is big brother love.

The kind that makes him want to know where she is, who she’s with, what she’s doing, if she’s hurt, who hurt her, and so forth. It might sound like a lot but he has boundaries, or he used to have them anyway until his naive sister got heartbroken by a boy in college.

The guy moved abroad for a while to finish his masters and came back three years later after we were done with college to run his family’s business. That guy is Phineas.

I hated him when he did that to her because it was now mine and Jerald’s responsibility to comfort her, and that meant listening to her cry every fucking day until she healed, but after listening to her story, I kind of felt pity for the two.

According to Mary, Phineas’ parents wanted him to study abroad if he wanted to inherit the family business. Any sensible guy would tell their girlfriend, right? And guess what, Phineas did. He explained everything to Mary and told her he would visit during the holiday, but my friend wasn’t having any of it.

Apparently, she had dated enough guys to know that men cheat once in a long-distance relationship, so she told Phineas it was either her or college. Of course, he chose college, there was a fucking family fortune at stake here. In the end, they broke up and we had to nurse Mary back to normal again until she was ready to date.

Then two years ago, Phineas popped back up and I don’t know when it started, but I remember seeing a hickey on Mary around six months after his return and asking where it came from. She told me they were back together but as friends with benefits.

Who was she trying to fool? She was in love with the man again. I thought it was the same for Phineas but when I met with him after she invited him over for girls’ night, I immediately knew he was using her. It just wasn’t the same as before, his gaze on her I mean. He now looked distant and cold, like a hurt man looking at his ex.

Thinking about it now, maybe he was hurt. This woman had left him when he needed her the most, but she also had her demons to conquer. It’s too complicated and I don’t dwell on it often—as long as my best friend is okay with it and enjoying herself, then I have no problem with it too.

The problem is, her brother isn’t like me. Ever since that heartbreak, he’s made sure to remind us of the qualities to look for in a man. I don’t know how I got tangled up in this, but after having known the two of them for fifteen years now, I think it’s only natural that he treats me like a sister.

Jerald hates it whenever we talk about guys, so we avoid the topic whenever he’s around. But that is trivial compared to what’s unfolding behind the scenes right now. From what I heard during their fight a while ago, Phineas and Mary are back together again by some miracle.

It might be a happy occasion for them, but I don’t think it will be once Jerald finds out the truth. Ironically, the truth is right under his nose but he can’t seem to smell it. After the phone call that led Phineas to leave the party before it even began so he could pick Mary, I thought he’d piece two and two when they came back together and realize what’s happening, but it seems I gave him too much credit.

Mary just had to cook up a lie and tell him she thought we were all busy using that innocent facade, and that’s all it took for him to thank Phineas and smother her with brotherly affection. I don’t know if he’s gaslighting us or dumb, but if it’s the latter then we’re all fucked.

I massage my temples, slouching onto the couch and stuffing more potato chips into my mouth. Everyone is huddled around the TV, rewatching Demon Slayer. We just started the Entertainment District arc so there hasn’t been any gripping action yet. We’re all still chilled and waiting for action.

But I’m not in the mood for anime. I love them, just not today. And the reason is simple—sweatpants. Grey sweatpants worn by the great Lucas.

I don’t know if it’s my imagination, but there’s a huge dent right between his legs. It could be a hard-on or the fabric is bulged over there, but I want to believe it’s his dick.

I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been thinking about it all day today, but seeing him dressed like that just made the itch down there worse. I want him to rub against me, but it would be weird for the two of us to disappear together without any explanation.

"Anyone else wants a refill?" Lucas asks raising his wine glass.

"Me," Mary shrieks, eyes still glued on the TV. "Me too."

"Me three."

Lucas smirks. "Everyone but Iris, got it."

"I want some too," I blurt out. Everyone turns their heads slowly at me, Mary pausing the anime before doing the same, mouths open wide as if I’m dishing out cupcakes in people’s mouths.

"Since when do you drink?" Jerald squints his eyes at me.

"I’ll start today."

"No, you won’t!" Mary hisses, "That’s a bad habit you’re trying to learn."

"Says the bitch who keeps telling me to try some when we’re alone." Phineas glares at me but I ignore him. He can do that to Jerald, not me, Mary is my bitch for life and I’m her’s, period. She laughs at my comment, raising both hands in the air in defeat.

"Don’t regret this tomorrow morning when I come to your room and open the curtains once the sun’s up," Jerald laughs. Such a cunning fox, he’s already plotting revenge.

"I’m not getting drunk!" Everyone laughs at me, everyone except Lucas. His eyes are on me but I have a feeling his mind is somewhere else.

"Four glasses of red wine coming up," he stands passing by me and showing off that huge bulge in my face.

Yeah, he’s hard. I want to follow him to the kitchen and have him pin me on the island so we can dirty Jerald’s house, but I can’t. Not only would Jerald kill us, but he’d have our corpses wiping the surfaces with holy water given the chance to annoy us.

Holding on for dear life when Lucas bends to pour me a glass, I down the liquor in one swift motion. The fluid burns my throat, tasting so bad I scrunch my face. Who said red wine tastes good? It’s as if grapes and spirit got mixed. I can’t believe this shit costs a fortune,

"Pfft, watch her turn ugly," Jerald laughs, as the others join him. I want to tell them I can handle it but fuck I cant. Wine isn’t my thing. "This is twenty-year-old wine Iris, how can it taste bad?" Mary adds making them howl some more as they fall to the ground.

A small rebellious part of me just wants to smack that laugh off her face and tell Jerald about her and Phineas. I turn to glance at Lucas, who is sitting on the couch to my right, smiling big. He isn’t on the floor like the others, but he seems to be enjoying himself.

"You’re such a baby," Jerald snorts and they all laugh again. Thats it. I grab the bottle by the neck and bring it to my lips, taking one swing and tipping the contents into my mouth.

"Wait, Iris!" I don’t see him move but in a split second, Lucas is grabbing the bottle away from me after I only took two large gulps from it. I don’t know why I find that sexy as fuck but I do.

"What, you think I can’t drink it too?"

"No, but I think you’ll get drunk soon with the way you’re behaving."

"Ugh, it tastes like shit," I screech.

"Then stop drinking, you’ll only hurt yourself trying to prove these mother fuckers wrong," he whispers, handing me a bottle of water. "Here drink this."

I accept the bottle and take a sip. "That won’t do, drink the entire bottle." I want to argue, but the taste in my mouth agrees with Lucas, so I follow his orders. "That’s a good girl."

"Ewww!" Mary shrieks, grimacing at us. "You guys are so cringe."

"I know right, it’s like they’re lovers or something," Jerald adds, eyes still glued on us.

My phone vibrates providing the necessary distraction to ward off the stares and I take it out of my pocket. It’s a message from grandma. I unlock it and heard to the messages application.

GRANDMA: Can you come home now honey? It’s an emergency.

Abruptly standing, I leave the bag of chips on the glass table and rush to the front door. "Where are you going, Iris? You’re not mad at us are you?" Jerald calls out.

"My grandma just sent a message, there’s an emergency at home."

"I’m coming with," Mary immediately springs into action, rushing towards the door with me.

I don’t know what emergency my grandparents are talking about, but every time we have emergencies, it’s always something to do with my mother. My blood begins boiling before we even reach the small gate that separates our houses.

Mary is on my tail, matching my pace as we reach the gate, my hands shaking when I try to unlock it. "Let me do it," she offers, unlocking the steel with ease and ushering me inside.

I can feel the anxiety building inside me as we reach the front door and Mary places her hands on my shoulders. "It’s going to be okay," she whispers rubbing my hands. I slowly nod at her, grabbing the door knob and opening it.

Here goes nothing.

★★★★★