Page 46 of The Perils of Pretending
I take it, making sure I squeeze his palm hard. Dorian winces slightly, yanking his hand back. “Good. Good.” I nod. “Well, now that I’m here, you can spend time with other members of the family.”
He winces. “Yeah, sorry, man. I’d rather be with Sadie.”
He’s bold, I’ll give him that. But the urge to sock him in the jaw makes me fist my hands at my side. I’m an adult and won’t actually resort to violence like the kids at my school, but it doesn’t mean the inclination isn’t there. “Let me rephrase that. Leave my girl alone.”
He shrugs as if my warning doesn’t faze him. “Or what?”
I shrug back. “Those hands of yours won’t be able to perform operations anymore.”
“And that nose might be permanently crooked,” Brody adds from behind me. He sets his plate of cake on the table, then stands next to me with his arms folded across his chest.
Dorian eyes Brody and me from head to toe. Thankfully, he walks away, instead of taking a swing. I flex my fingers, letting the tension in my muscles drain away.
“I had a hundred bucks on you,” a male voice says behind us. I spin, looking at who spoke. By his dark hair and wide build, I can tell he’s an Ashcombe.
Brody laughs. “Hey, Robbie. This is my friend, Max.”
Robbie’s head tilts to the side. “I thought he was Sadie’s boyfriend.”
I understand Brody’s slip up since that is who I am, but I’m also annoyed he chose this moment to say it. We have a mission here and he’s blowing it. “I am. I met Sadie at Brody’s and we hit it off.”
Sadie approaches us with each hand holding a plate of three-layer chocolate cake. “Why did Dorian just whisper ‘this isn’t over’ to me before storming off?”
“Oooh, the entertainment continues,” Robbie says.
Brody lightly punches Robbie’s shoulder. “No, it’s over.”
I take the food from her, setting it next to Brody’s on the table. “He’s mad that I’m here.”
“Sucks to be him.” Sadie pulls out a chair, completely at ease, digging into her cake.
I join her. “Agreed.”
We finish eating, Sadie devouring every last morsel on her plate. The chocolate cake with berry filling and light chocolate frosting tempts me enough that I eat a third of it, but my stomach can’t handle any more.
A waiter takes our plates away. Sadie stands, holding out her right hand to me. I put my palm in hers, intertwining our fingers. The moment our hands fully hold on tight, my heart thumps hard in my chestlike it’s telling me to pay attention because this hand is meant to be in mine. “Introduce me to your aunts.”
Sadie leads us over that way, stopping in front of Grandma Alice and someone else I don’t know.
“Aunt Eunice,” Sadie says. “I’d like you to meet my boyfriend, Max.”
Alice’s lips purse together. The pearls and lavender suit she’s wearing are ridiculous. Why is she dressed to the nines all the time? “I thought you couldn’t join us, young man,” Alice states.
“That’s what I said in order to keep my surprise a secret.”
Eunice, wearing a navy suit and matching pearls to Alice, blinks, leans her head forward, and blinks some more. “You’re Max?” She says it like she’s already disappointed in me. I’m not sure how since we just met and I’ve only said one sentence.
Sadie squeezes my fingers. “Yes, Aunt Eunice, this is Max, my boyfriend.”
Alice lets out a disgruntled noise. “I can’t have you repeating the mistakes of your father, Sadie.”
Sadie flinches, sucking in a breath like she’s been slapped.
I’m not entirely sure what Alice means, but by her tone alone my jaw drops. I can’t even with this woman. Does she not see how she talks down to Sadie? How rude and judgmental she is? Sadie might not physically be in harm’s way, but mentally and emotionally, she’s been abused for years, according to what Brody and Sadie have told me. And how dare she bring up Sadie’s deceased father.
It’s time we get away from Alice. “We’re going to get my things moved into Sadie’s room before we head out for our afternoon of fun.”
Eunice’s eyes widen. “Excuse me, young man. Only married couples get to share bedrooms in this family.”
