Page 42 of Be Your Anything
My jaw drops, shock rippling through me.
“Yeah.”
“I can’t even… No offense, but what a bitch.”
Ben smiles. “You can call my parents every name in the book and it won’t bother me in the slightest,” he says, patting me on the shoulder and then heading inside.
My mind reels as I try to take everything in. Wyatt’s command. Ivy’s silence. Ben’s…strange feelings about his parents.
I close the door and spin around, finding the three Calloways at the edge of the kitchen, watching as Hannah bustles around pulling out pots and pans and bowls.
“What are you doing?”
She grins at me then crawls up on the counter to grab some sort of blender thing I’ve never used before from a high cabinet.
“We’re making dinner,” she replies, as if it’s some simple thing.
Wyatt laughs. “What? I thought we were ordering something.”
“And I thought we were going out.”
Hannah blushes as she drops down to the floor. “Well,” she starts, her hands moving quickly to translate for Ivy. “I realized going out in public means everyone will see all of us together, and I’m pretty sure you guys aren’t ready to share about the family connection yet. So, I thought it would be fun to eat here, and what better way to chat and enjoy the evening than cooking together?”
Ben, Wyatt, Ivy, and I all stand in silence.
“How very…domestic,” Ben says.
“Ivy wants to help, don’t you sweetie?”
I watch as Ivy gives Hannah a smile full of warmth and love. They’ve only known each other for a short while, but the relationship they’ve built is clear and deep and strong.
“Just to be clear,” Hannah says to us three as Ivy washes her hands in the sink, her eyes not looking at the rest of us, “this is not a night where you guys sit over there and ignore us while Ivy and I cook. You’re helping. Pretend you’re excited.”
Then she spins around and sidles up next to Ivy, moving her hands in motions that make no sense to me but have Ivy giggling.
“She’s pretty fucking amazing,” Wyatt says next to me.
“You picked a good one,” Ben adds, a small grin on his face.
“She’s a pest,” I can’t help but joke, “but fuck if she isn’t the kind of pest you need to survive, huh?”
We stand there only a moment longer, just observing the two of them together before a hard glare from Hannah has us all moving quickly to get our hands washed and pitch in.
Apparently, we’re cooking dinner tonight.
As a family.
“Do you think tonight went well?” Hannah asks as she finishes tucking away the last of the leftovers in the fridge.
I lean against the counter with my arms crossed, allowing myself a minute to truly decide whether I think it was a success.
“I mean, yeah. I think so…even though I barely talked to Ivy at all and she pretty much didn’t look at me.” I lift a shoulder. “Sure. Other than that, I thought everything was great.”
Hannah laughs, hopping up to take a seat on the island countertop. “It’ll take time for her to warm up to you,” she says. “Ivy’s super confident, but you make her nervous.”
My head jerks back. “Imake her nervous. You shitting me?Shemakesmenervous.”
“She’s a thirteen-year-old girl, Lucas.”
