Page 29 of Take Two

“No!” Johnny yells right before he throws his plastic plate at his father.

“Lucky for you I don’t take no for an answer, or you wouldn’t be here,” Colt says to Johnny. He puts the plate back in front of him and kisses the top of his head.

“Me,” Jasmine says, so Colt kisses the top of her head too.

Colt and Vickie serve the kids, and a few minutes later, the adults sit at the kitchen table. It sits six. Colt and Vickie are at either end, and I’m seated directly across from Violet. I have to fight the urge not to plate her food like I always do. She’s always so happy when I do the smallest things for her, which makes me want to do everything for her.

“Thanks for inviting me to stay for dinner, Vickie. The food smells great,” she says looking right at me. “You must like to cook.

“I love it,” I say. “Mama taught me.”

“These two can’t have a full conversation without bringing up their mama,” Vickie says. “Charlie, women don’t like that.”

“Really? I still got you, didn’t I?” Colt challenges. “And everyone here knows you’re not going anywhere.” She throws a napkin at him, and he blows her a kiss.

“Well, I’ve met their mom, and she’s really sweet.”

“Don’t encourage them, Violet,” Vickie says.

“Whatever, Queen Vee. You talk to Mama more than I do now.”

Victoria doesn’t deny it. She can’t. She’s always on the phone with Mama.

“Forget about that,” Vickie says. “Charlie’s got a new girlfriend and he won’t let us meet her.”

I drop my fork on my plate. Violet sits up and a wide smile spreads across her face when she whips her head around to look at me. Colt, who is usually just as nosey as his wife, purses his lips almost as if he disapproves of the conversation.

“A girlfriend already? That sounds exciting,” Violet says. “Does this mean you’ll be spending more time in New York?”

I can feel my brother's dark brown eyes on me. He stops chewing and tilts his ear in my direction.

“That’s the plan,” I say.

“Well, you don’t have to rush anything, Charlie. It can just be a summer fling,” he says. “You’ll be busy when you get back home with the restaurant and with renovating your house.”

“I’m pretty sure I can walk and chew gum at the same time, Colty,” I say to my brother, who narrows his eyes at me.

“A fling?” Violet asks. “Is that all this is? Are you the fling type?”

“I don’t think the Chastain men know the definition of that word. At least Colt doesn’t. He pretended he wasn’t looking for anything serious, and then—"

“Darlin’, please. You knew what this was from the beginning.” Colt says. “You think I chased you all that time for a fling?”

“That’s what you said,” Vickie says.

“Well, I lied.” He blows her another kiss. “Don’t get too excited about this so-called girlfriend,” he says, changing the subject back to me. He goes so far as to put the word girlfriend in air quotes. “She doesn’t exist,” Colt says. “Don’t make me tell everyone here about Staci Shephard.”

My eyes narrow at him, but we both burst into laughter at the memory.

“And who is Staci Shephard,” Violet asks. She arches an eyebrow at me, and for a moment, I get the impression that she’s jealous. And I like that she is.

“You make up one girlfriend when you’re fourteen, and your pain in the neck little brother will never let you forget it,” I say.

“Sounds juicy,” Violet says while still looking at me.

“He said she went to the other school. The good school,” Colt says, putting the word good in air quotes. “Said she was going to be his date for homecomin’, but he would never bring her around to meet us, even though Mama kept askin’ him to bring her home for dinner. He wasn’t actin’ like a man with a girlfriend. He never kept his phone on him. I never saw him talkin’ or textin’. Half the time, his phone was dead. One day, I looked through it searchin’ for a Staci, and guess what?” Colt asks.

“You couldn’t find one?”Violet finishes.

---