Page 84 of Dead Serious with Benefits
Arlo snickered. “Normally, I would try to dissuade you from that assumption; at least a few years ago, I would have tried. The past couple of years...well, it’s hard to deny the assertion when all evidence points to it being true.”
“Anything odd about your sister?”
“No, not really. Unless you count the fact that she’s dating Jace’s best friend.”
“Ah, well, that’s not odd.”
“She’s also Jace’s ex...and Jace is the father of her son that she didn’t tell him about until a couple of years ago.”
“Okay, never mind. Clearly, the entire family is just plain odd.”
“I think most of us have made peace with that, or at least Moira and Elijah have made peace with it. Mason and Milo embrace it, while Dom and I just...go with the flow, I suppose. Except when Dom decides to instigate or encourage something, he jumps around where he stands.”
It was nice hearing him talk about his family. So far, it was the one topic I could get him to talk about quite a bit. Normally, he was so concise that it was nice to hear his enthusiasm for his family. I was also enthusiastic about talking about my family, but it was definitely rooted in something else. Anyone listening to him would immediately know that not only was he intensely fond of his family, but there was a good chance they were just as fond of him. There was no doubting how close they were, accepting the differences between one another, and comfortable showing their weirdness.
“After...whatever happened with your first family, did you think you would ever find something like this again?” I wondered before I could think about whether the question should even be asked.
“No, and I didn’t really find it; they found me. Or Matilda and Marcus did. They figured there was room in this family for me, and against everything I might have believed at the time, they were right.”
“Speaking of, I’ve heard Matilda, Marty, and Matty when it comes to your...mother.”
“Everyone picks and chooses what to call her, so don’t forget ‘Mom’ too.”
“Of course, another ‘M’ to add to the mix.”
Arlo snorted. “I will never be able to unsee that now you’ve pointed it out. And I suppose it’s only fair that I pass the curse of knowledge along to my family.”
“Ah, well then, I’m starting with a strong reputation with your family,” I said with a chuckle. “Though apparently I’ve already got one by showing up with you.”
“Speaking of, why did you take me up on the offer?” Arlo asked, twisting to look at me. “I half expected you to thank me and go somewhere else.”
“Why? Because of my tastes?”
“I was thinking more along the lines that being in the same hotel as my family would put you off.”
“As a matter of fact, I have enjoyed the interactions with your family so far. Both the ones I’ve had and the ones I’ve witnessed. Seeing what a family should actually be like in person is bizarre, but it’s also nice.”
“Ah,” he said and then shifted on his feet. “And thank you...for your mother.”
I snorted. “Don’t thank me. She had no right to dig through your past. Digging through the present would have been enough to get the answers she sought, but she always has to go at least three steps too far. It was even worse that she tried to tell me about it, and no, it doesn’t matter that she didn’t realize you could hear her. The sheer fact that she was practically gleeful, as gleeful as that woman can get, to tell me was beyond the pale.”
Arlo was quiet for a minute before sighing. “I was relieved when you stopped her. I?—”
I could feel him stiffen, as though he were bracing, and I shook him lightly. “Hey, don’t. You are not obligated to tell me anything about your past, okay? Don’t feel like you’re forced to do it just because she decided to be an evil, conniving?—”
“Iwantto tell you,” he said with a heavy sigh. “But?—”
“You don’thaveto. Don’t let her get to you.”
“It’s probably my fault she even dug that far back. I wasn’t thinking when I warned her off. I suppose I’ve been too used to dealing with people who would take that sort of warning and leave well enough alone.”
“Not my mother,” I said with a snort. “You didn’t realize it then, but you were dangling a hunk of meat in front of a predator. But that doesn’t mean you’re obligated to do anything.”
“If we plan on going forward with...this thing between us,” he said, apparently unwilling to name what was going on betweenus yet. Which was fine, I understood. I wasn’t sure what to call it either. Since neither of us seemed intent on rushing headlong into this thing and had more or less confirmed we weren’t interested in other people, I took that to mean we had time to slap a label on it if and when we wanted to. “Then you do need to know.”
“Do I?”
“Yes.”
