Chapter 6 #2
“Natalie, this is Caleb,” Helen introduces with obvious pride.
“He’s my middle child. The one with the glasses is Nick.
He’s the second-youngest, and the woman sitting with Nick is Elisha, his wife.
I think you’ve already met Megan. She’s the youngest. And that is Jake behind Caleb, bringing in the breadsticks. ”
Jake looks at me and freezes mid-step. “Natalie?”
His eyes swivel towards Ethan, and I see the hint of wariness in Jake’s expression as he studies his brother. “I didn’t know you were bringing her.”
“I invited Natalie, Jake,” Helen says sternly. “Now sit down, all of you. We are going to have a nice family dinner.”
She ushers me into a chair, Ethan taking the seat next to me. I sit stiffly, trying not to remember that I just slapped Ethan a minute ago.
“So, Natalie, how did you and my brother meet?” Megan begins with a mischievous grin.
“He’s my boss,” I reply, my voice carefully controlled.
“Your boss?” Megan’s eyes widen with theatrical surprise. “That’s strange. I could have sworn I saw the two of you—Ow! Why’d you kick me?!”
She glares at Ethan accusingly.
“Ethan!” His mother scowls at him disapprovingly.
Ethan shrugs innocently. “Sorry. My legs are too long. I was trying to get comfortable.”
“Well, watch your legs,” Helen warns him.
“That’s not all he should watch,” Megan snickers under her breath.
“Megan, if you don’t stop talking, I’ll stop the payments on your new car.” Ethan’s eyes narrow dangerously .
She gasps, outraged. “You can’t do that!” Her head swivels towards their father desperately. “He can’t do that, can he, Dad?”
Their father clearly isn’t interested in being dragged into the sibling warfare, so he just keeps carving the roasted chicken, unbothered.
“You wanted a car. He offered to get you one. This is between the two of you. So Natalie,” he glances my way with genuine interest, “Jake tells me you’re the head of HR.
You must be pretty busy with the restructuring. ”
I smile, grateful for the change of topic. “Yes, I?—”
“Yes, Natalie. How busy does Ethan keep you?” Megan grins with wicked delight. She’s like a dog with a bone, and when Ethan snarls at her, their mother raises her voice.
“Enough! Megan, stop teasing your brother. And Ethan, stop using your money to bully your sister!”
“I didn’t even do anything,” Ethan protests with exaggerated innocence. “She’s running her mouth for no reason. Doesn’t she have a life of her own to worry about?”
“Oh, yeah. How’s your new boyfriend, Megan?” Caleb takes a bite of the mashed potatoes on his plate, his tone deliberately casual. “I saw you on his bike yesterday.”
“Bike?” Helen’s voice sharpens with alarm. “A motorcycle, Megan?”
All eyes turn towards Megan, who freezes like a deer in headlights, avoiding her mother’s horrified gaze.
“I—Caleb doesn’t know what he’s talking about. And I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“Hold up.” Jake frowns, his lawyer instincts kicking in. “I remember you telling me something about a classmate of yours who has a bike. Is he your boyfriend? Dad, is she old enough to date?!”
“What’s his name, Megan?” Harold demands with fatherly authority.
“Do you know how many accidents happen on bikes?” Helen presses, looking genuinely upset. “This is why I never let any of the boys get a bike.”
“What?” Megan’s eyes settle on Jake with vindictive glee. “What are you talking about, Mom? Jake has a Harley in his garag?—”
Jake leaps out of his seat, slapping his hand over his sister’s mouth. “I’m holding it for a friend!”
“Jake!” His mother’s fork clatters against her plate.
“You have a Harley?” Jake’s father looks impressed despite his wife’s distress. “Which one?”
“Harold!”
“The Fat Boy,” Jake admits, looking both pleased and sheepish as he sits back down. “I got it off a biker in a bar in Harlem. Fixed it up. Customized it?—”
“You just said you were holding it for a friend, Jake!” Helen looks horrified.
“Well, yeah. Me. I’m the friend. I’m my own friend,” Jake defends himself with flawless logic.
“Smooth, Jake.” Nick shakes his head while Elisha looks annoyed. “It’s just a bike, not the end of the world.”
“It’s not just a bike. It is The Bike,” Caleb points out with obvious relish.
Elisha rolls her eyes and focuses on her meal with pointed disinterest.
“I don’t care if it’s a bike or The Bike,” Helen says heatedly. “I don’t want you riding it, Jake!”
“Didn’t you hear?” Jake gapes at her with disbelief. “I’m not the one riding around on a bike. Your baby daughter is the one riding around the city on one, and with a strange guy on top of that.”
“You piece of sh—” Megan starts.
“Language!”
The meal has barely even started, and chaos has already erupted around the table. I meet Caleb’s gaze, who’s grinning at me with obvious delight, and he mouths ‘You’re welcome.’
Ethan’s voice is low near my ear. “It’s always like this. Let’s just eat and go.”
He cuts me a piece of the chicken and fills up my plate with care before moving onto his own.
I can barely concentrate on my food, overwhelmed by the boisterous dinner conversation.
Even though an argument has broken out, it just seems to be casual bickering rather than a real fight.
Everybody is eating while Mrs. Wilder lectures Jake and Megan with the patience of long practice.
Caleb throws conversational grenades into the discussion, causing dirty looks to be cast his way.
Nick and his wife are more focused on each other and their food, and Harold is equally interested in the bike and his meal.
Dinner at my house growing up had been a quiet, tense affair. I was never allowed to speak at the table. It was always my mother and Lucas talking while I sat in silence.
As I look around at the lively dinner, a memory surfaces—one I must’ve buried somewhere deep inside.
I’d won the spelling bee in the sixth grade and had been bursting with excitement.
My mother always used to say I never had anything useful to contribute, so I should keep my mouth shut.
We had mac and cheese for dinner that evening.
I still remember the taste of it for some reason—a little grainy and chalky, since Mom wasn’t the best cook.
My brother had been telling her about his basketball game when I interrupted them.
I only wanted to tell them I won the spelling bee.
I wanted my mother to look at me with the same pride in her eyes that she held when looking at Lucas.
I still remember the disgust in those eyes when she turned to look at me, Lucas’s sigh of irritation echoing in the small dining room.
She hadn’t said a word, just picked up my plate and taken it to the kitchen, dragging me along with her.
I had to finish the rest of my dinner in the kitchen by myself while standing at the counter.
I’d forgotten this particular memory until today.
I always knew my mother preferred Lucas.
She blamed me for her life going to hell, for our father leaving, for being forced to work when she had previously been a housewife.
Over time, as I grew older, I kept trying to earn some form of affection from her.
But she never scolded me the way Mrs. Wilder is scolding her children—with affection in her voice.
She never looked at me with such pride. She never fussed over me.
My family wasn’t the most idealistic one, but they had been mine, and they were all I had.
Them turning their backs on me was devastating.
When my mother reached out to me three years ago, I had been cautious at first, but the desire to get the one thing I never had was still there.
I have always craved her approval, her love.
My heart throbs as I glance at Ethan from the corner of my eyes. I don’t think he ever had to worry about getting his mother’s approval. Mr. and Mrs. Wilder clearly adore their children. It’s obvious to anyone with eyes.
Ethan finds his family annoying?
Does he know how lucky he is to have a place to call home, to have people who will welcome him with open arms? Does he realize that this is a gift?
“Natalie, dear?”
My head jerks up at Mrs. Wilder’s voice. “Sorry. Did you say something?”
“What are you thinking about with such concentration?” Helen chuckles warmly. “Harold was asking how long you and Ethan have known each other.”
“Five years.” The answer slips out automatically before I can stop myself.
She blinks in surprise. “I thought the two of you just met.”
My lips part in panic. “Well?— ”
“We knew each other in passing five years ago,” Ethan says smoothly, covering for me without missing a beat. “We only just started working together.”
“I see.” His mother’s expression relaxes visibly. “And how do you like my son, Natalie?”
Flustered, I try to avoid looking at Ethan directly. “He’s—He works very hard.”
Helen laughs with genuine delight. “Oh yes, he does. All my children are hard workers, but Ethan is the most ambitious.”
“Nick works equally hard!” Elisha snaps suddenly.
A hush falls over the table like a heavy blanket.
“Eli,” her husband cautions her, sounding displeased.
“What?” Elisha shakes off her husband’s hand and gets to her feet abruptly. “She’s making it seem like you do nothing all day. This is why I didn’t want to come here!”
Turning on her heel, she storms out, leaving me stunned by the sudden explosion.
Nick sighs heavily and stands up. “Sorry about that. She’s not dealing well with the pregnancy.”
He hurries out after her, and Helen looks sympathetic. “Do forgive her, Natalie, dear. Elisha is very protective of her husband. And it’s the pregnancy hormones. She’s in her second trimester.”
I didn’t even know she was pregnant until Nick mentioned it, but then her dress was loose enough to conceal any baby bump.
I give Helen a polite smile. “It’s alright.”