Page 13 of Untethered Heart
“Elizabeth.” My mother tuts.
“Karma,” Gage coughs under his breath. While Gage hates his birth name, Henry, Beth also despises hers. I sip at the water my mother gave me earlier, the added electrolyte tablet now dissolved, as I see Beth point her nose in the air, eyebrows arching with authority.
“So, Henry, how was your night?”
“The same as yours, I’d imagine.” He picks up a fork and moves the food around on his plate with a grimace. “And stop fucking calling me that.”
“Get much sleep?” Her tone sounds innocent, but it’s underlined with suspicion.
“My sleep was fine,” Gage says slowly, irritation dripping on every word. My eyes shift between my siblings, trying to decipher what’s going on.
“How about on the plane?” Gage’s fork clangs against the table as it falls from his fingers. A showdown is brewing between their heated stares. Beth is the first to break contact, shrugging as she continues. “You seemed very comfortable with Isabelle. Far more so than the flight over.”
Ah, what?
“Who’s Isabelle?” my mother asks as she passes the pepper grinder over the table to Dad.
“Oh my god, it’s happening!” my grandmother says. Her body is visibly buzzing with excitement. She goes from standing to sitting to gulping at her glass of wine. Her attention is firmly fixed between Beth and Gage as she waits for one of them to fill in the blanks. And I concur. Someone, please explain what the fuck is going on.
“Nothing’s happening,” Gage says through his teeth.
“I think this photo begs to differ.” Beth smirks while my brother looks panicked.
“A photo?” Mum asks. Grams quickly leaves her seat, rushing over to see what Beth has to share. A triumphant grin graces my sister’s face as she holds out her phone, making sure it’s far enough out of Gage’s reach since he looks ready to explode like a cannon.
“Aww,” my mother coos at whatever evidence Beth has presented her with, and I can’t take it any longer. I lean over the table and pinch the phone from her fingers to see for myself. There’s a photo of Isabelle and Gage asleep on the bed of our private plane.They’re on top of the covers, fully clothed, but Isabelle is tucked in like a little ball against Gage’s side. Her head nestled right in the crook of his arm, leaning against his chest. His tattooed arm pins her to his side, the dark lines and shading of his grim reaper sleeve looking sombre as it rests against the pale yellow of Isabelle’s oversized hoodie. His other hand rests over his stomach, the black rose with thorns and leaves stretching down his knuckles. Isabelle’s dainty, unblemished hand rests right next to it, their fingertips almost touching. I lift my brows as if sayingplease explainto my brother.
“We didn’t do anything.” His panicked confession is not reassuring.
“That doesn’t look like nothing.” Beth points at the phone lying in my open palm. Mason leans over me, his mouth full of food. I look at my little brother as he harasses my ears with his loud chewing.
“I thought you said she wasn’t hot?” he says, licking at a drop of gravy that’s fallen onto his lip because he’s talking with his mouth full.Animal.I’m shaking my head when the phone is snatched up by Gage before I can blink. His thunderous gaze sends daggers into the screen as he assesses the photo.
“This is on the plane?”
“Yes, brother. Why? Was there somewhere else we may have seen you sleeping with Isabelle this weekend?”
I can see Gage’s chest as it takes in frantic breaths. His eyes blink out of control as they start to take in all the curious faces around the table. When he finally meets my eyes, he hesitates for a split second, then yells, “Caleb likes a girl!”
The utter betrayal. My face contorts in horror, bile rises up my throat. It may be the tequila, but it’s more likely because my brother just threw me under the bus to save himself.
“How. Dare. You.” The mock venom drips from my words as chaos ensues around the table.
“A girl? What is he talking about?”
“Isabelle was right!”
“Who is this Isabelle chick?”
“What’s her name? Where did you meet her?”
I can hear the questions, but all my attention stays on my brother. I shake my head at him and turn down my lips, doing my best impersonation ofThe Godfather, as I talk to Gage about family and respect. He sinks down in his chair, and as much as I really want to know what the story is there, my own distress pushes harder.
Not only has he deferred attention from himself because, clearly, something did happen with Isabelle, but he’s offered hope to my mother and grandmother that one of us is settling down. Worst of all, he made my thoughts flood with Lex after extreme drinking worked so well to drown her out.
Chapter eight
As much as I love my job, standing in a room with people yelling their drink orders at you because the music is just as loud is not great when your head is pounding. There’s still forty-five minutes left until I can get out of here, crawl into bed, and have yet another restless sleep. In the last three weeks, every time I’ve closed my eyes, I’ve seen Caleb. His wolfish grin, his enchanting green eyes. I remember the feel of his hands as they explored every part of me. The feel of his lips as they pressed against mine. But also, the unrelenting feeling of abandonment when I woke up alone. I know it was a one-night stand. It’s not like we went on a date or promised to see each other again. As much as I’m used to being left behind, it still stung.
