The blood drains from my face. “Is he…”
“He’s in critical condition in the hospital. She wanted to know…if you wanted to see him.”
“Seriously?” Why the hell would I want to see him?
“I didn’t answer for you, but I figured that if you wanted to say anything to him…maybe this was the time. There’s no wrong answer here, babe. Whatever you want, I’ll support you.”
I chew on my bottom lip as the question weighs on my chest. It’s not a choice I want to make.
“Your mom said your brothers are coming to her house. They’ll make a plan from there.”
I let out a deep sigh. “Okay. I’ll head that way.”
“Want me to meet you there?” he asks with loving concern.
“No, that’s okay. I need to do this on my own.”
“I understand,” he replies. Then, after a beat, he adds, “I love you.”
“I love you too,” I mumble before hanging up. It’s at this moment that I realize my hands are shaking.
Without thinking too much about it, I let my producer know the situation. We were about to wrap it up anyway, so it’s not a total loss. Then, I drive directly over to my mother’s house. My brothers’ cars are all parked outside, and I have to take a deep breath when I get out of my car and walk through the front door.
Everyone is sitting around the table when I walk in. It’s just the four of us and Mom. No spouses or kids or boyfriends. I takea seat across from Adam and wait to see what they have to say before I speak up.
It’s Caleb who breaks the tension first.
“Good job, Isaac. Your little publicity stunt killed him.”
“Caleb!” my mother shrieks.
Luke snorts and I break out in a full-belly laugh. I look up to find Adam shaking his head at us while trying to hold back a smile. It feels good to let go of this stress I’ve been holding.
“Me? You threw your boyfriend’s underwear at him.”
“Boys, stop it!”
“To be fair,” Adam adds. “I did release a sex tape we filmed in his office.”
Luke chuckles. “I mean, who here hasn’t desecrated his office?”
“I have,” I reply, holding up my hand.
“We know,” the twins answer in unison.
My poor mother is at the head of the table with her face in her hands.
“Sorry, Mom,” I stutter uncomfortably.
“Yeah, sorry, Mom,” the others reply.
She eventually pulls her hand away and takes a deep breath. On the exhale, she glances around at all of us, and we wait for her to speak next.
Finally, she shrugs. “I may have sent him a little revenge video of my own.”
Our jaws drop collectively. “Holy shit, Mom!” Luke says in an outburst with a shocked smile on his face.
“Excuse me?” Adam asks. “With who?”
