Page 167 of My Real Love Affair

I was right. Twenty minutes before dinner, while I was trying to avoid both my father and the toddler now pulling on my sleeve demanding I look at his truck, Cash found me alone in the hallway.

“We need to talk.”

“No, we really don’t.”

“How are things going with the girl?”

My jaw clenched. “Her name is Melody. You know her name. Stop being an ass.”

“The only ass in this room is you.” Cash’s voice was low, meant just for me. He didn’t want to make a scene. Even in the midst of family, he was trying to be proper. “You show up at family events with her on your arm, parade her around like it was real, and then what? You’re sulking around here like someone died. What happened?”

“None of your business.”

“It’s my business when you’re embarrassing the family.”

“I’m not embarrassing anyone. For once in my life, I’m trying to do something right. And it’s falling apart anyway, so congratulations. You were right about me all along.”

Cash’s expression shifted, something like concern flickering across his face. “Austin, that’s not what I wanted.”

“Just leave me alone, Cash. Please.”

Isaac appeared, his eyes moving between Cash and me. “Whatever this is, stop it. Right now.”

“I wasn’t doing anything,” I said. “Talk to him.”

Cash glared at me. “We were having a conversation.”

“I don’t care who started it or what it’s about. I know a conversation when I see it, and this isn’t it. Mina has been cooking all day with a clingy toddler on her hip, and I’m not letting my ungrateful brothers ruin this dinner. Sit down. Behave. Or leave.”

The steel in Isaac’s voice surprised me. He was usually the peaceful one, the mediator. But apparently, even Isaac had limits. Cash and I exchanged a look, then silently took our seats at the table.

Dinner was an interesting affair. I never paid much attention to the kids at family gatherings before. They were just background noise, something to be tolerated until the adults could have real conversations.

Several of my brothers had shown up with their young children. Hayes and his wife, Dixie, had their baby boy, who was currently draped in a sling thing across Hayes’s chest. Kameron and his wife had their young teen son that looked like he wanted to be anywhere but sitting at the table with his cousins.

But instead of counting down the minutes to my escape, I found myself watching the kids. And the way my brothers interacted with them. They were like totally different people than the assholes I grew up with.

Conrad was in a highchair next to me. He refused to eat anything Mina tried to give him. Just pushed the food around his plate and whined.

“Conrad, please,” Mina said, exhaustion clear in her voice. “Just three bites.”

“No!”

“Two bites?”

“No no no!”

I watched Isaac and Mina exchange a look that clearly saidwe’re failing as parents.

Then I had an idea. I grabbed a piece of bread from my plate, tore off a small piece, and palmed it. Then, when Conrad was looking at me, I made a big show of looking around like I was checking if anyone was watching.

His eyes went wide. I slowly passed the bread under the napkin, making it look like a covert operation. Conrad grabbed it and stuffed it in his mouth, giggling.

Mina caught my eye and mouthed, “Thank you.”

I did it again with a piece of chicken. Then a carrot. Each time making it seem like we were getting away with something sneaky. I found myself actually enjoying it. The game of it. The way the kid lit up every time I snuck him food. The pure joy on his face when he thought he was getting away with something. The kid was a little rebel. Poor Isaac.

By the end of the meal, Conrad had eaten a full meal. And I had been recruited to play after-dinner trucks with Conrad in the living room while the adults cleaned up. Normally, I would prefer to wash dishes than hang out with kids.