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“Hello, Maddox. We didn’t know you were coming, or we would have ordered you a beverage when the waitress was here,” Mom says apologetically.
Dad scoffs, taking a break from trying to make Maddox disappear into a cloud of smoke with his eyes to glance at me.
“I raised you better than to show up with uninvited guests. And what are you wearing?”
“Do you not like it? I figured I would show some team spirit. I’m sure you know how well our hometown is playing in the playoffs this season.”
Rage lights his eyes. “If dressing like this and bringing him here with you is some sort of act of rebellion—”
“I’m far too old to rebel, Dad. And if we’re going to talk about my new boyfriend, he should at least be here. Don’t you think?” I counter.
“Stop this charade, Braxton. We all know you’re not together.”
Maddox drops his head to the dip of my shoulder and chuckles lightly, almost dangerously. Lips part on the side of my neck, over the heavy thump of my pulse, and lightly suck. My skin lifts with goosebumps as he starts to draw shapes on my bicep. Every few seconds, he slips them higher up my arm until they’re tucking beneath my shirt sleeve.
“It’s embarrassing that after this long, you still don’t believe how in love I am with your daughter. She’s been mine since the day we met, Roy. It would be smart to start believing just how much she means to me.”
The sheer possession in his tone has me fighting back a shudder. My core clenches, the feeling of his touch on my arm and his thigh pressed to mine almost too much. It should feel wrong to be thinking about all the ways I want him to prove those words to me while we’re in public, but I can’t help it.
Sexual tension has always been a problem between Maddox and me. Since I was old enough to recognize the feeling of sexual want, I’ve been dreaming of having him that way. I thought that back then it was crazy how badly I wanted him, but now? I wasn’t prepared for how downright consuming it would be. I feel it through every thread of my being.
“You’re not right for Braxton. You never have been. I don’t know how you convinced her to go along with this scheme, but if it doesn’t come to an end, you won’t be the only one not welcome near my family,” Dad snaps.
At that, my heart cracks up the middle. I numbly register the screeching sound of a chair scraping the floor and my sister’s voice, but I don’t look away from my father.
“Sorry, guys. It’s packed in here, so they had to get me an extra chair from the back.”
Maddox is tensed up tight beside me, holding me like I’m the only thing keeping him from climbing over the table and wrapping his hands around my dad’s neck. I don’t dare look at my mother.
“What is that supposed to mean?” I ask, calling upon every ounce of my courage.
Dad’s stare is pure fire, but his words burn far worse. “It was your mother’s idea to do this here so that you didn’t make a big scene and embarrass all of us further, but if you don’t put an end to this little game and come out with a statement saying that this was all one big misunderstanding, you will not be welcome in this family anymore. If this is a cry for attention, congratulations, you’ve got it. But I will not let you make a fool of us because you’re feeling unloved.”
The blood drains from my face. That small crack spreads.
“What the fuck did you say?” Maddox snarls.
“Braxton, baby. That’s not why I insisted we come here. I didn’t know this was going to ha—” Mom starts before Dad cuts her off.
“Don’t, Larissa. For God’s sake, can you just let me do something without needing to be the good guy?”
He’s leaning forward, his fingers white from pressing down on the table so hard. The vein that always pops out when he gets angry is throbbing in his forehead. I’m surprised it hasn’t burst.
Mom, on the other hand, stiffens and closes her mouth. Any hope I had that she would finally have enough of Dad’s shit and tell him off for once poofs into thin air.
“So, it’s not just your daughter you treat like shit, then? It’s everyone? What a keeper. And I wonder why the league won’t touch you with a ten-fucking-foot pole,” Maddox says, not even a twinge of fear in his voice.
“You want to talk about why the league won’t work with me? That would be your daddy, right? The great Oakley Hutton who couldn’t stand that someone other than himself had an idea of what your future should look like,” Dad throws back.
Maddox goes deathly still. “Keep my dad’s name out of your mouth before I ruin Braxton’s love for this place with the memory of me decorating it with your front teeth.”
“And here we are again. Back to my daughter. I’m always painted as the sole reason for you needing to re-enter the draft, but she played a part in that decision too, didn’t she? Some would argue she is more to blame than I am.”
I startle at how easy it is for my father to throw me under the bus. Like I’m an easy casualty. Yet, it doesn’t hurt as much as I thought. Maybe because he’s already done enough damage to our relationship. Maybe when it comes to my love for him, I don’t have anything left for him to break.
It’s a sad thing to accept, but our relationship ended the day I left Vancouver. Maybe it even had before then. Roy Heights is the man whose blood runs in my veins, but he’s never been much of a dad. This fallout was always coming, and I’m glad I wasn’t alone when it happened.
I lift my arm and cover Maddox’s hand with mine where it clutches my arm, giving it a squeeze that’s meant to comfort the both of us. I’m so grateful to have him here with me.
