by Tia Siren
“What the hell?” Leslie murmured behind me.
“I don’t know.”
“Who’s that?” Jason asked.
Hank came to see what we were looking at. “What the hell?” he said, repeating Leslie’s sentiments.
It didn’t take long for Jason to figure out who Brock was. Through the window, we watched as Jasper ran across the yard and threw his arms around Brock.
“Oh,” Jason said. “It’s the baby daddy. He’s changed a lot since the last time I saw him.”
I wasn’t going to admit it, but Jason was right. Brock was a man. He wasn’t the young man who had been a little lankier and a lot cockier.
“Dad!” I called out, having a feeling I knew exactly what was happening.
I walked into the dining room, my hands on my hips. “Did you do this?”
He grinned.
“Dad.”
“I didn’t know I couldn’t invite friends over to my own house.”
“Dad. You don’t think you could have mentioned that you invited my ex-fiancé to dinner with the family?” I asked, my eyes narrowed at him.
He shrugged. “Oh, Ashley, come on. I just invited Brock to dinner.”
“Argh!” I grunted as I turned to head out of the room and into the kitchen.
Brock came in the back door. Leslie, Hank, and Jason had all gone into the living room.
“Hi,” I said to him.
He handed me the flowers. “For the hostess.”
“Thank you. These are very pretty.” I opened a cupboard and grabbed a vase, quickly filled it with water, and set the flowers on the breakfast table. “They really brighten up the room,” I told him.
He stood there looking at me. I could tell he was nervous, and I was nervous for him. He had just walked into the lion’s den. It was up to me to protect him. Me and my dad, I supposed, since he was the one who had invited him. I didn’t think my dad would invite Brock over with ulterior motives, but I couldn’t be sure.
“Can I help with anything?” he asked, clearly not wanting to head into enemy territory alone.
“Yes. You can carry that pot of sauce and I’ll grab the meatballs,” I directed.
My dad found his way into the kitchen. “Ashley, you don’t make the guests work,” he said, taking the pot from Brock. “I’ll take care of this. You two can talk.”
“Hi, Tanner,” Brock said. “Thanks for inviting me. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a home-cooked meal. I’m looking forward to it.”
“Of course you’re invited. You are family after all.”
My eyes bulged. What the hell had happened to my dad? Maybe this was the chemo brain I had read about. He was not acting normally at all. Inviting my ex to dinner with the family was not normal—my ex who had just tried to steal the farm and was still threatening to sue me for custody of the child he hadn’t known he had.
Leslie walked by, looked at Brock, and headed into the kitchen. It took about ten minutes to get all the food and drinks on the table and another five to round up the kids and get them washed up.
We all sat down with Jasper sandwiched between Brock and me. We had just started dishing up when I heard the screen door slam. We all looked at each other, and my hope for a nice quiet dinner evaporated.
“Well isn’t this fancy,” Anna said, breezing into the dining room with a man trailing behind her. “Scoot over,” she instructed Leslie’s son. “Me and Derrick want to sit next to each other.”
No one said a word as Anna and her boyfriend, or whatever he was, sat down at the table.
“Anna, maybe you ought to introduce us to your, uh, guest,” Dad said.
“This is Derrick. You know, the father of my child. Yes, he knows I’m pregnant,” she said, shooting a look at me.
Oh joy. This was going to be a great evening.
Derrick smiled, appearing to be completely oblivious to the tension in the room.
I cleared my throat. “Nice to meet you. I’m Ashley, this is my son, Jasper, and that’s Brock.”
The rest of the table went about introducing themselves since it was clear Anna couldn’t be bothered to do it.
We passed around the food, loading up our plates. There was an attempt at small talk, but it failed miserably. Anna had a way of turning nice family gatherings into complete fiascos. I decided she must have been raised by wolves and then dropped into our family without anybody knowing. There could be no other explanation for her rudeness and open hatred for us all. It wasn’t only me she was being a bitch to. She and Leslie had been exchanging barbs as well.
I wanted to cry. My nice family dinner was ruined. I felt bad for Brock, too. No one would even talk to him. The only time they looked at him was to shoot daggers at him with their eyes. Thank God Jasper didn’t pick up on the tension. I wanted him to be able to enjoy his dinner with his father.
“I’m going to grab a bottle of wine,” I announced.
Alcohol was the only way this meal was going to go down. I left the table and headed to the kitchen pantry to see what I could find.
“It’ll be okay,” Dad said, coming up behind me. “It’s like pulling a scab off a festering wound.”
“Gross, Dad.”
He chuckled. “It isn’t all that pretty in there. I know you’re angry that I invited Brock, but he is a part of this family and it’s about time everyone got used to it. He’ll be okay. He’s a tough guy. He can hold his own should your sisters and brother decide to gang up on him.”
“Oh, God! We left him in there alone!”
I grabbed the bottle of wine and dashed back into the dining room. I didn’t see any blood on the table so assumed the claws had not come out.
“Wine?” I asked, opening the bottle.
Brock declined, but every other adult lifted their glass, including Anna. I rolled my eyes as I passed her over. She was only doing it to get a rise out of me, but I would not fall for her silly, childish trap.
I plopped down in my chair and generously filled my glass before taking several gulps.
“Should we say a blessing?” Dad asked from his place at the head of the table.
I nearly scoffed at the request. A blessing wouldn’t work at this table. We needed a damn exorcism.
Chapter 28
Brock
I’d done a lot of really stupid things in my life. I could admit that. But showing up to dinner at the Parks farm was probably right up there at the top. I couldn’t blame youthful recklessness for my behavior. This had been a decision I had pondered for a while. I chose to come out here with the hope that this could be the start of a real relationship with Ashley.
What the hell had I been thinking?
Thankfully, it was Ashley who prepared the meal, otherwise I would have been terrified to take a bite. I could tell by Leslie’s glares that she was still pissed at me, and I didn’t put it past her to poison my food.
“This is great,” I told Ashley.
“Thank you. The recipe is one of my mom’s, and the tomatoes and some of the herbs in the sauce are from right here on the farm.”
Jasper excitedly nodded his head. “Yep. I helped pick the tomatoes, and the beans,” he said with a great deal of pride.
“You did a great job,” I complimented him.
Leslie emptied her glass of wine and refilled it. I could feel her staring at me, but I ignored her, choosing to focus my attention on Jasper.
The food was great. I was truly impressed. Ashley had never been much of a cook back when we were dating. It was a running joke between us that either I cooked for the both of us or we starved. Clearly, the years had changed that. I wondered if she had taken classes, or maybe it was a mom thing. You had a kid and you automatically knew how to cook.
No, that wasn’t accurate. My mother had been a horrible cook. Or at least the times she had bothered to cook, it had always ended up burned or raw. There was never a perfectly done meal in our house. I had vowed never to eat canned soup again when I moved out of the house at sixtee
n. Even thinking about a can of chicken noodle soup made my stomach turn.
Things were moving along with dinner. My plate was nearly finished and I was already planning my excuse to leave early. I had been mostly keeping my head down and minding my own business, choosing not to get involved in the small talk happening around the table. Ashley was taking the same approach.
Then it happened. I knew it was coming, and I had expected Leslie to be the one to say it. All she needed was a little liquid courage.
“Since no one else is going to say it, I will,” she started. “Why is he here?”
I didn’t have to look at her to know I was the “he” being referred to.
“I invited him,” Tanner said.
“Why?” Leslie shot back. “How is everyone okay with this man sitting in our family’s home, eating our food at our table?” she spat out.
“First of all, it’s mine—well, I guess technically it’s Ashley’s—home, and secondly, it’s my table,” Tanner said in a rather calm tone.
I looked at him, silently thanking him for coming to my defense. The table erupted into a lot of conversation all at once. I caught words, but they were all talking and I couldn’t quite understand what was being said. The gist of it was that I was a horrible human being and scum upon the earth. I don’t know why I had expected any different.
“Leslie, if the prospect of losing the farm bothered you so badly, you should have done something about it,” Ashley said in a voice so quiet that everyone had to stop talking to hear her.
Leslie’s jaw dropped. “What? I did do something. I called you!”
I had to stop myself from laughing. Leslie’s husband made damn good money. I had a feeling they could have helped Tanner out before he’d ended up getting so far behind on his mortgage. Leslie’s idea of helping was to call her little sister. I admit I’d been pissed at Ashley for stopping my deal, but I was also proud that she had managed to pull it off. My girl was a fighter.
I leaned close to Jasper’s ear. “Want to show me that rock collection?” I asked.
Ashley looked at me and gave a slight nod of approval, and I quickly left the dining room with Jasper in tow. I had a feeling those meatballs were going to be going airborne very soon. I wanted no part of a food fight. I did have some standards. But mostly I didn’t want Jasper having to hear it.
Behind us, I heard the shouting. Even the kids were shouting at each other, defending their parents. I was so glad Jasper had better manners than his cousins. Once again, I was thankful Ashley had done such a great job raising him.
“Guess they are all really mad, huh?” Jasper asked.
“Yes, they are. I think it’s best if we let them work it out.”
“How come Aunt Leslie doesn’t like you, Dad?”
I had no idea what to tell him. “It’s adult stuff. You don’t have to worry about it, kid. All that matters is that you and I like each other.”
“And Mom. And Grandpa,” he added.
I chuckled. “Yeah. I think they may like me, which is a good thing.”
We headed outside with Jasper leading the way.
“Grandpa said I can play out here since we don’t have any animals,” he said as we walked to the old barn at the back of the property.
The barn held many memories for me. It hadn’t been a barn for animals in all the time I remembered. Ashley and I used to sneak out here for a little privacy. For all I knew, it could very well be where Jasper was conceived.
I pulled open the heavy door. Jasper flipped the light switch on with practiced ease and led me to an empty stall he had transformed into a play area.
“Wow. You’ve been busy,” I told him, looking at the Hot Wheels collection scattered about.
He nodded. “Yep. I’m building a town for my cars. I come in here because Mom says I can’t be in the sun a lot.”
“Your mom is a smart lady.”
“Do you want to help me build the town?” he asked.
“Sure.”
I plopped down on the dirt, not worried about getting my jeans dirty. It had been a long time since I had played with cars. I loved that Jasper was so willing to invite me into his world. It meant a lot to me, and it was these moments I would cherish forever. Once again, a bit of regret creeped in as I thought about all the moments I had missed in his young life. I didn’t get to see his first smile or see him take his first steps. I had missed out on a lot, but I planned on making up for it now.
We played and talked for a while. He told me all about school and what the first grade would be like. He was expecting a lot of homework. I hoped he was wrong, but it had been a long time since I’d been in school. He asked about my job and wanted to know all about where I lived. I told him I would like to have him over one day, which seemed to make him happy.
I thought about telling him I was already planning a bedroom for him but figured I better wait until Ashley said he was ready for that big step. I agreed with her that baby steps were the way to go. At first, I had resisted, but now I could understand her reasoning. Jasper was mature for his age, but he had just gone through some pretty big changes in his life. I didn’t want to give my five-year-old any stress or anxiety, and I was willing to put my own desires aside. I guessed that was what being a parent was all about.
“There you guys are,” Ashley said, coming toward the stall. “I had a feeling you two would be hiding out here.”
Standing up, I walked out to meet her, leaving Jasper in the stall by himself.
I chuckled. “It seemed a lot safer than in there. Is the coast clear?” I asked in a low voice.
“Yes. Everyone has gone home.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “I didn’t think that was the best environment for him to be in. I don’t want him hearing things he shouldn’t.”
“You’re right. Thank you for getting him out of there. Can you believe those kids?”
“No problem. I am so glad our son didn’t jump into the fray like that. I can’t say I have a lot of experience with big family meals, but that seemed a bit of a circus.”
She laughed. “I promise you it didn’t used to be like that. I guess I was wrong to think we could go back to the old days. My sister said some things that were completely uncalled for. I can’t believe she said anything in front of the kids. I blame the wine. I should have never busted out the alcohol.”
“I didn’t want him to be guilty by association. Figured we’d hightail it out of there while the getting was good. I don’t see any blood or scratch marks, and there’s no food in your hair. I take it things calmed down a bit?”
She rolled her eyes. “There was a lot of yelling, but it didn’t come to blows. My dad kicked the kids into the living room while us adults misbehaved.”
“Smart man,” I replied.
“What a mess. I am so sorry that happened. It’s always the quiet ones you have to watch out for,” she joked.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I suppose I had it coming. I should have known better than to show my face around here. I swear your dad invited me, and he was very persistent.”
She smiled. “He tends to be a stubborn man and doesn’t take no for an answer. It isn’t your fault. It really isn’t any of her business what happens out here or who we have over. She had her chance to make it her business and she chose not to.”
“Do you think she’ll be mad forever?”
“Ha! I wouldn’t doubt it. The woman can hold a grudge, but don’t worry about it. I’m not.”
I hoped she was right. Jasper yawned, and Ashley checked her watch.
“How long have we been out here?” I asked.
“Almost two hours.”
“Wow! I didn’t even realize that much time had passed. It’s probably way past his bedtime.”
She nodded. “Kind of, but it’s summer so I’m not too worried. He can sleep in tomorrow.”
“I’ll take him,” I said, walking over and picking up the sleepy child.
I carried him inside, where Ashley
put him to bed while I waited.
“Good night, Dad,” Jasper said in a sleepy voice.
“Good night, Son.”
The words were foreign on my lips, but I liked the way they felt.
I walked into the living room. Tanner stood up from where he had been relaxing in his big recliner.
“I’m really sorry about all that, Brock. I promise you, I taught my children better than that, but, well, sometimes they just don’t listen.”
“It’s okay. I understand.”
Tanner shook his head. “No, it isn’t okay. I’ve forgiven you, and they should too. Ashley was right when she said it was none of their business. It isn’t. Between her and myself, we are going to get this place back in shape. I hope the others will help out and support us, but if they choose not to, that’s their decision. Don’t let them scare you off.”
“Thanks, Tanner, and I won’t. I may give it some time though before I show up to any more family dinners. I think it’s safer for all of us,” I joked.
He chuckled. “You may be right about that. Take care of yourself and have a safe trip home.”
I said my good-byes and headed out the door. The night hadn’t gone great, but it had gone as expected. At least I’d gotten some time alone with Jasper. I’d say the night was a success.
Chapter 29
Ashley
I never felt more alive than I did when I had a camera in my hand. I was alone and in the great outdoors with no one nearby. It was just me, God, and the trees. And my favorite Nikon. The weight of the camera in my hands was familiar and comforting. It helped wash away the stress of the last few weeks.
When Janna had called this morning and asked if I was interested in a job, I had jumped at the chance. The client wanted some natural shots of farmland. I was surrounded by farms backed up by hills and mountains. There were some of the most stunning landscapes a person would ever see. I couldn’t wait to share them with the world, and it certainly didn’t hurt that I was going to get paid for it. I knew, without a doubt, these pictures would sell. There was no way the client would pass them up. Plus, I could market them on the website Janna was building for me.