Loving my fake Husband

Homecoming

❀ Clark ❀

The sign for Mason Plumbing in Willow Creek came into view as I turned down the familiar street. The bold blue lettering and the signature wrench logo I had designed years ago were still intact, still representing the name I had built from the ground up. I hadn’t set foot in this shop in years, but now, standing in front of it, I felt a pang of nostalgia. This was where it all began. I pushed the door open, and the scent of oil, metal, and faintly burnt coffee hit me like a memory frozen in time. The small reception area still had the same wooden counter, the same old bell that jingled above the door, and the same worn-out leather couch in the corner. Then, I spotted him. Camden was leaning over the counter, laughing at something on his phone, completely oblivious to my presence. His dark hair was a little longer than I remembered, and there was a shadow of scruff on his jaw. I smirked as I folded my arms across my chest.

"Is this what I’m paying you for? Watching cat videos all day?" I teased. His head snapped up, and his eyes widened in shock.

“Holy s**t!” he exclaimed as he rushed around the counter and closed the short distance between us. “I didn’t think you would actually come,” he said as he pulled me into a firm, brotherly hug. When he stepped back, he looked me up and down. “f**k, Clark, you look like s**t,”

“It’s nice to see you too, little brother,” I shot back. In truth, my brother looked good. His hair was definitely longer than I remembered, and the beard was a bit scruffier too. But it was his shining blue eyes that made me jealous. Whenever I looked in the mirror, my eyes always looked dull and lifeless. I wasn’t about to think about it too hard right now though.

“It is good to see you, but…I have to be honest, bro…it looks like you haven’t had a decent night's sleep in years,” he remarked. I didn’t want to confirm it, but he was right. I slept most nights on the couch in my office.

“Well, it is what it is,” I said instead as I looked around. “You didn’t take my advice and update the place,”

“Actually, it’s in process…the only thing is, I started upstairs, and they just finished it last week. They start down here on Monday,” he corrected, and I nodded. “Come on, I’m closing up. I don’t have any appointments and anyone with an emergency can call me if they need to,” I didn’t say a word as I watched him flip the sign from open to closed. He locked the door, and I followed him through the back to where the staircase led upstairs to the apartment. Once upon a time, this had all been mine. Technically, it was all mine, but when I moved to the city, Camden took it over.

“I’m impressed,” I admitted as I looked around. The open-plan living room, dining room, and kitchen had been completely renovated. The dull wooden floors had been refurbished, and it gleamed under the soft sunlight that flittered through the large windows. The once-white walls had been repainted in the softest color of green. The dining room table sat empty save for a notebook and the living room looked comfortable with a large sectional couch and a massive TV mounted against the wall. The kitchen was modern and sleek. Anyone who loved to cook would be jealous.

“Thanks…it took me a hot minute to finalized the details of what I wanted, but I love it,” he said as he headed straight for the kitchen. I took a seat at the island counter and watched as he started pulling out ingredients. He handed me a beer and I could have offered to help him, but I was useless in the kitchen. “So, now that you are here…tell me everything,” he said. I watched as he prepared some dough.

“Robert agreed that I work too much,” I muttered before I took a long sip of my beer.

“Figures…who is Robert again?”

“My PA…my friend…my best friend…my only friend,” I said. Camden shot me a look, but thankfully, he left it at that. “When he told me that he agreed with you and that I should take a break, I went home…booked a flight and packed a bag,”

“Good move,” he said with a nod. Camden set the dough aside and got working on the toppings. Pepperoni, bacon, three different types of cheeses and a tomato, BBQ-based sauce. “I’m going to assume you don’t actually want to talk about the fact that you just told me your only and best friend works for you…because I have to be honest, Clark, that is tragic,”

“I mean…sure, it’s tragic, but…I just don’t have time for…” my voice trailed off and Camden scoffed.

“For what? A life? Friends? Fun? Yeah, yeah, I have heard it all before,” he said. “You have got so much money because you don’t actually know what to do with it. You don’t have any friends. You don’t have anyone special, and you don’t even come home anymore,”

“I don’t…” I shook my head. Once again, he was right.

“I remember when you first went to the city. Mom was so worried about you…she had convinced herself that the city would keep you from her…but you came home every month for the first…three years,”

“And then?”

“And then once every second month…and then once every three months…six months…then it was only Christmas…now…” he took a sip of his beer before he turned his attention back to the food. “Look, we are all so proud of you, Clark. You know that…but what is the point of all the success if you don’t have anyone to share it with?”

“I don’t…” I once again shook my head. This was a losing battle.

“Who was your last girlfriend?” he asked, and I didn’t have an answer. “To my knowledge, the last actual girlfriend you had was Jennifer, and that last eight months…since then…?”

“None,” I admitted.

“What about going out on dates?” he asked, and I shook my head. “Ok…what about s*x?”

“I mean…” I blushed as I thought about Thersa, a downstairs neighbor. “I have someone who…scratches that itch,”

“Dude, are you for real right now? Please tell me you aren’t talking about that hot chick that basically drools over you whenever she sees you,”

“Um…” I couldn’t, because Thersa was the woman he was referring to. “We have an agreement,”

“And what is that exactly? She scratches that itch. How often does it happen?”

“Well…to be honest…it hasn’t happened for a while,” I said truthfully. “I haven’t seen her in months…for all I know she doesn’t even live in the building anymore,”

“Or she did the right thing and moved on,” he pointed out, and I nodded. That could be true as well.

“Enough about me, what about you?” I asked. Camden blushed as he took out his phone. He fiddled with it for a moment before he handed it over. It was a picture of him and a lovely-looking woman. “Oh? And who is this?”

“Cassidy…we have been dating for about four months, and I have to tell you, bro…I think she is the one,”

“Sweet,” I said as I handed him the phone back. Suddenly, I wasn’t just jealous that my brother looked good and healthy. It appeared that he had it all. The business. The apartment and the girl. And what did I have? Nothing.

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