3 Aiden

"What's wrong?" Reo Ono asked from across the dining table as he placed his cup of coffee down, his smoky dark eyes on Aiden Davis, the family's eldest brother.

Aiden raised his blond head and gave his stepbrother a querying look. "What do you mean?"

"You seem preoccupied."

Aiden glanced at his cell phone, noting it was already ten to eight. "Am I?" he asked, now glancing at the door for signs of Haru.

Reo sighed, knowing all too well what was bothering him. "If Haru is going to be late for his job, then it's his own fault."

Aiden said, his voice firm, "I'm his eldest brother. I can't let him be late for work."

Reo leaned forward on the table. "You're not his mother, Aiden. Stop pampering him and start finding yourself a permanent girlfriend already."

Noah, who appeared at the door at that moment, said, "I concur."

Aiden frowned. "How the hell are those two related?" He picked up his cup of coffee and took a sip while Noah and Reo looked at each other.

When he put the cup down again, he said, "Besides, whether I choose to have a girlfriend or not isn't any of your business, either one of you." His tone was firm as he stared at his brother and then stepbrother. His expression was clear. Stay out of his love life.

Reo shrugged his broad shoulders as if it was of no importance to him. "Sure, bro, whatever you say. If you want to be single for the rest of your life, then that has nothing to do with us. If you want to grow old and lonely, that also has nothing to do with us."

Aiden raised a brow, a slight smile playing across his lips. "Is that sarcasm I hear from you, Reo?" he asked in amusement.

Reo chuckled and gave Aiden a cheeky smile in return. "Sarcasm? Like I'd use it on you."

Noah asked, as he made his way toward the sink, "Is Mason up yet?" He poured himself a glass of water and then drank to his heart's content.

Aiden said, "Still in bed."

Reo nodded. "He didn't come home until four this morning. I heard him making a lot of noise in his bedroom next door."

Noah said, "He really should stop working at that bar. I know he gets really good pay, but man, it's no life working night shift."

Reo added, "And studying at the same time. I don't know how he does it."

Aiden, his eyes on the door searching for signs of Haru again, said, "It's not so hard once you're used to it."

Noah chuckled. "So the father of the house says. We know you're a workaholic, Aiden, but it doesn't mean Mason has to be one, too. Besides, it's not like we can't afford to pay the bills anymore now that the mortgage is finally paid off."

Reo nodded. "Maybe we should talk to him when he's up? Reducing work hours would be a good idea, considering he's in his third year at university now. There should be quite a bit of a workload, right?"

Both Noah and Reo turned their eyes to Aiden, expecting him to take charge, as always.

Aiden, knowing this was one of his many responsibilities as the head of the family, nodded. "I'll talk to him when he's up."

On cue, Mason, the Davises' third brother, sitting at twenty-one years of age, appeared at the door. He was still in his sleepwear and his honey-blond hair was a bed-style mess. He yawned loudly as he came to sit beside Reo.

"Morning, everyone," he greeted.

Reo said, "You're up early for going to bed so late at night."

With his eyes half closed, Mason reached out for a piece of toast. "I got hungry in my sleep. I'm going back to bed after breakfast."

Noah nodded. "Good call."

It wasn't long before both Noah and Reo turned their eyes to Aiden and signaled for him to initiate the discussion.

Aiden put his cup of coffee down and began. "Mason, we need to talk about your job at the bar."

Mason did another big yawn as he nodded. "Sure. You want me to quit or reduce my hours?"

None of the brothers were surprised at Mason's words because he was one of the easiest going and considerate guys they knew. He'd do anything to make the family happy.

Aiden said, "Reducing your hours would be great, especially if you don't have to work so late anymore. But quitting that job is an option, too. I'm sure, with your abilities, finding another job won't be hard."

Mason nodded. "Sure, I'll talk to my manager about reducing my hours. But I won't quit just yet. I like having my own money."

Aiden nodded in understanding while both Noah and Reo grinned. Discussion closed, easy as per usual where Mason was concerned.

A moment later, Noah asked Aiden, "Didn't you say yesterday you have a meeting with a client this afternoon?"

Aiden nodded. As a real estate agent, there were no set work hours. Saturday, such as today, was also a workday if his clients demanded him.

"The client wants to inspect a few of the apartments she liked."

"What part of New York are they looking at?" Reo asked.

"Upper East Side."

Noah whistled in appreciation.

"That's going to be quite a commission," Mason said.

Aiden nodded. "If everything goes well, then yes."