Page 33 of Pitcher Perfect

Ty gave me a knowing look. “And now you’re worried that’s going to change and he’ll want to use you to get to Chef Daddy?”

“Dude. We agreed to stop it with the Chef Daddy bullshit.”

Ty threw up his hands. “Ever since he grew the handlebar mustache, it fits. Not my fault your dad has gone hipster silver fox.”

“I hate you.” I slumped in my chair.

Ty smirked, then his face turned serious again. “Hey, man, no shame. I get it. But how about you let Caleb respond without assuming he’s going to be a dick about it? He might surprise you.”

I had stopped being surprised by men’s behavior a long time ago.

“Is it going to be too hard to work with him? I’m sorry if I pushed you into this. Even though I had a front-row seat to the fallout from your parents’ bullshit, I still can’t understand what it’s like to deal with all that. Whenever I’m being a dick, tell me, ’kay?”

“You’re always being a dick,” I teased.

He smirked. “I’m alwaysgettingdick, I think you mean.”

“Ah, yes. My mistake. The Prince of Peen.”

He laughed. “Master of Manhood?”

“Director of Dick.”

“Captain of Cock.”

“Wizard of Wieners,” Dom called from the hallway.

I winced. So much for a private conversation with my cousin. I should’ve had him close the door. I thought Dom and Ethan were still out on their weekly trivia night.

Dom appeared in the hallway. His broad shoulders nearly brushed both sides.

“How much did you hear?”

He shook his head. “Not much beyond us having some good nickname ideas for this dipshit.” He jerked his head toward Ty.

I relaxed in my chair. I didn’t want to hide anything from Dom, but it was embarrassing to have my shit on display. Ethan and Dom knew about my parents but not the full gory details like Ty did since he’d basically lived it with me.

Dom crossed his arms over his chest. “So, Caleb is a paper nerd like you, huh? You two have so much in common already.” He looked at Ty. “Can you imagine how annoying they’re gonna be when they’re trying to choose fancy paper for their wedding invitations?”

Ty tilted his head back and laughed while I reached behind me for something on my desk to throw at Dom. He ducked out of my doorway before the pen made contact with his back. As annoying as the guys were, they always knew how to distract me and cheer me up.

Ty scooted to the edge of my bed and gave me a warm smile. “You good?”

I nodded. “Yeah. Thanks.”

He clapped me on the shoulder then walked out of my room. “What about Sultan of Schlong?” he called to Dom.

I felt a bit better. Enough that I might get some sleep, so I got ready for bed. When I got back to my room and went to plug in my phone, I saw a new notification.

Caleb:Hey, just wanted to check on you. You okay? Sorry if it was weird hearing me talk about your dad like that. Don’t worry, I’m not going to pump you for gory details ;) You’re way cooler than him anyway. Making beer is far more impressive than cooking.

I settled into my bed with a smile.

CHAPTER11

CALEB

Caleb:I talked to dad and he didn’t say anything about the job

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