Page 91 of The Deal with the Playboy

We make it to the dining room table and Jasper pulls out my chair. I slouch onto it. Jimmy sits next to Jasper and the maid brings out dishes. Jimmy doesn’t say anything to me. His dark skin is smooth, his eyes are dark as midnight.

He glances at us, then his eyes revert back to his phone. My brother and I have never got along, and that’s fine. He always made me feel as if he thinks he is better than me, but I don’t care. My mother completely spoiled him as a child, and he acts like the world owes him, yet if I act the same way, I wouldn’t hear the end of it.

“When will Sophia be here?” I ask my stepfather as he sets the newspaper down on the table, and his gray eyes beam with delight.

“She’ll be here in a minute.” He nods at Jasper. “Thank you for being an investor in my winery business.”

Jasper doesn’t respond but turns his gaze to me and points to his plate. “What is the green stuff?”

I smile. “Collard greens. Southerners eat it. Try it.”

I grab his fork, scoop up a lot of vegetables, place it in his mouth, and he chews.

“This is good as fuck. It’s a little bitter, though.” Then he points to the meat. “What is this?”

“Neck bones. It’s cooked with the greens to give it flavor.”

“Do you eat it too?”

I frown. “I don’t, but some people do.”

He cuts into the meat and pops a piece into his mouth. “Holy shit, this is better than chicken.”

I grin. “I’ll make it for you whenever you like.”

He places his hand on my thigh under the table. “I would love that.” His smile makes my stomach flutter.

I glance up, and Sophia walks through the door, Bailey strapped to her hip.

“Hey. Where is Tate?” I ask.

Annoyance bleeds into her pupils and she crinkles her nose. “He had to work in the office.”

He’s full of shit. There is no way he’s at work at this hour of the day. I hope she will wake up and see through his lies.

“On a Sunday?”

Sophia clears her throat and puts my niece into the high chair. She pulls out jars of baby food and places it in a bowl for her. “Yeah,” is all she says. She knows he’s cheating on her, but she won’t admit it. The fucking prick.

I have to meet with Aurora soon to find out what is up with him, and hopefully whatever she finds will encourage Sophia to leave him for good. I think her seeing the evidence with her own eyes will give her the courage to walk away from him. She told me she wouldn’t leave him, but I think I can change her mind.

My mother made sure she brought out her best dishes, only to impress my husband. She keeps her focus on him and never really engages with anyone else throughout the entire meal.

Sophia leans over and whispers in my ear, “You see the way Mom is kissing Jasper’s ass? She acts like that’s her child.”

The pain in my chest grows at her words, but I swallow it down thickly. I want my mother to ask me questions, to be involved in my life, like any normal mother would.

Finally, my mother glances at me from across the table, and her smile falters.

“Poppy, sit up straight, your posture needs to be perfect.”

I do what she says and from the corner of my eye, I watch Jasper watch my mother. He places his elbow on the table.

“You’re using the wrong fork, use the smaller one. That one’s for the salad,” my mother admonishes me. I pick up the fork, and Jasper places his hand on mine.

“Use whatever fork you want to,” he says, glaring at my mother.

My mom laughs nervously. “I’m just trying to make sure she does things correctly.”

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