Chapter Seven
Estella
I come down to breakfast like a good girl, so my poor mom doesn’t have to come find me.
Or send Ren back for me. As soon as I step into the room, Mom and Ren stop talking.
That’s never a good thing. I also notice my plate is already piled high and sat next to Ren’s so I have no choice but to sit right next to him.
My mother looks up at me, “Estella, you look like you didn’t sleep well last night.”
Apparently, it shows since Ren also said something about it. I don’t think he would have said something to Mom to make her say that so…it has to be bad.
“You shouldn’t come down to company looking like you didn’t rest well, sweetie. I would have understood if you asked to take a tray this morning.”
“Sorry, mom.” I am forever apologizing to my mom it seems. And she is forever telling me in the way she looks at me that I am coming up short. Not that she doesn’t love me. I know she does. “Ren isn’t really company thought. He’s…”
I stop short of calling him family. Not after what happened last night. And just now in my room. He kissed me. I guess it could be looked at as a…no, it was no brotherly kiss. No matter how I look at it, I can’t make it come off as that.
“Yes, yes. I know, dear. He’s your brother.”
“Step.” My eyes shot up to find Ren’s. We say the word at the same time, reminding Mom we have no family connection other than as stepsiblings. I frown and start chewing on my bottom lip as worry starts rising up inside of me.
I look back down when he doesn’t look away and start pushing my food around on the plate. Under the table, he lays his hand on my upper thigh and whispers to me.
“Eat.”
I jerk in my seat at his touch on my bare leg and send my fork flying to the floor but don’t say anything.
How can I when mom is right here? I try to focus on my breathing since it seems when Ren touches me, I can’t remember to breathe as he gets up to grab me another fork.
A phone rings throughout the house and my mom goes running for it.
She is not a hypocrite at all. She didn’t bring her phone to the table either after giving me and Ren the rule.
I no longer have a reason to bring my phone with me or go running for it right after because…
“Eat!”
“I’m not very hungry.”
Is he going to tell my mom after breakfast? Has he already talked to his dad and that’s where my mom is now, talking to Ben about kicking me out? Pretty sure an empty stomach would be more desirable if that were to happen since I am one hundred percent sure I would vomit.
He leans forward and stabs food on my plate. “What…?” Does he not have the same stuff on his plate that I do? Why want mine?
He makes sure he has a good forkful before bringing it to my mouth and shoving it in.
“What are you doing?” I cover my mouth so the food doesn’t fall out as I start chewing out of reflex more than anything else.
“Making sure you eat. Why didn’t you sleep last night?”
“Why do you think?” I hiss the obvious question back at him as I try to bat his hand away. He grabs my wrist and proceeds to feed me again like I never tried to stop him in the first place.
“What’s going on?”
My eyes fly to my mom standing in the door of the dining room looking at me and Ren and suck in a deep breath as I finish the food I was just given. Her eyes are focused on where Ren has my wrist in his hand.
“Just horsing around. Makin’ sure Estella eats.”
“Oh.” She still gives us an odd look but a smile quickly covers her face. “Well, anyway, I have great news! I just talked to Ben!”
I go rigid beside Ren and feel my stomach sink. A warm hand comes back to my thigh again giving me a comforting squeeze. At least, I think it’s a comforting squeeze. It might be telling me my time is up and here comes the final blow. Would he be someone who gloats like that?
“He loved the idea, Ren.” Mom seems so happy about whatever she’s talking about. I’m totally lost. I turn to look at Ren hoping he can explain since he seems to understand what she is talking about. “So much, he said he was going to add another month to his itinerary.”
Wait. Surely she doesn’t mean…
“Ben’s going to be gone for another month?”
Why is this making mom happy?
“It’s going to be a mini honeymoon for us.”
She comes over to me and clasps my hands in hers.
“You’re…you’re going with him?”
Mom nods happily, looking behind me with a big smile at Ren. “And we owe it all to Ren!”
Ren? Why do I feel like this is a setup? If Mom is with Ben, then I will be alone for at least two months. Two months is a long time to be all by myself.
“If he hadn’t said he was willing to take care of you while we were gone, I would never have brought it up to Ben.”
What the shit?! I snap my head around and glare at the asshole beside me!
“What?” I can tell by the look on his face that it’s as bad, or even worse than I thought. I jump out of my seat trying to put space between me and him but I don’t want to go closer to Mom either.
“Watch me? Watch me how? Mom, I’m eighteen! I don’t need to be ‘watched’ like some kind of child. I’m not a pet that needs supervision. I can take care of myself! Hell, I can go stay with…”
“You are not going anywhere near that little shit you call a best friend!” Now, he’s up on his feet. He’s actually pointing his finger at me!
“You don’t get to tell me what to do, asshole!”
“I do when it’s for your own fucking safety, princess.”
“If you don’t stay with your brother…”
“Step!” We both yell it at Mom as she starts wringing her hands, a worried look crosses her face and sadness clouds her eyes. I’m about to apologize for yelling when she delivers the death blow.
“If you didn’t go stay with Ren I’d worry about you so much I might as well not even go.” God damn it! My shoulders slump in defeat. “I’m going to call Ben back and just tell him…”
“I’ll go with Ren.”
“You’ll go with Ren and let him take care of you?”
I flop back in one of the dining room chairs and give her a nod. There is no way I am going to cause her so much sadness.
“Yes. I’ll go with him.”
There’s no way out of it. No way for me to fight back. But why? Why would he do this, orchestrate all this so he could get me alone?
Is it so he can punish me slowly for being the person on the other end of the dating site?
Maybe he thinks I made an idiot out of him so he’s going to do the same to me.
Maybe the level of his ire was so great when he realized that the person he got to know doesn’t exist -because she is me- that he wants to torture me over it.
And what happens when I stay with him and some girl comes over? Will I have to listen to them have sex? Will I have to listen as the mystery woman screams out Ren’s name or calls him Daddy? Oh God! I can’t do this! I have to find a way out! I have to!