24. Reed #2
I can tell from his tone that he isn’t going to elaborate, so I can only assume my earlier ideas about Jason are correct. My guess is he’s in rehab somewhere, and the family don’t want to bring any negativity to Wilder’s rookie season.
“Freddie is really good at playing the piano,” I reply, changing the subject. “I swear he’s like a child prodigy when it comes to classical music.”
Wilder smiles, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “No lacrosse like his big brother then?” he asks, sipping his own drink and watching me over the rim, and I almost laugh, shaking my head.
“Oh absolutely not, he’s not into sports at all,” I reply quickly without even thinking, and his stare hardens ever so slightly, alerting me to my mistake.
He was there when my father told us all that Freddie broke his arm playing lacrosse, and now I have just confirmed that was a lie.
Fuck.
Lying has been second nature for me for as long as I can remember, it comes easier than breathing, so much so that I don’t even think about it anymore.
Except for the first time in my life, I’m letting someone get close enough to me to see through all the bullshit.
Eloise is different, she has the same stakes as I do in this fucked-up thing we call life, but Wilder is an outsider.
He doesn’t understand my reasons, but right now he is looking at me as if every single one of them matters to him.
“Anway, enough about me, why don’t you tell me about your family.
” I’m almost certain he can hear the panic in my tone, but still I push on as if everything is fine.
“The ones you still talk to anyway,” I joke, reaching for my wine again.
“Matt said you're close with your cousins, they’re twins, right?”
Wilder is still watching me, which means he knows I am purposely changing the subject, and I despise how easily he can see right through me.
It’s crazy how in tune we are with one another, given two months ago I didn’t even know him.
We have spoken mostly daily since I started working for him, but not about anything too personal beyond what we enjoy doing with our time, and I want to get to know him more.
I don’t know much about his family outside of the basic stuff I researched, and well, he already knows enough about mine, so I think it’s safer for us to focus on him.
I almost expect him to call me out for changing the subject, but he smiles and nods.
“Yes, I’ve always been close with Cas and Caden.
We were inseparable as kids, and honestly this is probably the longest I have ever gone without seeing them.
” It’s the softest tone I have ever heard from him, and it’s clear he cares about his family.
“Tell me about them, are they like you?” I ask, taking another drink, and he smirks.
“Casper is, I’m sure from your in-depth research into me that you know he is at the top of every single one of his classes at The Academy, and has been from the moment he arrived.
” His expression is cocky now, because he knows full well that I have every single one of his stats memorized, but I remain quiet.
“He’s brilliant, funny, smart, charming,” he trails off, and now it’s my turn to smirk.
“Yeah, so exactly like you,” I muse, and he shrugs. “And Caden?”
At the mention of his other cousin’s name, Wilder pauses, letting his stare flash around the surrounding tables, before it comes back to me.
“Caden isn’t like us.” Those four words are said with so much finality that I’m almost certain he won’t say anything else, and I’m ready to drop my line of questioning.
“Most people would consider him to be cold, and he is, but he loves his brother and would do anything for him.” I can’t help but hear the silent ‘and me’ that was left unsaid at the end of that sentence, but I don’t bother pointing it out.
“The Devil himself wouldn’t pick a fight with Caden Miles, and I think that pretty much sums him up. ”
After that declaration, Wilder is the one to change the topic of conversation, steering us to safer waters by recalling tales of his childhood.
I learn about how how he was almost expelled in high school for fucking someone on his teacher’s desk.
How he filled Casper's dorm at The Academy with one hundred chickens during his first week there, which Caden did not find funny, and how he and Matt flooded the athletics department in their second year, resulting in Matteo’s dad having to make a hefty donation in apology.
By the time we have finished eating and walked around the park, I am laughing so much at his stories I’m almost crying. We’re walking back to the hotel now and we’ve been gone for hours, and as reluctant as I am to admit it, this still feels very much like a date.
“My dad was so fucking pissed, but the sunken car in the pool got Cade to pay me fifty grand, and Casper to declare me as the king of prank wars,” Wilder continues, telling me another tale, and I’m grinning so wide my cheeks physically hurt. “Beck wasn’t happy of course, he sure did love that car.”
“Oh my God, you really are a nepo baby, because I’m almost certain your dad would have kicked anyone else out for that,” I choke out in a laugh, before hissing slightly, my hand flying to my ribs to try and deflect the pain.