I could have clapped back, but I chose a different tactic. “How you feeling today, bruh?” I asked my twin.
“Ready to be back to where I was.”
“Maybe then you can buy some food for your place,” I told him.
Dom had us visiting Hunter five minutes after his plane landed the other day, during dinner hours, with nothing good to eat.
“I have food,” Hunter argued. “Myfood. You can buyyourfood foryourplace, since I heard you bought a condo.”
I groaned. “Mom needs to get her damn story straight.”
Mav opened the refrigerator. “Y’all want to grab something to eat?”
“That’ll work,” Hunter said. “Coop?”
My agenda consisted of stopping by the Fox house to drop some of my tools off and trying to finagle a dinner invitation from Angel. Mehki had been right. The woman could cook. She’d made the hell out of those grilled cheese sandwiches. And since then, she’d had something delicious for me—I mean, Mehki—every time I’d seen her. It had been a long time since I’d spent so much time with an attractive woman—other than Dallas—where sex wasn’t involved. I almost didn’t know what to do with myself, because—unlike with Dallas—Iwantedthere to be sex involved.
Angel was a beautiful woman. Sexy, intelligent, interesting… She definitely left me wanting more. The idea of getting close to her didn’t even scare me as much as it should have. Shewassomeone’s mother. I’d been careful not to hook up with women who had young children. Not because I didn’t like kids. I loved them, but I didn’t relish breaking their hearts when I left their moms.
“I think I have plans,” I answered, glancing at my watch.
Hunter raised a questioning brow. “You think?”
“What’s with all the questions?” I held out my arms. “Mav wants to know my construction schedule; you want to know my thoughts… Maybe Ishouldtake my ass back to Detroit as soon as possible.” I wasn’t serious, but I also wasn’t ready to talk about anything Angel-related with my brothers. That included the Fox house.
“Shit, man…” Mav shook his head. “I’ll keep my questions to myself.”
I glanced at Mav, then at Hunter. And now I felt bad. Rosewood Heights had not only brought out my punk tendencies, but it also made me soft. I didn’t like it. At all. “I have a lot of shit to do, that’s all,” I explained lamely. “I’m frustrated.”
Hunter slid onto a stool. “Need help with anything?”
“Nah. I’ll handle it, bruh.”
“Since I didn’t agree to keep my questions to myself,” Hunter said, “I have to ask… Are you frustrated because of the work or because you don’t want to be here?”
“Both,” I blurted out. “Neither.”
“Which one is it?”
Sighing, I took a sip from my glass. “I love what I do. I’m all in on this project. I’m also not upset that I’m here. Which is frustrating as fuck because I haven’t wanted to be in Rosewood Heights in a lot of years, and I’m trying to figure out why the hell I’m in no hurry to leave.” I hadn’t expected to lay it all out on the table like that, but I needed to get it out.
“Time is a hell of a drug,” Mav offered. “One minute, we’re living our lives without reservations or regrets. The next, we’re moving heaven and earth to do everything we said we wouldn’t. I feel like it’s just the way it goes.”
Hunter pointed at our little brother. “You said a mouthful, bruh.”
“Thatwasdeep,” I admitted.
Mav grinned. “I’m good like that.”
“Don’t get carried away. You’re still a dumb ass.” I cracked up when Mav gave me the middle finger. Glancing at my watch, I said, “I better get out of here. I need to go talk to Dad.”
“What?” they both said at the same time, each of them with a look of surprise on their faces.
Ignoring them, I walked out of the room and shouted, “Mind your business.”
Minutes later, I was seated in front of my father. The office looked like I’d remembered—large furniture, white walls, pictures of the family on the shelves of the bookcase. And just like the last time I was there, the tension was palpable.
“You wanted to see me?” I asked.
