Page 19 of In a Pinch

My thoughts are interrupted by Isla and Anna entering the kitchen.

“There you are! I was wondering where you ran off to,” Isla says, making her way next to me.

I now lean against the stove, as Cal saunters in. “You know me. Smelled food and had to see what was going on.”

Cal makes his way over to Sam and has the most awkward interaction. It looks like Cal was attempting a hug, but Sam, being the prickly pear he is, offers his hand instead. Interesting.

When Anna walks into the room, Sam’s smile stretches across his face. Jesus. He has the prettiest teeth I’ve ever seen. Is that a normal thing to think? That people have pretty teeth? My thoughts become jumbled as I stare at him. His mom walks over, and he tucks her under his arm in a side hug. Good to know he isn’t allergic to all human affection and emotion. We have a mama’s boy on our hands.

I hear faint sounds, and realize Isla is trying to talk to me.

“Earth to Addie. You zone out over there?”

I shake my head to clear the fog and lightly smile at her. “Oh, yeah, totally zoned out.” I’m happy to see that no one noticed, until I glance back at Sam and his smirk tells me I didn’t get away quite scot-free.

“Let’s make our way to the dining room before it gets cold. Michael should be here any moment.”

Michael makes my palms sweat. Not in a bad way per se, but I genuinely never know what to say to him. He is all business and no fun. His conversations revolve around work and business and are usually directed at Cal. Maybe in his own house, he is a bit warmer and not so closed off.

We all take our seats, and I hear the front door open and close.

“Hello, honey. We’re in here. You made it just in time.”

It’s a Sunday. Where could this man possibly have been?

“Thanks, you didn’t need to wait.” He gives a curt nod in the doorway, and then disappears down the hall to hang his coat.

“We didn’t.” Sam jumps in on the conversation, and by his tone, I can’t tell if he is trying to be an ass or warn his father of his presence.

“Sam, nice of you to finally make it.”

“Had the night off and wanted to see Mom,” he says before taking a sip of his drink.

I can’t help but tense. For lack of a better description, the vibes are off. It feels tense, and I find myself nervously readjusting in my seat.

“Sam is right; it literally just came out of the oven. Your timing is impeccable.” It’s easy to read that Anna is the peacekeeper in the room.

“That’s nice. Sam, how has work been?”

Sam immediately stiffens, then stretches out his neck as if preparing for battle. “It’s been going really well. I have moved upand have one more milestone before I make head chef.” His tone lacks all warmth. Just straight and to the point.

“Well, when that doesn’t happen, I’m still open to adding you to the team.”

Oh no. It doesn’t take a fortune teller to see where this is going.“I won’t be having any issues making that happen. Once again, no thank you. Please stop pushing your shit off on me.” You can see the tension rolling off him.

Anna stands and immediately begins dishing people’s food. If their mouths are full, no one can fight. This is a woman who is well-versed in tense dinners, I see.

“Addie, honey, how has your time here been?” Anna smiles down at me, redirecting the conversation. Thank God.

“It has been good. I started working with Tyler at his office. Well, technically, for the new lawyer, but about the same.” I kind of wish they were here now, but Tyler, being the star husband he is, took Liv out of town for the weekend.

“Are you studying law?” Michael hops back in the conversation.

“No, I have a degree in management, specifically office management. I found myself working as an assistant to a legal assistant when I was in college and slowly worked my way up. At some point, I’d like to manage a law office.”

“Interesting. Why didn’t you just study law?” He lifts his wine glass to his lips and takes a swig while he waits for my response.

This is far from the first time I’ve been asked this question. My response at this point is an automated voice recording. “Well, I didn’t quite know where I was going to end up. I didn’t start working for the law office until my junior year of college, and adding on that many years to my education felt like a bit too much. It worked out. I love what I do, and know that at some point, I can grow into different positions”

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