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He reaches for his glass of brandy. “Yeah, that was a metaphor. The point is, you’re living half of a life.”
“Half of a life,” I murmur. The words feel like a slap. The life I live is one dedicated to them. To the company. To thefamily.
To the little son he’s holding in his lap right now. If he wants to have a piece of his heritage, one of us needs to ensure there’s a heritage left, and Anthony made it clear he doesn’t want to be a part of the day-to-day.
Doesn’t stop any of them from benefiting, though. It doesn’t stop my parents from booking out The Ivy free of charge for events, or my brother from drawing a monthly salary from a nominal position on the board.
But God forbid I spend my life ensuring any of that’s even possible.
“Yes,” Anthony says. I doubt he notices my sharp silence. I’ve become good at keeping my occasional resentments hidden. “The hotel is doing great. The business can take care of itself far more than you’d let it. It’s time you took care of you, too.”
“Right,” I say, my hand curving over the armrest of my chair. “And both of you are convinced that means finding a life partner?”
“Yes,” my brother says, “because you just said the wordsfinding a life partner.I just want you to get laid consistently, man, and have fun doing things that aren’t spreadsheets.”
I chuckle. “The offer is appreciated, Summer. But I don’t need any help.”
She gives me a wide, serviceable smile. I’ve seen it work well for her before. “When was the last time you went on a date?” she asks like she’s already interviewing me for her matchmaking service.
“I’m actually seeing someone right now,” I say.
“You are?” Anthony asks. “Define seeing someone. Because if it’s just—”
“Anthony,” Summer murmurs.
He gives us both a half grin. “You know I’m right. Both of you. Because there’s a difference.”
As if I didn’t know. As if the woman I used to see briefly, casually, wasn’tdifferentthan actually dating someone. Beverly and I had a very clear understanding. Always cordial, never dramatic, and never any expectations.
“I know there is,” I say. “But this is more than that, even if it’s early.”
Summer’s blue eyes are narrowed on mine like she’s a detective interrogating a suspect. “What’s her name?”
“Sophia,” I say.
“What’s her hair color?”
“Brown.”
“How long has it been going on?”
“Just a few weeks.” I reach for my brandy. It burns going down my throat, along with the last of my good sense.Fuck.I shouldn’t have said her name. There was no reason to, and it isn’t right to her.
My brother looks from my grim expression to my newly drained glass. “And it’s not going well,” he says. “Is it?”
“It’s complicated.”
“But you like her,” he says and leans back on the couch like he’s cracked the case.
“Yes,” I say and wonder how the hell I ended up in this situation. The indignity. Not that I wouldn’t…
Jesus. This is why it’s become hard to spend time around my family lately. I’m aware they have these conversations behind my back, and the knowledge grates like a thorn beneath my skin.
Summer doesn’t look convinced. “All right. If you think this could be serious, I’ll lay off. But my offer stands. One of these days, I’m going to organize a date and just text you the time and place.”
“You wouldn’t dare,” I say.
“I would,” she says, and I know she means it. My sister-in-law is many things, but timid is usually not one of them. “I can even set the date at The Ivy so you don’t have to go anywhere, and I’ll make sure it doesn’t run longer than half an hour.”
