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I glance over at Kyle who’s smiling at the both of us. “I told you it wasn’t that bad.” After playing only a few rounds of video games with Eve, my head started to hurt. I took some of my medication and went to bed early, while she and Kyle finished up the game.
“This is the right kind, correct?” is all he asks, fingering the bag of gummy bears.
“Yes. Thank you,” I whisper.
He stares at me but says, “Eve, close your eyes.”
“Why?”
“Just do it,” he tells her.
When she does, he leans down, his lips hovering over mine. “Thank me properly.”
I lift up onto my tiptoes and wrap an arm around his neck, pulling him to me. The kiss was slower than I thought it would be. Kyle’s lips find mine and he pulls me under his spell. My entire body warms, making me forget all about my selfish brother showing up out of the blue.
“There’s more of where that came from later,” he says against my lips before pulling back.
“Can I open my eyes now?” Eve asks, making both of us laugh.
“How about we clean up since your aunt cooked dinner? Then we can go another round on your game. I owe you for last night,” Kyle tells Eve. He says it with a grin, but I can hear the competitive edge in his voice.
“She’s eleven,” I remind him.
He shrugs. “I want my rematch.”
“Um, how about a movie?” Eve snaps her fingers. “You still haven’t seenThe Greatest Showman.”
Kyle’s and my eyes lock. I know we’re both thinking about that weekend. Kyle’s eyes darken, and I have no doubt he’s remembering it, too.
“Yeah, I’ve seen it,” he says, eyes still locked on me. “But I might’ve missed a few things.”
I try to stifle the grin that sprouts across my lips but it’s a futile effort.
“We can watch it again,” Eve says. “Let’s hurry up and clean the kitchen. I have to do some homework and then we can watch.”
I leave them to clean the kitchen, a smile still on my face as I enjoy my gummy bears.
He’s using you.
My brother’s accusation suddenly comes to mind when I hear Eve mention something about her father. I do my best to shake it off, but the alarm bells in my head won’t allow me to.
Just like every other time in my life when he or my father were around, Wallace Jr. manages to dampen my mood.
* * *
“She’s asleep,”Kyle says, entering the bedroom after finishing his game with Eve.
“I should’ve cut him off,” I tell him.
He closes the door and stands with his arms folded. He’s dressed in a pair of blue pajama bottoms and a white T-shirt. The muscles in his arms bulge with every movement. I keep my eyes on those muscles when I confess, “I thought … hoped he would eventually come around. Realize what an amazing daughter he has and want to be a part of her life.”
Pushing out a breath, I look away. “Stupid.”
Kyle pads across the room and sits on the edge of the bed, next to me, bracing his arm across my body.
“He won’t bother either one of you again,” he says with such certainty that I almost believe him.
“I can handle myself. I just don’t want Eve to deal with what I did.” I meet Kyle’s hard stare. “I was twelve when I had my first migraine. We had just moved to another city, somewhere outside of L.A. My dad had met anothernice woman. That’s what he called them. He wanted me to tell her some lie about how we had to move because I was being bullied at school and the administrators tried to cover it up.
