Page 65 of My Best Years

A rigid ball forms in my throat as I think about what he went through.

“Have you,” I stammer nervously, “spoken to your family since you left for college?”

“I saw them a few years ago,” he answers. “My mom called and invited me to Thanksgiving in Florida. My brother and his wife were flying in, and she wanted a chance to get the whole family together. Honestly, the only reason I went was because my brother was going to be there. I’ve never had much of a relationship with him, so I figured it could be a good start.”

He pushes a hand through his hair and lets out a deep sigh.

“But not even fifteen minutes into Thanksgiving dinner, my father made a snide comment that I couldn't ignore. Instead of staying silent like I did when I was a kid, I told that motherfucker exactly what I thought about him. Everything went to shit after that. I called out his abuse in front of the entire family right before he kicked me out. He called me ungrateful, accused me of lying, and told me I was never welcome in his home again.”

A line forms between my brows as I shake my head. I’llnever be able to comprehend how a human being could be so cold. His father is lucky that Callum has kept me away from him. Because if I ever lay eyes on that worthless excuse of a human, Callum’s going to be putting his law degree to serious work to get me out of prison.

“I don’t know what he said to Grant after I left,” Callum adds, “but I guess my brother ended up believing his story because I haven’t heard from him since. I know that my mom felt terrible; I could see it in the tears rolling down her cheeks. But just like when I was a kid, she didn’t speak up or try to defend me.”

He lets out a scoff, sounding more disappointed than amused.

“That was the last time I saw or spoke to my family. And honestly, I said my piece that day. It was the closure I needed. I don’t plan on reaching out to them ever again.”

Fuck, that breaks my heart.I can’t imagine living a life without the comfort of family.

“I’m so sorry, Callum,” I say, my voice low. “As far as I’m concerned, your brother is a piece of shit for not believing you. I hope you know that this is your family’s loss, not yours. They’re the ones missing out on havingyouin their lives.”

The corner of his lips curve up in a sad smile at my defense.

God, I love his smile.

“Yeah,” he mutters. “I guess you’re right about that.”

He won’t admit it, but I can tell that he doesn’t want to talk about them anymore. And I don’t blame him at all for that.

“Enough about them,” I wave a hand in front of me. “They don’t deserve our time anyway.”

He flashes me a thankful grin while tapping his thumbs against his mug.

“So, uh…What do you do for fun?” he asks. “What are your hobbies nowadays?”

“Honestly,” I click my tongue, “not much has changed since high school. I still love to read my sappy, ‘kissing books,’ as you used to call them. But I guess you can say I’ve leveled up now.” Callum raises his brows, and I clarify, “There’s a little more than kissing now.”

He clears his throat. “Is that right?”

“Oh, yeah,” I confirm with a smirk. “Real freaky shit.”

I take a sip of my coffee, holding back a chuckle as Callum continues to eye me over top of the mug.

“Anyways, aside from that,” I continue, “I started baking last year. There’s still a lot of room for improvement, but I’ve gotten better with time.”

Callum’s cheeks turn fire engine red as a sly grin stretches across his face, reaching both of his ears.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he replies, doing a terrible job of keeping his smirk at bay. “I’m just…” He lets out a noise that sounds like a cough and laugh combined.

“Spit it out.”

“I’m just a little hung up on the ‘freaky’ romancebooks you mentioned. Can we circle back to that?”

I roll my eyes, even though his comment sends electricity straight to my core. Imagining Callum doing things to me like the men in my romance books is not where my mind should be right now.

“I don’t know… That’s getting into dangerous territory,” I tsk. “And besides, I don’t think you really want to know.”

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