Page 14 of If You Loved Me

Stephanie was my cousin on my father’s side from his sister. My Aunt Beatrice was similar to Theo and me in that she went against her parents’ wishes and fell in love with a mechanic. My grandparents were a lot harsher when it came to their expectations of their children, so when Aunt B got married, her parents withdrew her trust fund, leaving it all to my dad. Stephanie was offered a full ride to any university she wanted from my grandparents, but she turned it down knowing just how poorly they’d treated her mother. So, her only options were to compromise her morals and take their money or save up for college on her own.

I stole a glance at my mother who’d barely taken a bite of her food. She held the stem of her wine glass, letting it hover to the right of her face as she assessed me. I immediately looked away.

“It’s such a shame that my sister ruined any chances of being able to support her daughter financially. All so she could marry that man who spends more time turning a wrench under cars than he does at home.”

Here we go.

I’d only been around my Uncle James a handful of times growing up because my parents didn’t want Theo and me to be influenced by him. The few times I did get to spend time with him, I could see why they would be hesitant because he was everything they feared. He was raised by a single father after his mother passed away from cancer. He didn’t have a penny to his name when he met my aunt, but he exuded happiness more than anyone I’d ever seen. He was the kind of person who would stop on the side of the road just to smell the wildflowers.

Seeing that he was happy without all the money and everything that came along with it had always been exciting for me to witness. And maybe my parents were right to fear that his presence would leave an impact on me…because it had.

But I knew better than to disagree with my father. My only plan for tonight was to get through dinner unscathed with my dignity intact.

Unfortunately for me, Theo had other plans. “I don’t think it’s a shame. Aunt B and Uncle J have one of the best marriages I’ve ever seen. They love each other a lot and they’ve raised a daughter who has a good head on her shoulders. I’m sure she’ll be able to make her own way in the world.”

I lowered my chin and closed my eyes.God, Theo. Can younotpoke the bear tonight?I wanted to ask him, but I kept my mouth shut as I slowly opened my eyes.

My father set his fork down on his plate, gearing up for a fight. “So, you think it’s a good thing that your cousin willhave no monetary support for the future?” It was a calculated question.

“It wasn’t Aunt B’s decision to have her trust fund taken away. Grandma and Grandpa made that decision for her out of spite.”

Oh, shit. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Theo wasn’t just searching for a fight, he was out for blood. I thought we were supposed to be a unified front tonight. Doing whatever it took to make it through with little damage. Clearly between our conversation the other day and today, he’d changed his mind.

“There are consequences for every action we take, Theodore. My sister knew the consequences of hers well before she decided to marry James. She was told on many occasions what marrying him would mean for her future and she did it anyway. Now, her daughter is paying the consequences.”

Theo’s lips parted with a retort, but I smacked the side of his leg under the table and he, thankfully, closed his mouth.

My dad’s eyes lingered on Theo for a few moments before he reached for his glass of wine, seemingly satisfied with Theo’s silence.

Just as I thought we were in the clear, my mother chimed in, “I just certainly hope you aren’t making the situation worse, Sarah.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I didn’t hide the edge in my voice.

“Well, it sounds like Stephanie was on the right path before spending last year working with you. I would hate forher to be led astray thinking she can make something of herself by working as a cashier in a bakery.”

I didn’t need a mirror to know my face was beet red with anger. This exact situation was what I’d tried to avoid my entire life. Prior to me foregoing college and deciding to give my dream a shot, I had done everything my parents asked of me. I got straight A’s in school. I stayed away from drugs and alcohol. Hell, I had even planned on saving myself for marriage until I quickly realized that I was almost thirty years old and had no real prospects. But they didn’t need to know that.

I did one thing outside of their requests and they’ve been punishing me for it for years.

I promised myself I wouldn’t engage in their antics. That I would keep my head down and just get through the night, but I couldn’t. Not when she was attacking the one thing that made me feel joyful and fulfilled.

“I’d hardly call working in a bakery being led astray, Mother.” She hated it when I called her mother. “She’s building a great skillset in public service and has started to take on more responsibilities in the kitchen. If baking is what she wants to do then she has every right to do it.”

Words were our swords and the dinner table was our battleground and just as my mother was about to take another swing at me, Theo jumped in to save me.

“Just like I decided to take a detour from becoming a lawyer and will start training at the Carnelle’s ranch on Monday.”

I held my mother’s stare up until the moment she shiftedher attention to Theo. She looked at him like he was an alien. Like there was no possible way he could be the perfect son she’d always praised for doing the right thing. I wanted to scream at her. Tell her to stop shooting daggers at my brother when he’d already sacrificed so many of his years doing what she wanted, even if it meant being unhappy.

As though her disappointment in him was too much, she simply shook her head and took a long swig of her wine.

I wondered what she would say if I told her that was improper. But I decided to save myself the headache and kept my mouth shut.

“Yes, son. That’s quite the turn of events. I can’t say I’m happy with your decision, especially after all the money your mother and I paid for your education. And to end up at the Carnelle’s ranch of all places. I wish you would have at least chosen another place to train given the Carnelle name has been sullied.”

“I figured you and mom would want me back home and being at their ranch was the only option I had.”

“You could have stayed at law?—”

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