Page 75 of Scoring Eden

Leo leans into his daughter. “Honey, you have got to stop asking people that question.”

Ivy scowls. “Why can’t I ask that question, Dad?”

“I think it was a fair question,” Roman pipes in around a mouthful of masticated steak, pointing his fork at Ivy in endorsement. “I’d quite like to know the answer myself.”

Aspen claps her hands together and unhelpfully chimes in, “Me too.”

Brynn shakes her head, shooting daggers at Roman for encouraging her daughter. “It’s personal. People might find it invasive.”

“Do you find it invasive, Uncle Alex?” she asks me directly, her eyes sparkling with innocence. It’s a lie. She isn’t innocent at all. Seven, though she may be, she has the wits and cunning of a military tactician.

Eden shifts in discomfort. Her eyes flick repeatedly to Macon, her lip lost between her teeth. I know how important it is to her that Macon doesn’t become entangled in the lies of our fake relationship, so I need to nip this in the bud now.

I give my niece a soft smile. “No, Ivy. We’re not friends that kiss.”

She sags back in her chair with palpable disappointment.

Me too, kid.

“Anyway…” Eden says in a bid to redirect the conversation. “Macon’s been given a new project at school. Why don’t you tell everyone, buddy? Maybe they can help you with ideas.”

“Oh, okay.” He puts down his fork. “We’re doing a fundraising competition for a charity in the city, and whoever raises the most money gets to be principal for the day. My best friend, Harlow, wants to do a bake sale, but I think that’s kind of boring.”

“Alex could cut his hair and auction it for you on eBay,” Roman pipes in. “You’d get a lot of money for it, and I wouldn’t be forced to look at that hideous man bun ever again. Two birds with one stone and all that.”

“Don’t be petty just because you’re balding,” I fire back at him.

Self-consciously, he rubs a hand over his buzz cut. “I’m not balding.”

“Then why do you cut your hair so short?”

“Helps me run faster.”

“Bullsh—” I remember the children. “Sugar.”

Brynn smiles warmly at Macon, blatantly ignoring us. “That’s cool. Do you know what charity you’re fundraising for? Maybe you could use that to inspire some ideas.”

Macon nods. “The Poppy Fields Children’s Home.”

Brynn freezes. I go rigid. And Leo’s eyes bounce from me to his wife and back again like he’s watching a tennis match.

They’re the only two people at the table who know I grew up there. Brynn, of course, because she was there with me, and Leo because he married her. Ivy might know too, since she’s aware Brynn spent time there, but we’ve never talked about it between us.

Roman, though, despite being one of my best friends, has no idea.

It’s not that I don’t trust him. I just don’t want to talk about it or have him look at me differently if I do. I don’t want soft looks and awkward man hugs or, God forbid, pity.

That time of my life doesn’t matter now. It’s not important anymore, regardless of what Dr. Sharma thinks.

“That’s where I used to live!” Ivy yells excitedly. “That’s so cool!”

“Really?” Macon’s eyes light up. “What do you think I should do? I really want to win.”

Their enthusiasm breaks the tension, and I let my body deflate.

Ivy taps her finger on her chin, humming as she thinks. “I like the idea of cutting Uncle Alex’s hair,” she says. “We could do it with one of Daddy’s beard shavers.”

“You mean my razor?” Leo asks with amusement. “I’m not sure it would be big enough to cut through that mop on his head. We’d need a hedge trimmer.”