I shook my head, waiting for the punch line.

“She said, ‘If I don’t love myself, how is anyone else going to love me?’”

I chuckled and sprinted toward him to catch up again. “Isn’t that like a Dr. Phil quote or some shit?”

“It is. In fact, I’m pretty sure ninety percent of the things she said to me were Dr. Phil quotes. It was bizarre. But to top it all off, when I left, she said, ‘I don’t usually do this on the first date, but I really like you,’ and she kissed my forehead, like she was my great aunt or some shit. I’m telling you, bro, she was whacked.”

“So, when are you going to see her again?” I quipped.

He threw his head back and laughed. “Actually, I gave her your number. Hope that’s cool?”

As we wound our way around the lake, I couldn’t help but feel that twinge of nostalgia creeping in. Cullen really was like a brother to me, and I missed this. But since I’d started spending time with Evie, my own guilt over the situation made it almost painful to be around him. It was definitely time to tear off this fucking Band-Aid.

“Sounds like that’s one for the books,” I said lightly. “Speaking of dating, anything going on with your sister in that department? Been a long time since she’s had a boyfriend. Last one I recall was in high school, and even that was barely a thing.”

Cullen shot me a puzzled look and shrugged. “No clue. I don’t ask her about that shit. Mainly because I’m afraid she’ll actually tell me. You don’t get it because Pam is older, I guess, but it’s weird thinking about your little sister . . .” He trailed off and let out a disgusted growl. “You know what I mean.”

“I hear you,” I muttered, resisting the urge to change the subject and abort this clusterfuck of a mission altogether.

Suck it up, asshole.

There were only two options here. Tell him, or end it with Evie. Somehow in the past few weeks, option number two was no longer on the table.

I drew in a breath and let loose the first sally. “She’s a twenty-two-year-old woman, Cullen. She’s got to grow up sometime. Don’t you want to see her find a good guy and settle down? Maybe have a family someday?”

His reply came back without hesitation. “Nope.”

Guilt gave way to irritation, and I scowled at him. “That’s a little ridiculous, don’t you think?”

His gait faltered as he turned his head to stare at me. “No, I don’t think. And I’m trying to figure out why the fuck you’re asking me this shit right now.”

I slowed, and suddenly the sound of his feet pounding the dirt beside me stopped.

Jesus, this was going to suck.

I stopped and turned to face him. He stood, his hands loosely on his hips, but there was nothing casual about his expression.

“You got something to tell me, Smith?”

The anger was already there, bubbling right beneath the surface. As much as I hated being the target of it, this conversation had been an eye-opener, and I knew now more than ever it was the right thing to do, no matter how ugly it got.

His eyes were trained on my face, his jaw clenched as he pressed. “Why all the questions, Smith?”

“Asking for a friend?” I shot back with a smirk, one last attempt to bring things down a notch and keep it light. But Cullen was having no part of it.

“I can’t even believe you’re thinking about this. She’s twenty-two. She’s practically a fucking kid,” he snapped, pacing now like a caged lion. Then he stopped in his tracks, his cheeks going chalk white. “Are you fucking her already?” he demanded in a whisper that somehow felt shittier than if he’d shouted it at me.

“No.”

It felt inhumane to add the caveat—not yet, at least—but there was no question it hung in the air between us like a poisonous smog.

“You son of a bitch,” he snarled, his fist clenching open and closed.

His eyes were wild with anger and something like betrayal, but before I could apologize, he was stalking toward me. He stopped just a few inches from my face.

“If you were anyone else, I’d beat the living shit out of you right now. Instead, I’m going to take you at your word that you haven’t slept with her and give you a chance to try and undo this shit. Stop now and nothing has to change. We can work together, and once I get over the fact that you went behind my back and even considered this shit, we can probably go back to being friends. But that’s if and only if you agree to shut it down.” His nostrils flared as he glared at me. “Now.”

We were friends. The best. But Evie was a person. A woman in her own right with thoughts and feelings and free will of her own. The fact that Cullen was talking about her like she was some antiquated piece of the Reed family property made my blood hum with fury.

I hated that it had come to this, and there was no denying it was my bad, but my anger got the better of me and I shoved him hard in the chest.

“First of all, I wasn’t asking your permission,” I muttered. “I was trying to break some news to you in the right way. Granted, I should’ve told you sooner, but this macho asshole bullshit of yours doesn’t exactly make it easy, and your sister asked me not to.”

The heat of his outrage burned beneath the surface. “You got a lot of nerve telling m—”

“Second of all,” I cut in, jabbing a finger in his direction. “Evie is a twenty-two-year-old without any love life on the horizon, probably in part because of you. You were like her hulking shadow, and guys were afraid to even get near her in high school. You think that’s healthy?” I demanded, pissed off and on a roll now. “She needs space to grow and learn about life. Keeping her close so you can protect her is selfish, Cullen. How is she ever going to learn from her mistakes, or fall and pick herself back up if she’s never allowed to make any?”