Sitting in one of the Adirondack chairs circling the fire pit, Darwin said, “Did I mention that Caleb Mitchell started at our firm this past week? That’s yet another one of Taylor’s classmates who’s gone on to do big things.”
Taylor spun around in her chair and glared at her brother. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Darwin’s eyes grew wide. As if she would ever buy that innocent look from him. “It means that we just hired Caleb Mitchell at the firm,” he said.
“Why do you have to be such an asshole, Darwin?”
“Taylor.” Her mother’s strident tone rankled. Why in the hell didn’t she say anything to her son?
“He’s so transparent,” Taylor said. “You know he only brought up Caleb so that he could compare him to me.”
“No, I didn’t,” Darwin said. “I was making small talk.”
“By pointing out that one of my classmates is now a fancy lawyer at your fancy law firm?”
“Look, if you’re feeling some kind of way about Caleb’s success, that’s on you.”
“Oh, screw you.” Taylor tossed her wooden skewer into the fire pit and stood. “I’m tired, and I need a shower.” She looked to Jamar. “Where are the suitcases?”
“I put yours in your old bedroom,” her dad called from his chair on the other side of the pit. “The young man’s is in the spare room, where he will be sleeping.”
Taylor didn’t even attempt to argue. She’d known better than to expect her parents would be okay with her and Jamar sleeping in the same room. She went back into the house and upstairs to her old bedroom, her anger at Darwin’s attempt to belittle her intensifying by the minute.
Once in her room, Taylor hefted her carry-on onto the bed and unzipped it.
There was a knock at her door.
“Taylor?” came Jamar’s voice.
“Come in,” she called. She continued with her unpacking, taking out the jumpsuit she planned to wear to tomorrow night’s party.
“Are you okay?” Jamar asked, leaning against the closed door.
“I’m fine.” She sighed. “What you witnessed down there was par for the course when it comes to my brother.”
“Umm.” His forehead creased as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Taylor, I’m trying to figure out what your brother said that caused you to go off the way you did.”
“Excuse me?” She tossed the gym shorts she usually slept in back into the open carry-on. “You’re trying to figure out what he said? Did you not hear what he said about Caleb Mitchell and his fancy new job?”
Jamar held his hands up. “I don’t understand how you took that as a slight against you.”
“ ‘Another one of Taylor’s classmates doing big things’?” she said, doing an exaggerated impersonation of Darwin’s voice.
“Is Caleb a classmate of yours?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t you think it’s a pretty big deal that he got hired as a lawyer?” Jamar said. “It seemed to me that’s all your brother was pointing out.”
His words felt like two swift punches to the gut. Taylor took a step back and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Is that how you saw it? Well, given that I’ve known Darwin my entire life, and not just for a couple of hours, I may have a better handle on how to read between the lines when it comes to my brother.”
“Taylor, I—” He reached for her, but she stepped out of his grasp.
“I’m going to take a shower and then I’m going to bed,” she said, grabbing her T-shirt and shorts from where she’d tossed them in the open suitcase.
“It’s not even eight o’clock yet,” he said. “What am I supposed to do for the rest of the evening?”
