step brother rules

Chapter 17: Weighing It

Chapter 17: Weighing It

Mara spent the better part of two weeks running scenarios that all ended in some version of loss. Take the job, lose the easy proximity that had let this relationship become what it was. Turn it down, and maybe resent the choice quietly for years, wondering what she'd traded away.

She researched New York architecture firms without telling Jonah, just to see if the option he'd floated was even realistic. It was — barely. A handful of firms doing the kind of community-focused work he cared about, all fiercely competitive, none guaranteeing anything.

"You've been googling something for twenty minutes with that face," Jonah said, glancing over from his side of the couch one evening. "The concentrating-s***h-guilty face."

"I was looking at architecture firms in New York," she admitted. "For you. Hypothetically."

Something softened in his expression. "Find anything?"

"A few possibilities. Nothing guaranteed. It would mean starting over somewhere new, competing for positions against people with better connections in that market." She closed the laptop, needing to say the rest without a screen between them. "I don't want to ask you to gamble your career on my job offer."

"You're not asking. I'm offering." He shifted to face her properly. "Mara, I've been thinking about this too, independent of what you decide. I love my work here, but I'm not so attached to Chicago specifically that the idea of a different city terrifies me. If it came to it, I'd rather bet on us than stay comfortable somewhere without you."

"That's a big thing to say."

"It's a big relationship. Feels appropriate." He took her hand, thumb tracing slow patterns over her knuckles. "But I also don't want to be the reason you make this decision. If you turn down New York, I want it to be because staying in Chicago is genuinely what you want — not because you're protecting me from an inconvenience."

Mara turned the thought over, trying to separate what she actually wanted from the guilt and fear tangled around it. "Can I ask you something honest?"

"Always."

"If I take it — if we do the long-distance thing, or you eventually relocate — are you scared this doesn't survive that? Distance, or the stress of you starting over professionally?"

He was quiet for a moment, considering the question with the same care he gave everything. "I'm scared of a lot of things about this, if I'm honest. But I'm more scared of us not trying because we were scared of the hard parts. We've already navigated harder things than distance, Mara. Ex-girlfriends with corporate espionage confessions, for one." A small, teasing smile. "I think we can handle a few states between us if it comes to that."

She laughed despite herself, some of the tension easing out of her shoulders. "I called the firm today. Asked for two more weeks to decide."

"And?"

"They said yes. Grudgingly." She exhaled slowly. "I think I need to actually visit New York before I can picture any of this properly. See the office, get a feel for what my life would look like there, before I decide whether it's worth the trade."

"That seems smart. Practical." He pulled her closer, tucking her against his side. "Want company? I could take a few days off, come with you. See it as a place instead of just a hypothetical."

The offer settled something in her chest she hadn't realized was still unsteady. "You'd do that?"

"I already told you. I'm betting on us." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Besides, I've always wanted to see if the pizza debate is as dramatic in person as it is online."

"Don't get us banned from an entire city before we've even decided to move there."

"No promises."

She let herself laugh, let herself lean into him, into the version of this decision that felt less like an ultimatum and more like two people figuring out a shared future together — messy, uncertain, but undeniably a partnership rather than a solo negotiation.

The trip was booked for the following weekend.