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“I did but I wanted to see how.” I had multiple ways, but that one was easy and kept him from getting hurt.
Peyton stepped outside from the kitchen with Junior and Dominic behind him. They must have just gotten here. I didn’t see Peyton’s Tahoe in the driveway when I arrived. He grinned. “Is my brother trying to best you, X?”
“Trying is the key word.”
“Fuck you.” Greer playfully shoved me.
I smiled and it felt good. It wasn’t something I did enough of. I recognized that and was trying to rectify it.
Val emerged from the house next with a big jackfruit in his hands. “Dex, I know you said to get this, but why? The name alone is fucked up. Who’s jacking fruit? Plus, it’s all spiky and shit. How do you even eat this?”
For the second time in under a minute, I smiled. Val was funny carrying the jackfruit and looked genuinely confused as to why he had it. “He got it for me,” I said. “It’s good. You should try it.” Dexen knew I wouldn’t eat the meat and fat they served up on the grill today.
Val’s eyes lifted to mine. They widened briefly. “Is there something better on the inside, because I can’t imagine chewing this.”
Walking over, I took the fruit from him. “Come with me.”
In the house, I found a knife, oiled it, and with my hand not holding the knife I showed him how to cut the fruit open, exposing the delicious inside. “You can make all kinds of things with it.” I finished cutting it up, washed my hands, and went through my brother’s spices and what else he had on hand to whip something together. It wasn’t that I loved cooking, but I did like eating healthy. That meant meals made from scratch.
Dexen had come in with us and was leaning against the counter. “I’m not eating it.”
“I wouldn’t expect you to. Not when you have enough burgers and hot dogs out there to satisfy you.”
“Are we talking about dick or actual hot dogs, because either way, I think Dex is set,” Val said very matter of fact.
Dexen started coughing and laughing at the same time.
I tried to match Val’s tone. “I believe you’re right.”
He cocked an eyebrow at me, and I smiled. Yet again. Fuck, I didn’t know what was happening, but I liked it. “Will you eat this?” I motioned to the food I was making.
Val stepped closer so he was beside me. “You want me to eat your jackfruit, Xaiden?”
His use of my full name shut my brother up fast. I guess JJ didn’t tell him I’d told Val he could call me that. “If you’d like.”
“I mean, I’m not going to turn down tasting your fruit.” The innuendo was strong. I wasn’t one to back down.
I nodded. “It is delicious.”
My brother’s eyes couldn’t have gotten any bigger. “What the hell is going on?”
“We’re talking about fruit,” Val said. “Get your mind out of the gutter.” He gave me a wink, causing something to flutter in my stomach. I focused on the food instead of trying to dissect what I was feeling.
“He called you Xaiden,” Dexen stated like I hadn’t heard Val.
I looked at my brother, at the shock on his face. To many, it was just a name. To me, it was personal. Those who knew me best, loved me—my family—called me that. And here was Val doing the same. “I told him he could. We have a mutual respect for one another.”
Val crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. “What he said.”
Dexen gave me a look that said we’d talk later. It was like he didn’t know by now how skilled I was at evading his attempts to get me to purge my soul to him.
Since the jackfruit Val had brought was young, I decided to make tacos with it. There were tortillas in the pantry. Once the fruit was softened, I’d be able to mash it into a shredded meat texture.
With one last look from my brother, he went back outside. I could see through the kitchen window Greer was the one grilling, though Dana from my brother’s club was trying to take over. He was the chef at Untouchable and a damn good one. He made me healthy dishes when I went there to visit Dexen, which I appreciated more than he knew. I ate meat. I was just selective about it, about what I put in my body.
Val still stood close to me, peering down at his sneakers. “I like that I can banter with you, and you dish it back.”
“Not everyone does?”
