“Of your baby? I just said he’s cute,” Matthew said. “Like I don’t have any babies to compare him to, but I’d say he’s in my list of top five babies I’ve met in my life.”
“He dresses better than you, too,” Jordan noted, taking in the baby’s denim shorts, Fendi emblazoned t-shirt and sneakers so ugly they had to be couture.
“I meant about our offer?” Aiden asked.
“What offer?” Jordan asked, leaning in like he was somehow about to negotiate on Matty’s behalf.
“We invited Matty to attend a private school closer to us,” Thomas volunteered. “All expenses paid.”
Jordan’s face fell, somehow looking both excited and betrayed at the same time. “Did you say yes?”
“Actually, he said he wasn’t going anywhere without you,” Aiden volunteered. Matty smirked when Jordan seemed to come alive once more under this newfound knowledge.
“Do you also attend school with Matty?” Thomas asked.
Matty narrowed his eyes. Thomas asked the question like he had no idea who Jordan was, but there was a recognition in his face, a slight uptick in his voice that told Matty he was lying.
“You investigated me. Didn’t you?” he asked, tilting his head, watching his brother and Thomas carefully.
His brother. He had a brother. One that was still breathing. What the fuck?
“More like…kept tabs on,” Thomas hedged. “We wanted to make sure you were alright.”
Matty almost relaxed, then he noticed Jordan’s startled expression and wide eyes. Fuck, Jordan was right. How much did they know? How long had they been watching them? “Do I seem alright to you?” he snapped.
Aiden shrugged. “Well, you probably have enough trauma to put a therapist’s kids through their own ivy league college, but you aren’t perched on a rooftop with a sniper rifle, so…”
“Wow, the bar is in hell,” Jordan muttered. “Who knew the Mulvaneys had such low standards?”
“If you’ve been following me, then you know Jordan and I don’t go to school together. He’s a musician,” Matty said, crossing his eyes and sticking out his tongue at the tiniest Mulvaney at the table, earning a giggle and a tongue in return. “I’m still not going without him.”
“Aw, thanks, buddy,” Jordan said, patting Matty on the head like a child. “So, where is it we’re maybe going, exactly?”
“I know this is a big deal,” Aiden said, pulling a stack of papers from his bag. “If you want to do this, here’s all the details. My cell phone is there, too. Just hit me up and we’ll come collect you.”
“In your private jet?” Jordan asked, putting on a posh British accent.
“Yes,” Thomas said. “If it’s more convenient. If not, business class at the very least. And, yes, Jordan is invited too. We had a feeling you wouldn’t leave without him.”
Aiden stood, reaching across the table to take Theo back. Matty briefly mourned the loss. Thomas stood as well, both of them staring down at him with enigmatic expressions. “We really hope you’ll consider the move. There’s lots of people your age in the family.”
Jordan frowned. “I thought all of you were old like him,” he said, pointing to Aiden.
Aiden snorted. “Watch it, kid. I’ve got a pen in my pocket and I can scratch your name out of those papers anytime I like,” he threatened, but there was no heat to it.
Jordan, however, didn’t seem willing to risk it. “Sorry, I meant older…and hot…very hot. Like, super hot if I’m being honest,” he looked Aiden up and down salaciously.
“Ew, stop that,” Matty muttered, nudging him with his elbow hard enough to make him flinch. “That’s my brother, you weirdo.”
Thomas chuckled at the two, shaking his head. “Alright, we’ll leave you be. Good luck on your exams.”
“Bye,” Jordan called, waving like a maniac. “Make good choices.”
The moment they were gone, Matty turned in his seat to look at Jordan. “They’ve been watching me. Us. Do you think they know?”
“They can’t know. Right?” he asked, his own doubts bleeding into his tone. “I mean, why would they make the offer if they knew? What is the offer, by the way?”
Matty looked down at the papers, scanning them quickly. “Our own swanky apartment, a car service, full tuition, a ten-thousand-dollar-a-month allowance. Internships. Who are these people?”
