Defend

I know I don’t look like I’m twenty anymore, but if Jamie said she was bringing her boyfriend and only one guy stands next to her, it’s safe to say he’s the boyfriend. Strike one against her mother.

Jamie sighs. “Mother, this is Brent Murphy, my boyfriend.”

I hold out my hand. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Alexander.”

She shakes my hand. “You as well. Let’s meet everyone and chat a bit before dinner.”

“Everyone?” Jamie squeaks.

“Yes, Michelle and Finn are here as well.”

We follow her into the living room where three people sit. They all stand to hug Jamie and shake my hand. I meet her father, her sister, and her fiancé. Jamie pulls me over to sit on the loveseat, slightly secluding us from everyone else.

“Are you sure we can’t go ahead and eat, Mother?” Jamie asks.

“No. We’d like to chat and get to know your boyfriend a bit better.”

“He’s good-looking,” Michelle says, winking at Jamie.

“Let’s not beat around the bush,” Mr. Alexander says. “Exactly how old are you, Mr. Murphy? Clearly, you’re not in college. What are you doing with my daughter?”

Jamie opens her mouth, but I squeeze her hand. She doesn’t need to answer for me. “I’m thirty-nine.” If they’re already defensive, let’s not tell them I’m closer to forty than thirty-nine. Swear on my life, all four of their jaws drop.

Michelle breaks the silence by laughing and joking, “Jamie found herself a cradle robber.”

“Why don’t we not judge my relationship or Brent and actually get to know him?” Jamie says with a hardness in her voice.

“What do we need to know?” her mother asks with a frown.

“That I like him and he treats me exceptionally well. He’s part owner of a successful business, has two kids, and he treats me well.”

Her mother’s focus switches to me. “You already have kids? Does this mean you won’t want more when Jamie is ready?”

“Mother!” Jamie exclaims. “Don’t you dare go there. You know how I feel about that.”

“Jamie,” Mr. Alexander starts with a calm voice. “This man is way too old for you.”

“That doesn’t mean he’s bad for me,” she interrupts. “None of you are giving him a chance! He opens doors for me, pulls chairs out for me, cooks for me, runs with me when it’s dark so I’m not alone, and he listens to me. The last of which is something y’all do not do!”

“We don’t think—,” Mr. Alexander tries again.

At this point, I’ve had it. They’ve barely talked to me, only about me. Jamie is talking and talking and talking and everything she says falls on deaf ears. I stand, feel Jamie squeeze my hand because I know she doesn’t want me to say anything, but I can’t help it.

“I don’t think any of you think at all.”

“Brent,” Jamie whispers, but I ignore her.

“You invited us here, asked to meet me, but you’ve yet to ask me anything but my age. Instead, you’ve told Jamie that you don’t care what she thinks or wants. You don’t care if she has a good boyfriend who treats her like she’s one of the best things in his life. You think she has shit judgment, but all of you are the ones being judgmental. Do you really not see why she hates coming home and avoids your calls for as long as possible?” I release my hold on her hand to point at her. “She’s sitting here telling you what she thinks of me and you ignore her. She’s told you what she wants in regards to kids and you repeatedly ignore her. What the fuck did she ever do to you for y’all to not listen and trust what your daughter says? For you to harass her and insist she does what you want for her? From one parent to another, that’s bullshit.”

“Brent,” Jamie tries again as outrage builds on her parents’ faces.

“She suffers a lot because of you two and the fact that you refuse to listen to what she says. If I had it my way, she wouldn’t have anything to do with either of you until you got your shit together and apologized to her.” I take a deep breath. “You raised a good woman and she has a good head on her shoulders. She needs you to see that.” I walk to the door and hear footsteps and some kind of conversation happening behind me.

“Brent, wait!” Jamie shouts as I walk outside.

I stop to face her. “Honey, I’m sorry. I tried to keep my mouth shut and let you handle it, but that wasn’t working and I couldn’t stand it anymore. I couldn’t let them keep talking like you hadn’t said a word. I—”

Jamie wraps her arms around my neck and shuts me up with a hard kiss. My arms react immediately, snaking around her waist to clutch her tight.