11: BREAKFAST (WITH SETH)

DELILAH

After waking up, I took my time to get my room together to my liking. Cleaning up my scattered belongings from my suitcase, picking up the discarded clothes Cole had finished taking from my body before leaving me to sleep with a blush on my cheeks. Before finally ending the morning in my room by organizing my toiletries.

Finally, it was time to hunt down some sustenance. I hadn't eaten much the previous day, and even though we had gone out to dinner, it had been hard to focus on food when we had been deep in conversation.

Spending time with the brothers was surprisingly easy. Both of them were polar opposites in a lot of ways, but seemed to enjoy a lot of the same things. Not to mention the plethora of memories growing up they had to share with me from different perspectives. There had been a fifteen-minute conversation about a spoon and a fish Cole had brought home from work one day that had me roaring with laughter so loud I had been pretty sure we were going to get kicked out.

I bit my lip, trying to focus on my most basic need that gnawed at me most instead of the hopeful ideas of another outing like that again; I was famished. So I quickly braided my hair back, got dressed in my short coveralls with a white tee, some boots, and headed out. Leaving my bedroom, I wandered out down the hall, not having to go far before I spotted a bathroom unattached to a bedroom, and then a kitchen a short distance from that which opened up into a large living space.

Crossing my arms, I frowned with a deep sigh. The room entirely silent without a soul present. Taking a step forward to hunt within the kitchen for ~something~ in hopes they didn’t starve guests.

“You seem tense,” said a voice behind me.

He was practically inches from my back as I turned around, preoccupied looking into the kitchen that he made me jump with the sudden closeness, losing balance. His warm arms reaching out to steady me. Though there had been plenty of natural light, there hadn’t been anything to announce his presence. Realizing quickly that he had been reading in a chair before I had disturbed him, my eyes moving from the chair to meet his in realization.

The thought made me flush and look away back at the kitchen—my stomach growling. “Sorry, I just—”

Seth chuckled, patting my head and immediately releasing me. “Don’t be sorry, you’re clearly hungry and I’ve startled you. My apologies.” He pointed to the kitchen, a warm smile on his face. “How about I make you some food? I could use some too before I take my hike later.”

“Oh, a hike? Like with a backpack? Before your party?” I asked, thinking of how most people referred to hiking as days if not week-long adventures of camping with little to no supplies.

This made him shake his head, opening up a few cupboards and pulling out items for what I realized were either pancakes or waffles. From scratch no less. Noting he didn’t bother to pull out a recipe as he began to measure out flour and baking soda.

~Holy shit that’s impressive. I can barely do the packages.~

“No, just a trail for a few hours to enjoy the sunshine and the weather before the rest of the plants die off or fire season starts. I like to get out at least twice a week if I can help it, it’s part of the reason we stayed in Oregon when we finally moved here. There are a ton of trails to hike in the area for a few hours or so.”

“You’re both not from Oregon?” I was surprised. That hadn’t been public information.

“No, we’re both originally from Dyersburg, Tennessee, about two and a half to three hours from Nashville. I guess we’ve lost our accents, Cole more than myself from what I’m told at the office. We retained some of our Southern charm though. A lot of northern men seem to be lacking in the knowledge of how to treat a lady for something as simple as a date, though admittedly Cole has a better sense than I do when it comes to women.”

I tried not to comment, knowing that his words probably came out of a place of hurt. Seth was certainly charming and kind. There was nothing inferior about him when it came to comparing him to Cole. If anything, Seth was more of what most women looked for in a partner compared to the other brother. Cole’s snide remark echoed in my head for a moment at my mental comparison. ~You’re welcome to be as unprofessional as you want. Though honestly, I’ve read some of your articles on sex. It did have me a bit curious myself. My brother is already practically in love with you.~

I pushed the thoughts aside as I took a seat at the bar, watching Seth work. I didn’t want to think of Seth as in love with me for several reasons. Starting with the fact he hardly knew me. Just as Cole also hardly knew me. However, it was hard to not want to help him regardless of how the financial compensation might help me. Where Cole was rough around the edges and probably a bachelor at heart, Seth was kind and caring more so than I had first imagined. The statement was obvious considering I was sitting here and he was the one making me breakfast. Kind people like that deserved love, at least in my personal opinion.

I couldn’t exactly say the same for the man that had violated me until I moaned his name and came for him. Cole was thrilling, and even though he didn’t have any trouble picking up women, something like that didn’t exactly make him desirable for anything other than short term. Seth was most certainly the better choice logically, so why fall into a trap like Cole if you had Seth?

Keeping my thoughts to myself, I tried to focus on Seth. Curious to know more about him. The more I knew, the more likely I might be able to find someone that might mesh better with him. “Wow, that’s a long journey, what made you both make your way all the way over here?”

Seth smiled ruefully, dishing up a plate with pancakes before pouring some more batter and slicing a few strawberries for my plate. “Believe it or not, a girl,” I tilted my head, taking a bite out of one of the strawberries as I gave him a curious look, wondering if there would be more details. “Cole had his first big heartbreak here, and it was the one and only time we were far apart from each other. I was with a girl named Lindsey and he moved states to get with a girl he met online named Niomi in Northern Cali.”

“Ok, we’ll get back to the part where you guys are always so close later because I have questions around that. It won’t go in my article but I have to probe. Where did it go wrong with Niomi?”

Seth chuckled, flipping a pancake. “It didn’t for a while, for a good two and a half years I barely heard from him and I honestly felt like I had lost my brother. Things weren’t going super great with my girlfriend but I was trying, and had had plans to marry her like a good southern gentleman does with a woman he’s been going steady with. Out of the blue right before Thanksgiving, Cole called me up— and told me Niomi had left him stranded in Oregon.” Seth sighed, flipping off the burners and dishing up his own plate, planting himself on the other side of the bar so we could face one another. The silence was almost deafening with the heavy subject as he thought back. “I guess she had been fucking one of her best friends before and after he had moved up. Not something that would have honestly really bothered Cole except that she had been hiding it. He didn’t like that she had feelings for someone else and was hiding it. It didn’t help that she was pregnant either when they split. He was… a mess.”

“Wow, that’s… that’s a lot,” I said, learning some new details about Cole that made me see him in a different light, wondering if she was the reason he had attachment issues or if it ran even deeper and she just happened to be the nail in the coffin. Not that I was about to dig into his love life. I had been hired for one Harris, not two.

“It was, so when I decided to come up here I gave Lindsey an ultimatum to come with me or split. I knew what she’d say. Cole saved me from what probably would have been one of the biggest mistakes of my life by circumstance,” Seth said with a small laugh, turning around to grab some orange juice and two small glasses. “We’ve been here ever since.”

“Not to pry or anything but… do you get out of relationships a lot because of your brother?”

Seth’s demeanor faltered, his lips turning downward for a fraction of a second. “No, not necessarily. Sometimes he’s the one that encourages me to get out there and live life and helps me get into relationships. I think sometimes he feels guilty that I ended things with Lindsey because I’ve always wanted a kid and a family. It wasn’t something we ever really had growing up, those nice moms or great dads that teach you things. We always wanted that so it would be nice, in my opinion, to have it.”

I felt for them, wondering what it must have been like growing up only having one another. It was no wonder they were closer than most twins. Maybe their relationship wasn’t as complicated as it looked. There wasn’t any ill intent between them that I could really tell. At least not on Seth’s part.

“Do you mind if I join you on your hike today? I’d love to explore more about your background. I won’t add anything in the article you’re uncomfortable sharing of course. Cole also asked for a proofread before I sent it to our editors.” I tried to put on my best professional face, trying to feel less like a spy. Cole had never said I couldn’t tell Seth what I was supposed to be doing necessarily, though he clearly hadn’t told his brother the truth.

I hoped my guilt wouldn’t gnaw at me too hard, the better part of me wishing Seth knew how much his brother cared about him.