Page 11 of Roll With The Punches
“172, but Dad,pleasedon’t make a big deal over this, okay? I’m not some uber-genius.”
He blinked, confused. “Say what?”
Grace spared him. “She scored 172 on an IQ test, the guidance counselor told her to apply to Mensa, and she won’t, because she’s a stubborn chicken.Bokity bok bok.”
This took him a moment to process. Emma’s reaction totally looked the opposite of what he thought he’d just heard. “You’re trying to tell me that you’re upset because you scoredhighon an IQ test?”
“No, I’m upset because everyone’s trying to use it to label me as a genius or something. I suck at chemistry, okay? I’m good in a couple of subjects, yes, but I’m no Nobel Prize winner.”
Brandon really felt he was missing some crucial bit of information, so he changed tactics and went to the more helpful source of information in this case.
“Grace, I know I’m a stupid dad, but what am I missing here?”
Grace smirked. “She’s about three days from her period starting.”
“Oh. My.God!” Emma shrieked. “Howcouldyou?”
Grace remained unfazed. “Well, you’ve been kind of bitchy. Mrs. Jergens said if you’re in MensaandNational Honor Society that it’ll really pad your college applications.”
Brandon struggled and won the war to not burst out laughing. Emma’s face looked the deepest shade of red he’d ever seen her turn, and she also looked like she wanted to kill her bestie.
It wasn’t the first time Grace had engaged in some sadism at Emma’s expense, and it always cracked him up when she did.
“Honey, I’m proud of you. If you want to be stealthily smart, okay. But if it’ll help you with applying to college, I don’t understand why you’re fighting it?”
“Because life is more than labels, Dad. And I’ll face enough of them as it is. ‘Oh, there’s the smart chick. Oh, there’s the swimmer girl. Oh, there’s the girl with the non-traditional—’”
Her mouth clamped shut.
He studied her for a moment. “Do we need to go have a talk in private?”
She shook her head and shoved a bite of meatloaf into her mouth.
“Is this about Jeff and Stuart? I thought you were okay with them?”
“Iam! Dad, seriously, I love them. This is aboutme. I face enough flak from Pat about how smart I am. I don’t need to call more attention to myself.”
That still didn’t feel…completely honest. “Since when do you give a flying fu-art what Pat thinks about you?”
“I don’t. But I…” She sighed. “I don’t want to rub Mom’s face in it.”
This didn’t feel like the true crux of the issue, either, but he’d allow her the gracious out.
For now. “You could still apply and if you make it we don’t tell anyone. Not like we have to take out a billboard outing you.”
That finally earned him the ghost of a smile.
They made it through dinner and, while Brandon went to grab a shower, Jeff and Stuart helped the girls clean up the kitchen.
Once Emma had left to drive Grace home, Jeff and Stuart joined Brandon in the shower.
“Clock is ticking on noisy sex, Sir,” Stuart teased. “We have about forty-five minutes until Emma returns.”
“What did I miss during that dinner conversation tonight?” Brandon asked. “Or was it something that happened before I got home?”
Jeff shook his head. “She was like that when Grace let it slip to me earlier. I don’t get the feeling it’s about me or Stuart. It’s something Emma feels, and when she’s ready to tell us, she will.” He dropped to his knees in front of Brandon. “So can we have some quick and noisy beatings and sex before she gets home?Please?”
Brandon grabbed Jeff’s head and pulled him onto his cock. “Get busy, boy.” He reached out, pulled Stuart in for a kiss, then pushed him down onto his knees. “You help him. Don’t make me come, just get me nice and ready.”
