11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

WYATT

My mind is a chaotic mess by the end of the day as Axel sets up the little cakes on the display. A frustrated growl leaves me when the cake spinner slips and I mess up a design for the umpteenth time. My breathing quickens as I stare at the buttercream disaster, about to swipe it across the counter when Axel comes to rescue me.

“Hey! Hey . Wyatt, fuck, look at me.” I’m pressed against a wall, a hand on my chest as someone tells me to breathe with them. It takes me a few moments to regain my composure before I look down at Axel who’s completely freaked out. “What the fuck is going on? You came in a little off today but I thought maybe James just didn’t fuck you hard enough. Did he hurt you?” His eyes widen and he turns to leave before I drag him back.

Jameson would never hurt me.

“No. It’s Reggie.”

“Just drop him. I did. Best thing I ever did.”

It’s not that easy. I’ve become so attached to everyone and everything regardless of my wellbeing. I don’t want to lose anyone else which is why it has been so fucking hard for me to leave Reggie behind. With this latest revelation though, I might have to. It makes sense that he keeps asking for money. It was never for house repairs or bills or any of the other billion things that he kept talking about. I just don’t understand why .

“Talk to me, Wyatt. Let’s step outside real quick, okay? Do we need to call James?”

“No.” I stomp out the back door, thankful for the brisk air that hits me in the face. I nearly smashed some of my creations that actually came out okay and that would have made me angrier. “Reggie called me last night to ask me to talk to Jay about one of his portfolios. Jay couldn’t tell me much but whatever Reggie is doing, it’s not legal.”

Axel raises a brow as he lets out a low whistle. “That explains a lot. That’s also a fucking dangerous road to go down for a little extra cash. Jesus Christ. Let’s close up shop, grab James, and go over to Gramps and Grams's house. They’ll enjoy the extra time.”

“Since when do you go on Tuesdays?”

“Since I decided I’d like to be there when you present James as your boyfriend. Wyatt, I know you. It’s your proudest moment to show him off as it should be. I also know that it’s going to shock the hell out of Grams and I need to see it. Okay, so I’m not psychic. James texted me an hour ago asking what flowers he needs to bring.”

I chuckle and slap Axel on the arm before reentering the café. Tonight is either going to be the best night in a while or it’s going to be the worst.

It’s worse than the worst.

We pull into the driveway, Jameson leaning forward to stare at the red vehicle in front of us. “Why the fuck is Reggie here?” None of us have to answer to know why. My Tuesday visits with our grandparents aren’t a secret. In fact, I used to all but broadcast it, trying to get Axel and Reggie to come and spend more time with them. Axel finds time in his busy schedule on his own but I haven’t known Reggie to make a trip an hour out of the city in the last several months.

Axel grumbles something unintelligible but he’s obviously uncomfortable with this turn of events. So am I if I’m being honest. Jameson reaches over the console and squeezes my thigh, grinning at me to calm my nerves. Unfortunately, it does the opposite when I catch the uneasiness in his expression. We managed a few cutesy text messages over the last couple of hours before we picked him up but they dropped off the closer it got to 5 pm.

He’s not working on Reggie’s portfolio but he explained that there was a lot of yelling and several angry emails being passed back and forth that he was copied in on. It doesn’t look good for my brother but it’s his fault for getting himself into this mess.

“We go in and hope that Reggie is on his best behavior.”

Axel groans. “I should have brought Laura so she could shield me from any shit Reggie tries. Scratch that. He would pull her apart. Nope. God, I call cooking duty. I need something to distract me.” He peels out of the car, bouncing on his toes as he waits for us to do the same. I guess we’re walking in as a united front although that makes it seem like we’re ganging up on Reggie.

I swallow nervously as Jameson rounds the car and places his hands on my chest. “I need deep breaths from you, babe. There you go. I know finding out all of this isn’t easy but Axel and I are right here. Your grandparents are still here for you. No one is leaving. Reggie just needs to get his act together.” I want to believe all that and it makes it easier when James rises up on his tip toes and kisses me on the lips. “Now, let’s go eat a home-cooked meal, avoid any heavy conversations, and then you get to show me what you brought for dessert.”

I wiggle my brows, Axel slapping me across the chest and narrowly missing Jameson’s head. “Your family is also eating dessert and we will not be eating that . I hope you brought something with like real cream. Wait! No. I meant like cake with icing. Fuck both of you.”

Jameson and I are giggling like 12-year-old boys as we follow behind Axel, nearly forgetting that we’ll be spending the evening with Reggie. This isn’t how I planned to have a family reunion but so long as he doesn’t try anything, it might be the first step to healing.

The first step past the foyer and I already know it’s going to be a fucking shit show. Gramps and Gram rush toward us, laughing and hugging and kissing, even embracing Jameson without hesitation. It feels like when we were younger and our parents would drop us off.

“I didn’t know all of you were coming! This is such a pleasant surprise,” Grams muses. Her voice wobbles a little more than usual as she drags me into the kitchen, patting my hand several times before stealing the container out of the other. “I’ll just put this in the fridge so we can all discover what it is later.” A small smile plays on her lips as I follow her to help her with the door.

I hear one of Jameson’s nervous laughs as Gramps turns to me. “I love everyone being here but Jamie hasn’t been here in a year? What’s the occasion?”

“We’re dating, Gramps.” I put every ounce of happiness into the statement, watching Jameson’s face brighten at the same time. Publicly announcing it really does show him how much I love him. “It’s only been a day or two since we officially announced it.”

Jameson snorts. “You mean since you decided to kiss me in front of your brother and all his friends. Sure, yes, we’ve been dating since yesterday.” He’s trying real hard not to laugh, Axel’s hand plastered over his own face to hide his smile.

The only people not smiling are Grams and Reggie. I didn’t expect Reggie to be happy for me but I thought Grams would. Shocked, but happy. She seems surprised and a little worried as she glances at Reggie and then Jameson before looking up at me. She taps my arm a few times and then walks over to Jameson. “You’re supposed to be dating Reginald. What happened?”

I frown, wondering where the fuck she drew that conclusion. “Grams, what are you talking about? Reggie and Jay are best friends but they’re not dating.” I look between my brother and my boyfriend, trying to figure out where this information came from. “Reggie, have you been telling Grams lies?” Silence meets my question but I won’t let this lie. I hate to ruin the dinner but this is important. This is the rest of my life I’m talking about.

The rest of my life.

Reggie growls at us before throwing his hands up and marching out to the back patio. Needing a resolution, I stalk after him when he whirls around and pokes me in the chest. “I told you to stay away from my fucking friends, especially James.”

“Why was that so important for you? I’m a grown man and I don’t need your permission to date Jameson. Sure, maybe I should have asked or told you when I started having feelings but I’m not obligated to.” I steel my emotions, trying to draw on my confidence. I fucking hate being outside this late but I also don’t want to argue. My hands fist at my side as Jameson comes alongside me, a firm hand settled on my lower back.

My brother hisses at the both of us and for a moment, I see a piece of him when we were younger rather than the man who just turned 34. “You were supposed to be mine. We did everything together. And then Wyatt started wedging himself in between us. I told him to fucking stay away, Jameson.”

Jameson snorts and then catches himself when we realize Reggie believes his own words. “Reggie, we were never like that. We never dated. I never saw you that way. Wyatt didn’t wedge himself into anything. He was just as much my friend as yours. Why the fuck did you think any different?”

Unable to reel myself in, my fist clocks Reggie in the face before Axel ushers me inside. Our grandparents are confused but I’m too riled up to explain. Axel can do the honors. I’m going to go start on dinner just so I have something to occupy my hands. Otherwise, I’m going to waltz right back out there and hit my brother again.

Reggie wanted me to stay away not because they were his friends but because he had a crush on Jameson. He wanted me to stay away so he could confess? That’s fucking bullshit.