Page 17 of A Constant Surprise

“Yeah. I mean I don’t always have a ton of time to cook, but I enjoy it when I do.”

“Well, thank you for this. Can’t wait to try it.”

“Well, you have to wait a little while longer. How about until then…” She walked to the refrigerator and grabbed two beers and handed one to me.

We went and sat at the table across from one another, and I asked about her day. She told me she had just done some tutoring earlier in the day and then went grocery shopping.

“And what did you do today? You were gone for a while.” Her tone was composed, but her eyes questioned if I was out with someone else.

“Yeah, I went and met up with my sister for awhile. We had coffee.”

Her eyes glinted a hint of relief. “Oh, that sounds nice. What’s her name?”

“Tess.”

She simply nodded, so I continued, “We are all ‘T’ names. Tawna and Travis are the oldest, Tess, and then Tyler,” I said while pointing to myself.

“There are four of you?”

“Yes. Travis and Tawna are twins, and they’re about ten years older than Tess and me.”

Her eyebrows were raised urging me to go on.

I took a swig of beer. “You sure you want to know the Tyler Wendell life story?”

She took another drink too while nodding her head. “Lay it on me, Trust Fund.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at the snarky nickname.

“Okay…let’s start with my parents. My mom is from Columbia, and my dad is from New York. Mom moved to the states to go to college…where she met my dad. They fell in love, got married, and had the twins.

“When the twins were born, the family business was still a tiny operation, so they were still the doting parents. No maids. No nannies. They never missed a sporting event or a choir concert.

“As time went on, they had less and less time to devote to parenting, so needless to say, when Tess arrived on the scene, it was a complete surprise. Shortly after, they decided to have me so she would have someone her own age to grow up with.”

Sam interrupted, “I’m sure that’s not the only reason they had you.”

“I love your sentiment, but it’s true. And Tess and I didn’t get their time. We were the ones who had maids and nannies. Jacinda was the one who raised us. Our parents might have provided the funding needed, but they never read a bedtime story, never snuggled up to watch a movie, and never liked to remember what their lives were like before they had money. They tried to be there for the important stuff, but I wish they could have seen the little things too.”

Her eyes filled with sympathy.

“I know you think that I had a charmed life because I had money. You’re right. Money helped. But money doesn’t buy everything.”

She looked down and picked at her fingernails. “I’m sorry. I never meant to imply that…”

I cut her off. “Stop. Like I said, it was a great life. I’m not going to be one of those rich kids complaining about how hard they had it. You wanted to know how I grew up, and I’m telling you. It is what it is.”

She simply nodded and sat quietly for a moment sipping her beer choosing her next words.

“So, you’re close with Tess?”

I chuckled. “Very close. We are one hundred percent opposites, yet we click. Like two sides of the same coin. We used to live here together, but she’s pretty much a genius, so she graduated a year early. She started medical school a couple years ago. It’s strange because it’s the furthest we’ve been apart in our whole lives.”

She gave me a warm smile.

I decided to press my luck and ask something personal. “Do you have siblings?”

“Uh yeah. I have two little brothers. Well, I say little, but they were both high school football players who tower over me.” She laughed.

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