“I’d rather not say. It’s kind of insulting.”
The corner of his mouth twitches. “Don’t hold back on my account.”
That hint of a smile threatens to distract me. “Fine. I think I would like to make this my career. But notthis.” I wave at the controls and then back at the luxurious cabin.
One of his eyebrows pops up, and I try to explain better.
“BBN”—aka Karl Newton—“was really shitty to my mom. Like, threatened-to-sue-her-if-she-talked-about-the-affair shitty.” Which, as far as I’m aware, Mom never claimed she would do. But I guess that’s Karl’s way: threaten first, be decent to the woman he got pregnant never. “The whole billion-dollar business population gives me hives. I wouldn’t enjoy flying if I knew that was who I was transporting.”
At some point during my explanation, my eyes wandered toward the windshield, where the sun is setting just over the trees, turning the clouds a custard orange. When I glance back at George, I pause in astonishment, transfixed by the pure fury on his face.
Was I really that insulting?
“I’m sorr—”
“They sued your mother?” He grinds out the words through a tightly clenched jaw.
Oh, okay.That’swhat he’s pissed about?
“Threatened to,” I repeat. “She didn’t want to make the pregnancy a thing, either. But that didn’t stop them from pushing her out the door and threatening legal action if she ever spoke a word to the press. It was twenty-five years ago. There were less protections in place for female employees.”
“That’s…” George drags both his hands over his skull in a rough gesture, breathing out what sounds like a growl. Then he stares out the windshield like I was just doing, his gaze unfocused and his jaw clenching repeatedly like he’s chewing on his anger.
I let him process the unjust world in silence. Maybe he’s wondering if his father was in on the gag order.
“How did Shawn even know about you?” George asks eventually. Quietly.
“Ah. Yeah.” I brush my thumb over the yoke as I remember that massive shift in my life. “That was his mom.”
“Meg Newton? She told him about you?”
“More than told. She asked my mom if Shawn could meet me.” My hands continue their idle wandering, fingers tracing over the stitching on the leather seat. “I don’t know if she was in a fight with Karl. Or maybe seeing a new therapist. Or maybe she just wanted Shawn to stop bugging her about having a sibling.” I shrug. “For whatever reason, when I was five, Mom took me to this playground halfway to the city, and that’s when I met him.”
I can still remember sitting on a swing, Mom pushing me gently, when a shiny car pulled up beside our rusty one. A beautiful blond woman slipped out of the front seat, walked around to the back, opened the door, and let out a red-haired boy. He reminded me of arocket ship the way he burst from the car, ready to shoot off to the moon.
“Where is she?” I’d heard him ask the beautiful woman. She glanced around the park until her sunglasses aimed toward my mom and me.
And she pointed.
The rocket boy took off, sprinting our way, his arms pumping, his cheeks flushed, his eyes locked on me.
Mom paused pushing my swing, and I settled to a stop just before he did, only a handful of feet away from me.
“Hi, Beth! I’m Shawn. I’m eight. And I’m your brother. Can I hug you? My nanny says I have to ask before I hug new people.”
I stared at the vibrating boy and was suddenly sure that if he wrapped his arms around me, I’d fly up to the moon with him.
That seemed like a fun adventure.
Still, I glanced over my shoulder at my mother. She was smiling. Not the big one where she was about to start laughing and tickle me. But it wasn’t the weird, small smile she used at the diner, either. Somewhere in between.
“I don’t have a brother,” I told him, because I knew I wasn’t supposed to lie, even though having a brother sounded nice.
Mom crouched beside me so my head was higher than hers. She always did that when she really wanted me to listen to her.
“You have a half-brother, Beth honey. That means Shawn has a different mommy than you.” She pointed at the blond woman who approached us at a more reserved pace. “But we both had help from the same man to make a baby.”
The woman let out a weird noise. “That’s one way to put it.”
