Great. Just great.
I gave Nina a quick hug, then made my way downstairs to find Haze already waiting outside the building.
“Did you skip dinner at the house too?” I asked him by way of greeting.
His eyes traced over me briefly, as if checking I was in one piece, before he said, “No one misses family dinner.”
Ah, fuck. I really was going to be in trouble when we got back, but it wasn’t my fault Andrew didn’t lay out the rules of the house beforehand. I couldn’t possibly be expected to know about their Sunday dinners.
“Wait. How long have you all been having Sunday dinners together?”
Their personas at college weren’t lining up with what I saw in the house. Behind closed doors, they acted like men who had a long history with each other and were more brothers than friends.
So what was with all the fighting on campus, and why did we all end up in that house together?
“You ask a lot of questions,” Haze said.
“It was exactly one question,” I said with an eye roll. “Are you going to answer it?”
“Nope.” Haze started to walk, and I had to hurry a little to keep up with his long legs, even though he wasn’t particularly hurrying.
“At least you don’t lie,” I muttered.
He stopped suddenly, and I almost crashed into him, which would have been a disaster. I hadn’t even realized I’d been walking in his shadow, not leaving enough space between us. “I’ll never lie to you, Eve,” he said seriously, as I sidled around to stand beside him. “But that doesn’t mean you will always want to hear the truth.”
“There have been a lot of liars in my life, Haze.” My father, for one, was very good at leaving me in the dark, oftentimes literally, as he shoved me wherever he needed me at the time. “So I appreciate the truth. I respect your decision not to tell me about your relationship with the other guys. But be aware, I know that all of you are not enemies. I’m not stupid.”
There was the faintest flicker of a smirk at the corners of his mouth. “Never thought you were. Now, let’s get you home so Andrew can lose his shit and get over it.”
Forcing myself not to groan out loud, I said, “I already have two father figures. I absolutely don’t need a third.”
This time there was no mistaking Haze’s smile. “Knightsbridge might be the worst of the lot.”
At this point I really hoped he was joking, but I got the sense that he was dead fucking serious.
We made it back to the house without incident, and I shuddered at how creepy the place looked in the dark. We were slowly working on improving and updating the interior, but the exterior was still the epitome of a haunted mansion.
Haze reached the door and held it open for me, and I took extra care not to touch him as we passed. Weirdly, there was a pull between us when we got closer, and it took more effort than I’d expected to maintain the distance. Whatever had passed between us in our shared time last night had created a connection my body wanted to explore.
Another freaking connection.
It was hard because my trauma and hormones didn’t understand a person’s preference not to be touched, but thankfully, my brain remained in charge.
At least for now.
Inside, the whole house was lit up, and I was no longer thinking about Haze. Nope. I was mentally preparing myself for the wrath of Andrew Knightsbridge.
“Think I can make a break for my room before he finds me?” I muttered, and the big guy’s eyes softened in what I hoped was amusement. He was a tough egg to crack, that was for sure.
“You can certainly try,” he said right as I heard a yell.
“Not a fucking chance, Evelyn Lewis. Get your ass into the living room. Now!”
Jesus Christ. Who the hell did Andrew think he was? My voice rose as I yelled back, “I’ve already explained to Haze, but here it is again. You’re not my father, and I’m not part of your family, so there’s no obligation on my part to be at any arranged dinner.”
He appeared in the doorway, and I wondered how he got those perfectly pressed creases in his striped and monogrammed pj’s. Did he have a secret butler hiding in the walls or something? A house elf, maybe?
“Good evening, Evelyn,” he said formally, looking me over, and I could have sworn there was a flash of worry in his expression before he smoothed it over. “Can we please have a quick word in the living area?”
