“True,” Zachariah replied, not removing his eyes from me. “But I’d like Avidya to answer my question.”
“I cook often enough,” I muttered out after father waved his hand for me to go ahead and answer.
“No need to mutter child,” father said, almost like he was talking to a child and not an adult. I hated how he always was able to make me feel so small.
“Are you settling back in well?” Zachariah asked me. “I heard you were missing.”
“I guess so,” I answered, playing with my food in front of me. My appetite was now gone thanks to father.
“She’s doing just fine,” father spoke up, his voice rough. He wasn’t happy with the fact that Zachariah had his attention on me. Wasn’t that the whole point of having him here for dinner?
“She can answer me herself,” Zachariah said, turning to glare at the man. “My views differ greatly from yours. I may not have a say in how the girl was raised, but I like for her to answer herself.”
My father gulped at the words. It was the first time I had ever seen my father afraid of someone. Given, he did mask his expression quickly.
“So, Zachariah,” mom spoke up before my father could reply with anything. “What do you do?” She was damn good as stopping arguments with others, and it happened more than I liked to admit.
“I run a few businesses here and there,” he answered vaguely. “You should eat, Avidya,” he said my way.
“I’m not hungry,” I said, glancing up at him. My stomach did another flip as I met his heated gaze for a moment. His dark eyes pinned me to my spot.
“She’s never been a big eater,” mom said, explaining my lack of eating. If only that was the reason why I wasn’t eating. I couldn’t possibly eat as much as I’d like to with my father glaring down his nose at me for eating over the allowed limit, let alone eat with a hot man sitting next to me.
My mom asked a few more questions here and there while we finished dinner. I only managed to eat a few more bites, not finding the food to be all that appealing. It held no taste from the seasonings I was able to find to put on the chicken. Nothing like the food that was stored in the apartment. I couldn’t believe that my parents ate such tasteless food most days now that I had something better.
After dinner, my mom and I cleaned up the kitchen, leaving the two men to do whatever it was that they were doing in my father’s office.
“Are you pregnant?” mom asked.
I spluttered a cough. “No!” There was no absolute way I could be. Nor would I be anytime soon.
“You just haven’t eaten much,” she asked, rinsing a soapy plate in the sink.
“Just haven’t been hungry with all the stress,” I answered after regaining back my composure. There was no need to say anything about how Zachariah made me nervous, being here in the house. Nor how father made me feel on edge every time he walked into the same room I was in. I didn’t want to deal with father’s hints about eating too much, either.
“Just making sure,” mom trailed off. “Your father is looking at potential husbands,” she said hurriedly after draining the water when there were no more dishes. Her voice was quiet, almost like she needed to get it out before we’d be interrupted.
“Figured as much,” I stated. Father had pushed the idea for a number of years, so I wasn’t surprised. I was surprised that he was searching so desperately so soon. Maybe my kidnapping had something to do with it?
“He had a couple of men that were scared off by your disappearance,” she went on. “I had hoped he’d let things calm down before he went this far.” She trailed off, scrubbing down the sink.
“I know it’d come sooner or later,” I shrugged. “At least I will get to know who’ll I’ll be forced to spend the rest of my life with.”
“He’s not that bad, Viddie,” mom said, using my very seldom used nickname. “You’ll probably do what you do now, for the most part. Zachariah seems like he’ll be the best of your choices so far.”
“You know I won’t get any say,” I said, willing my tears to stay at bay. “But it won’t be any different than being on house arrest now.”
I wasn’t going to say that I was slightly looking forward to being with Zachariah. Already, he showed me more care than my own parents ever did, and with fewer rules to abide by. I was pretty sure that when the time came, Zachariah was my best choice to actually be happy in life.
