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We’re all sitting at a long table. Mia and her dad are at opposite ends, Kas is on Mia’s right, and Alec is on her left. I’m next to Alec, and Jewell sits between her dad and me. Reid is next to Kas on the opposite side, and Miranda is between her son and husband. If I were to guess, I’d say that Mia’s siblings have manipulated the seating perfectly. Sure, it sucks I can’t sit next to Mia, but it makes sense.
Alec is the one of us that’s farthest from his comfort zone, so he needs her to remain calm and collected. They know Kas as Mia’s boyfriend, so that makes sense as well. Besides, it’s brilliant that Jewell is sitting next to me. She intrigues me, and I want to get to know her—of course, that depends on how the evening goes.
“What if we are pimps?” Alec asks, unable to help himself. “I mean, how would you know? Look around, Miranda. There’s no way to know the occupation of everyone in this restaurant. Sure, it’s an upscale place, but any profession can make you decent money if you have half a business sense.”
Next to me, Jewell whispers, “He just can’t help himself, can he?”
Shaking my head, I smile at her. “Nope, it seems not,” I reply, wishing that he hadn’t just gone there.
The minor interruption from the waiter bringing our drink orders is both welcome and too brief. Mia helps him share the shots she ordered, and I’m surprised when she knocks three back quickly. I’ve barely seen Mia drink wine, let alone hard liquor. Kas takes two, and Alec takes three. Reid and Jewell take one each when their parents and I decline the small glass.
“Excuse me?” Miranda exclaims in outrage as soon as the waiter leaves us.
Reid jumps in and says, “That’s an interesting theory. Can you tell what I do for a living?”
“Annoy your sisters,” Jewell pipes up, making almost everyone chuckle.
Not Miranda, of course.
“I’m a social worker,” I offer to hopefully defuse the tension. It’s a lie, but no one else knows that yet.
Reid asks me some questions about my job, and then it’s like he remembers a nugget of information and links it to my answers. “You’re one of the guys Kas is opening a youth center with, aren’t you?” Smiling, I incline my head.
“Yep, me, Alec, and Kas are hopefully starting it together this year.”
Before Reid can follow up with more questions, Miranda jumps in. “Where did you meet my—Mia? Are you one of her disgusting clients?”
I force myself to laugh. “No, ma’am, I met her in Business Class. You must be proud of how clever she is. If it wasn’t for her, I don’t think I would have passed our group assignment.” I’m pleased to see that Miranda seems stumped.
“That’s our girls, bright beyond belief,” Roger says with pride lacing every word. “To Mia!” Raising his glass, he looks around the table, and we all take a sip of our drinks.
Looking at my girl, I wish I could hug her. I have no doubt that she’s barely holding it together, but she doesn’t let it show. She sits calmly between two of her men while engaging her brother in conversation about his wife and kid. I’m so fucking proud of her right now.
“So, you’re a friend of Mia’s and her boyfriend.” It’s not a question, it’s a statement.
Miranda looks between Kas and me before her gaze lands on Alec, and her lips curl into a grimace as she eyes his neck tattoo. “But where do you fit into all of this, apart from wanting to start a business together? Which can hardly be why my daughter has brought you here tonight.” I can almost see the cogs spin in Miranda’s head as she tries and fails to solve the puzzle in front of her.
“We’re not discussing this right now,” Mia says in a no-nonsense tone. She pierces her mom with a glare of her own before flicking her hair over her shoulder in a nonchalant movement that doesn’t betray how nervous she is. I think I’m the only one who’s watching her trembling hands, the only sign that she’s not calm.
The food is brought over before Miranda can continue her questions, and the rare steak in front of me makes my mouth salivate.
“Delicious!” Roger says around a bite of his chicken, and everyone else murmurs their approval of the food.
Both Alec and Mia have chosen the house salad with chicken, which looks good. But there’s no way I’d trade their over-the-top healthy food for my red meat.
“Jewell, how’s vet school?” With a flash of mischief in his blue eyes, Kas engages Mia’s sister in a chat about her studies. “So, do you ever have to stick your hand into… No, never mind. We’re eating. But do you enjoy it?”
Laughing, Jewell answers Kas’ questions and entertains us with some fun anecdotes from her studies and the animal shelter she volunteers at every Saturday. “I swear, the goat was as stoned as him. So, when it smelled my friend’s peanut butter and jelly sandwich, it went crazy. Jumped out of the stoner guy’s arms and ran straight for her.”
There’s not a dry eye at the table… That’s a lie. Miranda’s lips don’t even twitch with amusement.
Almost everyone is laughing at Jewell’s story, complete with the right flare of dramatics and arm gestures. I finally feel like I can relax a little, and I cut myself a big piece of the tender meat on my plate. Chewing, I wonder if we look like one happy family eating together or if other people have noticed that even while eating and laughing, there’s an ever present tension.
“You never told us how you could afford to quit your job,” Miranda asks Jewell. The remark itself is casual, but her shrewd gaze isn’t.
I feel both Jewell and Alec stiffen next to me, and I frantically try to come up with something to change the subject. Of course, I fail.
Our little group already knows that Mia is the one paying for Jewell’s vet school, just as we know that this is meant to be kept secret from their parents.
