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At first, I was going to say no. Brandon’s words echoed through my mind. Then I remembered my mother’s advice. “Sure.”
“Let me talk to my mom real quick,” he said. “I was her ride, but I think she was going to play cards or something with one of her friends.”
He dried his hands and disappeared up front. It was cute to watch him with his mom. Again, it was such a total contrast to the man I saw in the office. The man I had met in Vegas was a total player. None of the ideas I had formed about him matched up to the man I witnessed tonight.
“All clear,” he said. He took off the apron and hung it on a hook.
I followed him to a local bar. It was low key and fairly slow. I ordered a glass of wine with him ordering a beer. “Think you’ll do it again?” I asked.
“Do what again?” he inquired.
“Volunteer,” I said.
“I will,” he said. “It was good. Plus, it makes my mom happy.”
“Your mom is a funny lady,” I said. “I had no idea that was your mom. I never asked her last name. I just knew her as Rebecca.”
“Yep, that’s my mama,” he said, grinning. “I can’t believe we’ve been in the same circle but never encountered each other all this time.”
“I guess it just wasn’t meant to be,” I said, shrugging.
He nodded while looking thoughtful. “Can I ask about your father?”
When I didn’t immediately answer, he held up a hand and shook his head. “Never mind. Sorry. It’s none of my business.”
“I don’t mind,” I told him. “The man means nothing to me. He left when I was very young. I think I was almost two. I don’t remember him.”
“How old is your brother? Is it just you two?”
I wasn’t about to tell him who my brother was. That was just too much. Instead of the seven degrees of separation, we were operating on two degrees. This whole time he had been within reach.
“It’s just me and my brother. He’s thirty-one. He remembers my dad a little more than I do, but not much. We never talk about him. He’s just not someone we waste time or energy on. He walked out on my mom and never looked back.”
“You don’t have a relationship with him?”
I smirked. “No.”
“He never tried to be a part of your life?”
His questions were not anything I hadn’t heard before. People were curious. I didn’t blame them. “No. Not that I know of. I’m sure my mother would have told me. Rumors from that side of the family suggested he had moved to Florida with a new wife. No kids that I know of, but I honestly don’t know. I don’t care.”
“Are you in touch with that side of the family?” he asked.
It was kind of strange to be talking to him about this. Strange but easy. He was pretty easy to talk to. Like a friend. That was about the last thing I expected from him.
“No. Not anymore. They were not interested in having us in their lives. I think we made them feel guilty. My grandfather died years ago and I’m not even sure if my grandmother is alive.”
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“Don’t be,” I said, shrugging. “It’s history. It used to make me sad, but they aren’t worth being sad over. Were you close to your father?”
“Yes, as much as a cocky twenty-something could be,” he said, laughing. “I respected him, and I looked up to him. He taught me a lot about work ethics. He valued people, which is something I try to emulate. He set a high bar.”
“From what I’ve seen, your people respect you,” I told him. “It’s a good group of people. They are all very excited about this little game you have planned.”
He smiled and nodded. “Good.”
After talking for hours, we finally called it a night. “Thanks for the drink and nachos,” I said.
