by E. L. Todd
“Well, you can’t give up,” Skye said.
“I’m not,” Roland said. “I’m just taking a break.”
They rounded the corner, and Roland was holding Cedric with Heath behind him. Skye and Cayson came in with a baby bag over Cayson’s shoulder.
“Ooh,” Skye said. “Dinner smells good.”
“Thank you, honey.” Scarlet left the table and hugged all of them.
I did the same even though my heart wasn’t in it. I gave Cedric a kiss on the forehead because he was my favorite at the moment. They set everything down then gathered around the table.
“Yes,” Skye said. “Mom makes the best roast.”
“And mashed potatoes.” Roland piled them onto his plate, taking up half of it. Scarlet always made extra because she knew Roland would snatch most of it.
“What’s new with you guys?” Scarlet asked.
“I saw that dumb cunt, Laura, at Cayson’s office,” Skye said. “Cedric wasn’t with me so I gave her a piece of my mind. That bitch took off.”
Scarlet gave her a disapproving look. “Skye…”
“What?” Skye asked. “That skank tried to steal my husband. I should have pulled her hair out of her skull.”
“Even so, that’s not very classy,” Scarlet said.
“Psh.” Skye shoveled food into her mouth. “I’ve never been classy.”
“I thought you were on a diet,” Roland said. “You’re eating like a cow.”
“It’s my cheat day,” Skye countered.
I picked at my food but didn’t eat anything. I was too nervous to have an appetite. Listening to their conversation was soothing, but then I remembered what I had to say so I became anxious all over again.
“How’s work?” Skye asked.
I tried to pretend everything was normal. “Good. But pretty quiet without you roaming the halls.”
“I’m sure that place is better off,” Skye said with a laugh. “And Ward has less headaches.”
“Actually, I think he misses you more than anyone.” Ward worked with her on a daily basis, so now that she was gone he was always alone in his office.
“Awe…” Skye smiled then sipped her water.
Scarlet stared at me and silently commanded me to spill the beans.
I didn’t want to do it so I ignored her.
Her foot lightly touched mine under the table.
I kept eating.
Scarlet cleared her throat in a noticeable way.
I took a drink of my wine.
Scarlet sighed. “Your father has something to tell you. Please be quiet and let him say what he needs to say before jumping to any conclusions.”
I wanted to glare at her but I knew I didn’t have any right to.
Everyone stopped eating and turned my way, terrified looks on their faces.
“No one is sick,” I said quickly, not wanting them to get the wrong idea.
They all relaxed noticeably.
“What is it, Dad?” Roland asked.
“I’m guessing no one has walked by a newsstand today?” I’d be surprised if Roland didn’t know considering he worked in publishing. He was bound to come across it, or someone else would tell him about it.
“Heath and I ditched work today,” Roland said. “We went to the zoo.”
“The zoo?” Cayson asked. “Why did you go there of all places?”
“Hey, I like the zoo,” Roland said. “And it’s not as crowded during the workday.”
“Let’s get back on track.” Scarlet interrupted them with a wave of a hand.
“No, Dad,” Skye said. “We haven’t seen the papers. Why? Did they write something about you?”
“Yes,” I said. “And it doesn’t make me look very good.”
“Whatever,” Cayson said. “We know the tabloids always make up stupid crap to tarnish people’s names. That’s how they sell copies. Who cares what it says.”
“Well…the picture they have is pretty damning.” I wouldn’t have been able to prove my innocence if Scarlet didn’t trust me so much.
“What picture?” Skye asked.
I told them the story of the meeting with Keith and everything that went down. “Before I could get her off someone snapped a picture of me. The image is real and isn’t photoshoped in any way, but it doesn’t portray that moment accurately. I just wanted to tell you what really happened before you saw the image and thought the worst of me.”
“Can we see it?” Roland asked.
“No,” I barked.
Scarlet grabbed a newspaper from the counter and handed it over. “Sean, they are going to see it anyway.”
Since she was right I didn’t argue.
Roland stared at the picture and cringed. “Yeah…it makes you look pretty bad.”
“I didn’t want that to happen,” I argued. “Everything happened in a nanosecond.”
Skye took the paper next and looked at it. Cayson leaned close to get a good look. “Dang, she has big knockers…”
I honestly didn’t know.
Cayson whistled. “Too bad they are blurred out.”
Skye immediately nudged him in the side.
Cayson chuckled as he rubbed his side. “Kidding, baby.”
Skye handed the paper back to Scarlet. “It doesn’t make you look good at all, Dad.”
This was humiliating. “I just want you guys to know I would never do that to your mother. And I didn’t mean to embarrass all of you. I shouldn’t have walked into that bar to begin with. I’ve ruined your opinion of me, and I hate myself for that.”
“What?” Roland asked. “We don’t think less of you.”
“Dad, if you said that’s what happened we believe you.” Skye continued to look at me the same way she used to. “That doesn’t sound like something you would do anyway. It’s totally out of character.”
“Yeah,” Roland said. “I can’t picture you in a strip club. You don’t fit in.”
All the stress left my body in that moment. My family didn’t hate me for what I’d done. I didn’t ruin the dynamic of this family. I didn’t disappoint them. When I turned to Scarlet she had a knowing look on her face, like she loved the fact she was right about everything. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”
“Now loosen up.” Roland patted me hard on the shoulder. “You’re so uptight all the time.”
“I know,” Skye said. “It’s always life or death with him.”
“Well, my family is the most important thing to me,” I said. “It is a matter of life or death.”
“See?” Roland said to Skye. “What did I tell you?”
She chuckled. “Instead of calling him dad, I say we call him drama queen.”
“Yeah,” Roland said. “It has a nice ring to it.”
Heath chuckled. “I like it.”
Since I screwed everything up I let it slide. “You can call me that for the rest of the night. That’s fine.”
“Yes.” Skye high-fived Roland. “Drama Queen, can you pass the pepper?”
I tried not to smile as I handed it over.
“Thanks, Drama Queen.” Skye set it beside her plate and didn’t even use it.
“How’s the car running, Drama Queen?” Cayson asked.
I kept eating. “Good.”
Scarlet eyed my plate. “Drama Queen, would you like more asparagus?”
“You too?” I asked incredulously.
“Especially me,” she said. “I have to put up with your drama on a daily basis.”
I chuckled and let it slide.
For the rest of dinner, my family found any excuse to refer to me as Drama Queen. Even though it was excessive, I actually liked it. That tabloid hadn’t changed anything between us, and everything was exactly the same.
And I was happy.
In My Heart
Book Forty-Seven of The Forever and Ever Series
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Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed reading Skye and Cayson’s story as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you could leave a short review, it would help me so much! Those reviews are the best kind of support you can give an author. Thank you!
Wishing you love,
E. L. Todd