Some Loves by Meg Jolie Read Free Book Online Page A

proceeded to scrub his head with a towel. Water droplets fell to the tiled floor as rivers of water ran over our toes. The comforting scent of wet cedar and the strong scent of chlorine filled the large pool area.
    “I’m surprised you didn’t want to swim longer,” I admitted. “Is your leg bothering you?”
    We were at the Timber Bay Lodge. It was a local resort that sold daily pool passes. Swimming was an activity that was easy on Tyler’s injured leg. We came here often. Usually, I had to pull him out of the water. Sometimes, a bribe or two had to be employed. I was surprised when tonight, he’d gotten out on his own accord.
    “It’s fine,” he said in answer to my question. “I just want to go home.”
    “You want to go back to Aubrey’s?” I asked with a frown as I wrapped a towel around his body. I shivered as reached for my own towel.
    I’d picked him up after school. We’d been swimming for a little over an hour. This time of year, and this time of day, the pool was pretty quiet. At the moment we were the only ones in here.
    He shook his head at me. “No. I want to go home .”
    Oh. Right. I should’ve realized that’s what he meant. He wanted to go back to our house. He must’ve wanted it badly if he’d been willing to finish up with swimming early. I couldn’t blame him. Despite how wonderful our aunt and uncle were, living with them had been a huge adjustment for all of us.
    “We’re going back to the house for awhile,” I assured him.
    His little chin jutted out. His eyes were wide and his mouth had drooped into an unhappy expression. “Can I stay with you? Overnight?”
    So that’s what this was about.
    I made it a point to do something with my brother a few times a week. He often stayed overnight on the weekend. However, this past weekend he hadn’t. I had gone out on Friday night—and now wished I’d stayed home—and he’d gone to a sleepover the following night.
    “That sounds like a plan to me. Let me text Aubrey to let her know. Then…,” I scrunched up my face, pretending to be deep in thought, “I think we should stop at the grocery store. I think that cheeseburgers, homemade fries and chocolate malts should be on the dinner menu.”
    He grinned at me and nodded. I had known he would. It was his favorite meal and usually reserved for his birthday.
    “Yes!” he exclaimed. “Do we have to have a vegetable with it?”
    I laughed. “I think that just for tonight, we’ll consider the fries our veggie.”
    This earned me an adoring smile and my heart melted.
    I walked over to the table that we’d overtaken and grab bed his clothes. “You go change. I’ll let Aubrey know you’re staying with me.”
    “Will she let me? It’s a school night.” His smile slipped and he looked concerned.
    “I know she doesn’t want to make a habit out of it, but I’m sure it’ll be fine for tonight.” Both Aubrey and I had agreed it was best to keep Tyler on a routine during the school year. I was also sure that since we’d missed our weekend visit, she’d be lenient tonight. Fortunately, I’d been building a good relationship with my aunt. I was sure that if I told her I thought this was best for Ty, she wouldn’t question it.
    I handed him his clothes. “You go change and I’ll meet you back out here. Okay?” He nodded and I pointed a finger at him. “But do not leave the pool area without me.”
    He took his clothes and we each quickly changed. In the meantime I let Aubrey know that I was keeping Tyler overnight. As I’d predicted, she didn’t have a problem with that.
    “We’re good to go,” I told him as we crossed the parking lot. “ Aubrey said you could stay as long as I agreed to eat dinner with you guys one night this week.”
    “She likes to make deals,” he said with a grin.
    “At least she makes easy ones,” I said as I ruffled his wet hair. It was still plastered to his head like a helmet.
    “They’re easy for you,” he corrected me with a roll of