His hard face shifts into a grin, and he digs into his pocket, pulling out a rolled-up bill before holding it out to my son. Coop reaches for it but stops when he sees my face.
"But, Mom, I won," he whines.
I raise my eyebrows in silent warning.
Mateo pulls his arm back, pocketing the cash.
"I'll give it to you later when she's not looking," he tells Coop from behind his hand, throwing him a wink.
"Have you two been introduced yet?" Mr. Hayes asks, shooting a pointed look at Addie, who's shoving a forkful of salad into her mouth.
"Mateo, Jade. Jade, Mateo," she says through a mouthful.
"And I'm Cooper."
"Nice to meet you both," Mateo says, flashing a smile that highlights a crooked canine. "Officially, anyway."
The universe hates me. If it liked me, he'd have an annoyingly perfect smile. But instead, Addie's brother has a smile that taunts me.
Although dinner is delicious as always, tonight the vibe is off. Different. Mateo's energy is alive and magnetic, and it's obvious where Addie gets it. But she's quiet tonight, folding into herself. I kick her beneath the table, and she straightens, shaking her head at me, her lips pressed into a forced smile.
Next to me, Cooper talks with his hands, his feet crossed beneath him in the chair. I love this side of him, the one that reminds me he's still a kid, no matter how smart he is.
He and Mateo discuss music, and I study the stranger across the table. His blond hair falls into his face, almost long enough that he could tie it back. A black and gray tattoo of a skull with a knife through it trails out from under the sleeve of his shirt.
My eyes lock on his hand in a tight fist before they snap back to his face. He's meeting my gaze with an odd expression, one I can't read.
"Cooper, my dude, what's the schedule this week?" Mr. Hayes asks.
Coop scoops his phone from the basket in the center of the table and consults it.
"Schedule?" Mateo asks, pulling his own phone out of his pocket.
Addie's mom clears her throat, and he tosses his in the basket with the others.
"Mr. Hayes, I can get a babysitter," I say. It's the same argument we've had every Sunday since Addie invited us to dinner six months ago. The one where Mr. and Mrs. Hayes offer to watch Cooper while I'm at class or work. I try not to think about the money they're saving me in sitters, the money I've been able to stash away. It's not about that. It's about Coop having somewhere safe while I work hard to give him the world.
"Tuesday and Wednesday after school, and Friday overnight?" Cooper asks, his voice coated with hope. My heart threatens to slide out of my chest and cling to my sleeve, but I pull it back, putting a leash on it. If he gets attached, I can be there when it all falls apart, but if I get attached, there's no one to pick up my pieces.
Mr. Hayes nods. "You got it, kid, and Jade, please call me Liam."
"Seriously," Mrs. Hayes adds, stabbing an olive out of Mr. Hayes' salad. "It's Charlie."
"Do we both have Saturday night off?" Addie asks, her eyes widening with hope as she absently pushes food around her plate.
"You work at the bar too?" Mateo asks.
"I'm at the shop on Saturday until four, I think," I say, ignoring him and looking at Coop for confirmation. I don't know what I'd do without this kid. He's so freaking smart. Too smart for his own good sometimes. Too smart for me.
"Yes, we're at the shop until four," he says without missing a beat.
"Fire Saturday night?" Addie asks.
"Two sleepovers in a row!" Coop cheers.
"Wait, I've gotta put up with this little punk all week?"
I cross my arms over my chest and shoot a glare at Mateo, ready to knock him down a peg, only to find him fist-bumping Cooper. I don't like this, this sudden camaraderie Cooper has with this man I don't know. A man who has my best friend all fucked up in her head. My jaw clenches, and I force a smile.
