Mom hurried over and hugged me as if I had arrived late to a celebration I should have been thankful for.
“We are so proud of your brother,” she whispered. “He handled everything so quietly.”
Jake lifted his beer. “Somebody had to.”
Dad cleared his throat. “You know, sweetheart, homeownership is a lot. Jake stepped in before things got worse.”
I looked at him. “What things?”
The room grew thinner around the question.
Jake’s smile barely moved. “The payments. The notices. The foreclosure clock. Don’t act like you don’t know.”
That was always how it worked in our family. Jake was practical. I was overwhelmed. Jake was decisive. I was emotional.
He created storms and got umbrellas. I built shelter and got warnings.