“Thanks,” I told him, closing the door and inspecting the note.
A part of me wanted them to be from Hunter. But they were from Walter. I stamped down the disappointment.
“He’s busy with his brothers,” I reminded myself and unfolded the card.
Walter:I heard you were a fan of peonies.
Iwasa fan of peonies. At least my inner starved sex goddess was. Would it be such a bad thing? Maybe a hot and heavy evening with Walter was just what I needed to distress and recalibrate.
Meg:I’ll see you at seven.
“Wait! I don’t have anything to wear.” My nicer clothes were still at the house that I wasn’t technically allowed in. I hadn’t thought I would be going on any fancy dates. I’d brought one nice dress, but Walter had already seen it on our last date.
I fretted as I hopped around the bathroom, trying to shave my legs then the rest of me. If I was doingit, I didn’t need Walter scared off by the overgrown weeds in the garden, so to speak.
Seven o’clock rolled around, and I still hadn’t decided what to wear.
My phone dinged.
Walter:Waiting downstairs.
“Shoot!” I shimmied on the thong, tugging at it.Maybe I should bring a change of underwear and keep a comfortable pair in my purse.
Would we have sex before or after dinner? If it was after, I didn’t think I could stay in the thong that long. Should I change in the restaurant bathroom later? Also, I still couldn’t figure out what to wear.
Meg:Sorry, running a little late!
Meg:Be there in a second.
But Walter didn’t respond immediately like he had been doing.
What if he left?
I went to the window and peered out. Walter’s car was still parked across the street. And he was standing outside of it, angrily talking to a familiar blond-haired man.
“Hunter!”
44
Hunter
“And furthermore…” I told my brothers. We were coming up to the thirty-minute mark of my chewing them out. “You made me look bad. You made me look like a sexist piece of garbage. I have never talked about Meg like that. Ever. And I never will. You know I do not tolerate that type of behavior. I will not raise another miniature version of Dad. I will bury you before you turn out like him.”
“I wasn’t trying to be like Dad,” Bruno said, sniffling.
“Except that you did,” I snapped at him. “That’s exactly the sort of way he would have behaved. And it will not be tolerated.”
Bruno looked to my other brothers for help. Garrett stared at him coldly. Remy gave him a disappointed frown.
“Minnie was saying Meg was going to beat you and that no one in town liked you because you don’t have any parents, and you have a weird family,” Bruno said, mouth downturned.
“I do have a weird family,” I agreed. “Our situation is weird; it’s not normal. It’s not normal for Dad to run a cult. The way we grew up wasn’t normal. You and your brothers aren’t normal.”
Bruno looked at the ground. I tipped his chin up to look at me. “But you know what? I wouldn’t change it for the world. I love each and every one of you.”
“Even Garrett?”
Garrett raised an eyebrow at me.
