“Dad,” Graham hisses.
“What? He comes and goes as he pleases while the rest of us do the hard stuff. Show me the lie.”
Instantly, my mood shifts because he’s right. It’s the reminder I need because while I visit and have fun with him, I have no clue how to raise him. His routines, his favorite foods…I don’t know any of it. As much as I want Noah with me, I’m not what’s best for him.
And it doesn’t escape my attention that my father chooses his words carefully, unaware that everyone in here has already pieced it together. Enough of it anyway. Because Krista’s reputation precedes her. And it seems the room full of people I’ve met—become as close as I’m capable of over the years—knows me better than my own father. Know I never would’ve touched Krista, even if she hadn’t been married to Dad.
A heavy hand lands on my shoulder. “I’m pretty sure all the fathers in this room can attest that we’ve been clueless in this situation, too.” Liam’s voice holds nothing but vitriol for Dad. “And considering the circumstances, I think he’s making great progress. I mean,his sonwas calling him da-da a few minutes ago.”
Dad’s face turns purple with anger as he looks around the room, realizing he’s surrounded by people he’s pissed off more than once over the years. The man at my side more than any. “This doesn’t concern you. It’s between my son and me.”
“Yeah, well, my relationship with Casey didn’t concern you, but you inserted yourself right on in there, didn’t ya, Maxwell?”
Dad runs his tongue over his teeth, his fists clenching at his side. But he won’t argue with Liam. He can’t. And not because Liam towers over him by nearly half a foot, but because he knows Liam is right.
His dark eyes turn to me. “I need to see you in my office.” With that, he storms away.
Jagger
Idon’t hop when Dad says jump. Maybe that’s part of the problem. Why he’s always seen me as such a disappointment. But Graham never did either, so I don’t know.
But I didn’t follow him like a scolded dog when he walked out of the room. And I didn’t run away.
Today I stayed. I didn’t let him, the memories in this house, or anyone else chase me away.
Perhaps it was the support of everyone here. I’ve spent so long hiding everything that I forgot my life is full of the most observant people on the planet. Just because they don’t acknowledge something doesn’t mean they aren’t aware.
But the last of the guests have gone, except for Lily and Liam. Poppy and Lily help Casey clean up the mess while Graham, Liam, and I disassemble the indoor playground Caseyrented.
By the way, when Graham and I realized she rented them, not bought, we asked why we were the ones who got stuck setting it all up. Her response?I was trying to save money.
My fucking stepsister was trying tosavemoney when she literally wears over a million dollars’ worth of jewelry almost every day. But sure.
I flop onto one sofa on the far end from Liam, tired as hell. Overstimulating is an understatement for today. It’s nearly seven, but everything is back in order and Noah is asleep in his crib upstairs.
Poppy, Lily, and Casey sit across from me on the other sofa while Graham stands at the minibar, pouring drinks. He hands Poppy and Casey glasses of wine, then offers Liam and me a few fingers of Macallen, his favorite, not mine. Curiosity arches his brow when I hesitate.
I haven’t had a drop of alcohol since Thursday night at the club or anything else. The strongest thing I’ve ingested in days is Poppy.
“Thank you for helping me clean up,” Casey says to Poppy and Lily. “It would’ve taken forever if I had to do it all myself.”
“Or you could’ve left it for the staff,” Graham grumbles. “You know the people I pay to do it.” I snort because even as a kid, Casey tried to help the staff. Probably trying to offset the insanity of her mother.
“I still have to talk to Dad,” I tell Poppy, ignoring the coming…who the fuck knows what Casey and Graham do, but my brother is so absolutely gone for her, I can’t see any genuine arguments happening. “After that, if you’re ready, we can head out.”
“Oh, I forgot you two live close to each other. That’s nice of you to give her a ride.”
Dear Lord, Casey.It took everyone all of two minutes to see that Poppy and I were together, and that was the few that didn’t figure it out before.
Lily stares at Casey, her face contorted with exasperation, while her dad hides behind his drink. Graham chuckles, shaking his head with a shrug when I give him awhat the fucklook. But Poppy? She looks uncomfortable, her face blossoming with an awkward blush.
Better to rip off the band-aid. A lot has been revealed in the last few days about both of us. The last thing I want is for this to continue to be something between us. Once Casey knows, it only leaves Renee. And that’s a whole other issue that may ormay not get resolved any time soon, because who knows where she is?
After I discovered she was the one who took Poppy’s money, I tried reaching out, knowing it would cause problems. I needed to know why she would do that. If she was in trouble. We might not have had a great relationship, but I couldn’t bring myself to just ignore the situation. Especially after Poppy confessed Renee hadn’t touched the account in years. But she never responded to my messages or returned my calls. I’m not surprised since I blocked her, but my gut says something is wrong.
“Casey, I’m not taking Poppy to her apartment. She’s coming home with me.” There. Band-aid ripped. Now to see how much blood pours from the wound.
Casey’s blond brows dip as her eyes dart back and forth between Poppy and me. Her head shakes, and I prepare for battle, knowing she’s about to lose her shit over me going after her friend. I know she loves me, but she also thinks I’m a player. It seems I’m forgetting one tiny detail. “Absolutely not. You have a boyfriend. I saw you with him after the show Friday night. And Jagger’s been through too much for you to toy with his heart.” She leaps to her feet as crimson erupts across her cheeks. Venom flares in those blue eyes.
