The lakehouse was too quiet.
Everyone had already left—Mom, her new husband, and the other guests from the family gathering. They’d driven off in a noisy pack, leaving behind only the wine bottles, leftover cake, and the two people who never quite got along.
Me.
And Caleb.
My stepbrother.
I stood at the edge of the dock in my oversized sweatshirt and cotton shorts, sipping the last of the rosé straight from the bottle. The sun had dipped low, casting orange streaks across the water, the breeze cool on my bare legs.
I wasn’t drunk—just buzzed enough to stop caring.
I shouldn’t have stayed behind. I told myself it was to enjoy the peace, to get some reading done. But in truth, I didn’t want to go back to the city just yet. Back to my apartment. Back to the mess of a breakup I hadn’t t
