“Hey, man,” Emilio draws Deacon’s attention. “Let’s all go our separate ways. Cool off for a bit.”
A vein pulses in Deacon’s neck and he shakes his head before looking at Kasey again. She gives him a look of encouragement, but I don’t know what for.
Sucking on his teeth, he comes to some sort of decision and looks at Monique once more. Holding out his hand, he says four words I never thought I would hear. “I’m your half brother.”
She stares at him unblinkingly before turning to me with wide eyes. “Our what?”
“The fuck?”
Kasey tugs on my arm and I look down to see her mouth the words, “It’s true.”
“He’s my brother?”
She nods.
“And you knew?” She knew and she didn’t tell me.
“I asked her not to tell you,” Deacon says.
“Why?”
He barks out a laugh. “Are you kidding? Dom, you hate me.”
“You’re a dick,” I tell him.
“So are you.” He might have a point.
“How are you our brother?” Monique asks, but she doesn’t look bothered by the idea. If anything, she’s excited.
“Affair. Your dad and my mom. Things didn’t work out.” He laughs, but there’s no humor in his voice.
My mother’s face is ashen, but there’s no surprise in her gaze.
“You knew?” I ask.
She ignores the question. “Come on, dear.” She pulls on Monique’s arm, but this time, my sister isn’t so willing to leave.
‘Wait. So you’re—“
“That’s enough of that,” my mother snaps. “He is not your brother. He is the byproduct of a mistake.”
I wince, and Monique’s eyes widen to the size of saucers before she gathers her composure and in an imitation of my mother says, “I’ll see you back out the house. You can leave.”
With a huff, my mother surprises me and does exactly that.
“Do you want to maybe …” Monique chews on her lip. “Grab a cup of coffee? I’m only in town for the night and will fly out tomorrow morning but—“ Her eyes flick to mine, a silent request, but I can’t. I need to fix things with Kasey.
“You two go. We can talk later.”
Monique nods. “So, umm. Is that okay?” she asks Deacon.
His smile is wide when he says, “Yeah. I’d like that.”
Leaving them to it, I steer Kasey forward with my hand on the small of her back, leading her toward the main doors. She seems stunned for the first few seconds, following my lead without protest, but as soon as we’re outside and the evening air hits us, she whirls away from me.
“What was that?” She wraps her arms around herself, goosebumps breaking out across her pale skin.
Peeling off of my jacket, I drape it around her shoulders to keep her warm. She tries to shrug out of it, but I pull on the lapels, tugging her closer and wrapping the jacket more firmly around her.
