She grins, kissing my nose once more before my dad’s booming voice fills the kitchen. “It’s so good to have everyone home.”
Yeah. I bet.
When Mom moves out of my line of sight, I see my three older brothers standing side by side, on their phones. They are all the same height, huge, with big shoulders, Laurence the littlest one out of all of them. Like me, they all have dark hair and the same eyes, but that’s all we share. Which is pathetic. I grew up with these three, and they might as well be strangers.
When Seth looks up, his gaze meeting mine, I glare. “You asshole.”
My mom gasps as my dad’s brows pull together, and I slowly stand. I have been going through what I am going to say to him all day. I’m ready to pounce, but he catches me off guard when he laughs. “Guessing your little boyfriend didn’t know?”
“Know what?” Mom asks.
“Boyfriend? You’re dating someone? Is that smart?” Dad asks as Matty glares.
“Yeah, Dad. She’s dating Jace Sinclair.”
“Sinclair, Sinclair, I know that name. The brothers, first-round picks, Jude and…Hayden?”
“Jayden,” I correct and he nods.
“That’s right, and then Jace, the youngest, he was supposed to go in with Laurence,” he says, pointing to my brother, who only raises his hand, completely bored with this conversation. “You’re dating the youngest? When did this happen?”
“About a month ago,” I bite out, hating that no one knows me around here. I post picture upon picture of Jace and me, hoping for some kind of reaction from someone in this damn house, but no one cares. It’s such bullshit.
“Hm, okay,” he says slowly, looking back at my mom. “Make sure you tell the doctor.”
“I’m fine,” I yell, and everyone’s gaze is on me.
“You don’t look fine,” Seth says. “You look sick.”
I glare as Matty says, “What, did he break up with you? You suicidal again?”
“Matthew Robert!” my mom shrieks and I just glare, staring into the face that is the male version of my own.
“Matthew, that is not okay,” my dad barks at him, but Matty doesn’t care. He grins, his arms crossing over his chest.
“For your information, I’m fine.”
“Yep, don’t care.”
I want to hit him. So damn badly. Tearing my gaze from him, I look at Seth and say, “But you couldn’t let it be. You had to tell his brother what I did, paint me out to be crazy, and then tell him that dad will ruin his career like he did Caleb’s? Which turns me into a liar ’cause that never happened!”
“Yes, it did,” Seth says, and he shrugs. “I told nothing but the truth. No need for you to ruin another guy’s life ’cause you’re not stable.”
“I am stable,” I yell, my blood boiling and the hair on my arms standing at attention.
“Eh, I wouldn’t go that far,” Seth says simply. “It isn’t normal to want to kill yourself over a guy.”
That has Matty and Laurence laughing while my mom’s face twists in horror. My dad is glaring, but he doesn’t say anything as Matty goes, “Shit, let her. Maybe then I won’t have any competition in the draft.”
“Yeah, really,” Laurence says, shaking his head. “’Cause you aren’t going first with that kid in.”
“You guys are sick and pathetic and liars. Because Dad did not mess up Caleb’s career. Did you, Dad?” I ask, turning to him, and he shakes his head.
“Why would I? It isn’t his fault you did what you did.”
“Yeah, Avery. It’s no one’s fault but yours,” Matty retorts, and tears start to sting my eyes.
Looking over at him, I nod. “No, Caleb didn’t tell me to do it or anything. He didn’t write whore across my locker or even taunt me to the point of a mental breakdown. Nope, that wasn’t him, huh?”