Blinking away the memory, I take Elijah’s hand into mine, he gives it a gentle squeeze before lifting a hand to knock on the door. Moments later, I hear heavy footfalls followed by Asher’s form in the doorway, as he opens it with a wide smile.
“Hey, Bailey. Come on in. Dinner should be here soon.” Asher gives me an impish grin, motioning for us to come in. Looking between Asher and Elijah now that they’re side by side, I see that they look more and more similar with each day. If I didn’t know that Asher was, in fact, older than Elijah, I might think they’re twins. “And dude, since when do you knock?”
“Since it’s no longer my house and I don’t live here?” I notice Asher’s gaze catch on mine and Elijah’s joined hands. I don’t like the attention that us being together brings.
I try to pull my hand away, but Elijah just tightens his grip on me. “No hiding, Sunflower.” Elijah leans down and whispers as he guides us toward the kitchen.
My eyes fall on Mr. Westbrook. The man even being nearly fifty looks like George Clooney. I’m pretty sure it’s in this family’s blood to look like they just came from a photoshoot.
“Hey son,” he greets Elijah before turning his attention to me. “Bailey, nice to see you.” His words are emotionless and I know he is just saying them out of politeness. Well, two can play this game.
“Likewise, thank you for having me tonight.” He gives me a curt nod before taking a long pull from his beer bottle. Then he walks away. Most of the evening is uneventful and we end up spending most of dinner caught in this strange overly polite exchanging-state.
It might not be real, the room oozing with pleasantries, but it’s better than what I expected. I can deal with the fake politeness, but not with the condescending talk, which I’ve heard enough of over the years from Mr. Westbrook.
By the end of the night, we have fallen into such a routine that it almost does feel real. Everyone seems to be relaxed and content. Asher and Elijah discuss some up and coming meetings with James, Elijah’s father, and myself sip on wine. The food, which was delivered from a local restaurant is delicious, and the wine that Elijah got from the basement pair perfectly well with it. Things are going so well that I almost forget that we’re here visiting Elijah’s father, almost.
“I’m going to use the restroom,” I excuse myself right after dessert. Elijah squeezes my hand under the table and gives me a panty-melting smile before I disappear down the hall and into the bathroom. My eyes skim over the photos of Asher and Elijah which can still be found hanging on the walls in the hallway. Two blue-eyed boys with dark curls and one of them is all mine.
After washing my hands, I refresh my lip gloss and use my fingers to smooth out my hair a bit. I walk back toward the dining room thinking to myself how surprisingly nice this evening has turned out to be, when all my thoughts come to a sudden halt.
“Son, you’re thinking with the wrong head. You’ve got to be stupid to think that she is any different from all the other women in this world. She wants your money and nothing else.” James’ stern voice meets my ear. Smacking my lips, I let the shock of what I heard sink in. I don’t know why I’m shocked or surprised. I was expecting him to say something like this.
“Dad, you don’t know what you are talking about.” Elijah’s aggravated tone pierces through the fog surrounding my mind.
“She’s a gold digger. Just like your mother was after my money and Bailey’s mother was after her husband’s money. Women want money, and they think they can use that thing between their legs to get it.”
“What the fuck, Dad?” Asher cuts in.
“It’s the truth, and you both know it. You’ve seen the damage firsthand. Your mom left us high and dry without a single glance. She didn’t give a shit about us, just like that girl won’t give a shit about you once she gets her slimy hands on your bank account.”
I take a step back, trying to get as much distance between me and the scene playing out inside the dining room. How dare he talk about my mother like that. I could have handled him talking down about me, but my mother, my dead mother, no way.
I take another few steps back, my thoughts in disarray. I’m paying no attention to my surroundings, which causes me to bump into the hallway entry table, knocking over a lamp. I try and grab for it, but my fingers clutch at nothing but air. Watching in horror, I hold my breath as it lands on the wood floor with a deafening crash, shattering into a million pieces of glass that fly in every direction. Shit. Heavy footsteps sound off in the distance as I bend down to pick up the broken pieces, but it feels like I’m picking up more than broken pieces of glass. It feels like I’m picking up the pieces of my shattered heart too.
“I’m sorry,” I murmur when Elijah kneels down next to me to help me pick up the glass. Tears are already streaking my cheeks.
Stupid lamp. Stupid dinner. Stupid tears.
I wish I could hold them in and not give James the satisfaction of getting to me, but I can’t. I’m like an overflowing river of emotion right now.
“Don’t be sorry, Sunflower… it’s just—” Elijah’s words cut off, and I feel his gaze hot on my face. “Are you crying?” His question only making me sob more. I wipe at my cheeks shamefully with the back of my hand, but the tears just keep falling.
“Bailey… Sunflower…” The agony in Elijah’s tone guts me, and yet I still can’t say anything.
Asher comes up to us a second later. “You heard him, didn’t you?”
All I can manage is a nod, the lump clogging up my throat won’t even allow a simple yes through.
“Motherfucker.” Elijah jumps to his feet, but Asher puts his hands on his shoulders before he can storm off and do something undoubtedly stupid.
“Why don’t you take her home and I’ll clean this up,” Asher suggests. “There’s no point in starting a fight that you won’t win. Don’t give him the satisfaction of getting mad.”
I look up through my tears, watching Elijah struggle to make up his mind. His jaw tenses and his body vibrates with anger. I know he wants to go and say something to his dad, but he also wants to take me home. I appreciate him wanting to protect me from his father, but it’s not needed. Nothing Elijah says will change his father’s mind about me.
James is nothing but an old grumpy man that got his heart broken, and above everything else, I should feel sorry for him. I won’t let him get to me.
“Please, can we go home,” I finally manage to say.
Elijah’s eyes soften at my question. “Yes, let’s go home and forget that tonight ever happened. It was a mistake for me to bring you here. I should have listened to you. Come on.”
I don’t need to be told twice. I’ll definitely try to forget James’ hurtful words. Elijah offers me a hand and helps me up off the floor. We don’t even go back into the dining room for our jackets, which is fine since we left our phones in the car and Elijah has the key to his car in his pocket. I give Asher a quick hug before we exit without saying our goodbyes to James, who doesn’t even make an effort to come and say goodbye to Elijah.
As soon as we are in the confines of the car, I feel like I can breathe again. As harsh as it might be, I’m glad we left without further confrontation, but hate that this has most likely caused a rift between Elijah and his father. I hate that this whole thing happened because of me. I couldn’t imagine my father not liking Elijah or anyone else who is important to me. There’s a hole of sadness in my chest for Elijah, and even for his father, who will always be bitter and unhappy until he lets go of the past.