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Haleystridesintothe kitchen around noon. She grumbles, making a pot of coffee. I am counting down the days until the new year, when she is no longer taking up space in the house. Andi has been up all morning, and she is just finishing up the food. She places the last tray into the oven so that it stays warm until Matt, Lisa, and Charlotte arrive.
“Morning,” I say.
Haley eyes me up and down, then scowls. “Colby. What are you doing here?”
“Dom is meeting Matt. Please, don’t call him that today. Matt will have a stroke.” Andi closes the oven and spins around, facing Haley.
“You haven’t told Matthew?” Haley asks.
“He’ll find out after he has developed a liking for Dom. You know Matt will be closed minded and freak out if he knows, now.”
Haley shakes her head. “It’s not his business, anyway. I hope Lisa is on her best behavior. If she isn’t, I will drop kick her.”
“She is always on her best behavior when Matt is around. She will be even more so, with Dom in the spotlight.”
Andi runs the sink water to scrub the last of the dirty dishes. She’s made entirely too much food, but the week’s worth of leftovers make life with a kid easier.
I’m pretty sure she uses up every single dish she owns. Andi scrubs brutally at the dish. Knowing it is because she is nervous and she is trying to stay occupied, I don’t offer to help.
“Mommy!” Charlotte’s voice echoes down the hallway.
“Hey, pumpkin,” Andi dries her hands.
Charlotte makes a beeline for Andi, wrapping her arms around her mother’s waist. She lets out a giggle. “I missed you, momma.”
“I missed you, too.”
“Hey, Charlotte,” I say.
Her head whips around quickly at the sound of my voice. “Dommy!” She shrieks, letting go of Andi. She grabs my arms and jumps up. I catch her, embracing her hug. “Daddy didn’t say you would be here!”
“Matt and Lisa,” Andi says. “This is Dominic. Dom, Matthew and Lisa.” Her voice is dry as she makes the generic introduction.
It’s all that’s needed. I can take over the rest for her. Lisa’s nose scrunches, and she doesn’t even attempt to act like she is a polite person. I thought Andi had been exaggerating, but it’s clear Lisa is exactly the type of person Andi has been complaining about.
“Nice to meet you,” Matt says. We shake, and he stuffs his hands back into his pockets. “Anything we can help you with, Andi?”
“I figured we would do buffet style inside, today,” Andi says. “I’ll put everything on the island and we can sit in the breakfast area. It’ll be ready soon. Just waiting on the food to finish warming.”
“Mommy, can Aunt Haley come with me to the barn to play with the kitty?”
“Yeah. I’ll call you when brunch is ready.”
Lisa sits at the island, making herself at home and Matt stands behind her, his hand placed on her back. He glances at Andi, holding her gaze while she returns to the dishes.
“How was your photo shoot, Lisa?” Andi asks, looking up from her task only to shoot Lisa a look.
Lisa smiles, nodding her head. “It was fine.” She doesn’t offer anything for Andi to work with. I can’t decide if she’s got a stale personality, or just doesn’t want to befriend Andi.
“Are you a photographer?” I ask.
Lisa glances from her phone, her nose scrunching up the way I’ve noticed that it does when she doesn’t want to respond. “I’m a model.”
Oh.
Matt steps in, elaborating for her.“Lisa was in L.A. this weekend for a shoot with a musician. Right, babe?”
“Yeah.”
