I turned to my aunt, hoping to communicate everything I was too chicken shit to say. She couldn’t let them take me. I was better because I was there, with her and Charlie. If I was forced to live with Hunter, forced to go back to Marty, I’d run away and end up God-knew-where.
I was practically screaming the words in my head, projecting my unabashed terror in the hopes that it would save me. You gotta let me stay! Please!
Aunt Dinah’s expression was unreadable. Although she looked right at me, she spoke in a gravelly monotone. “It would be a hassle for her to change schools right now. I agreed to house her so I will. If after a year she chooses to stay… well, she’s an adult. She can decide for herself where she should live.” With a curt wave of her hand, she turned toward the dining room. “Come. We need to eat and send Charles home before it gets too late.”
I released the breath I’d been holding hostage and blinked away tears. She’d bought me some time at least. I gave my boyfriend a shaky smile he didn’t return. His fake brown eyes shifted to my mom and stepdad. When their backs were turned, he planted a fervent kiss on my cheek. Then he went to retrieve my crutches from the wall.
◆◆◆
Hunter finally acknowledged Charlie’s presence about halfway through the roast lamb. “Charles, was it?”
He looked up from his stewed mystery vegetables. “Yes, sir.”
“Do you work?”
“He’s a full-time student like Esmer, honey,” my mom said. She gave Charlie a proud nod as if he’d already won her approval simply by staying in school.
Hunter grunted as he sawed into his third piece of lamb. “When I was his age, I was going to school and working at my dad’s auto parts store in the evenings.” He coolly lowered his steak knife and stared at Charlie as if to say, “Beat that.”
I rolled my eyes. What a tool.
“My uncle is a detective with the Seattle Police Department,” Charlie said without breaking eye contact with my stepdad. “I intern with him.”
Great Aunt Dinah arched an eyebrow while she sipped her wine. No doubt she was wondering when he found the time to do any work for his uncle when he spent the bulk of his afternoons here with me. Thankfully, she didn’t comment.
“How exciting! What kind of work do you do for him?” My mom pushed her plate aside, like she didn’t want anything obscuring her view of Charlie while he told her all the gritty details of his internship.
“Paperwork, canvasing, evaluating crime scenes, documenting evidence, brainstorming for potential leads and motives.” My boyfriend shrugged, his gaze dipping down with false modesty. “Basic police work.”
Was it wrong that I found him, like, a thousand times hotter because he was a good liar? Probably. But did I care? Nope.
Hunter smirked. “Must be nice to have a family member in a position of power.” He popped his newly cut piece of lamb into his mouth and pointed at Charlie with his fork. “I bet your record is spotless.”
“Of course it is.” My mom glanced at Aunt Dinah as if to verify. “He’s a good boy.”
“Wasn’t always. I stole a skateboard when I was thirteen.” Charlie pulled on a creepy little smile for Hunter. “My uncle left that on my record. Made me do a hundred hours of community service. Thought it would teach me a lesson.”
“Good for him,” my mom said with another one of her proud nods. “He sounds like a great mentor.”
Charlie’s smile became a lot less creepy when he turned it on my mom. “He is.”
“What did your father have to say about your little stunt?” Hunter demanded. “Didn’t he want to dole out your punishment?”
The hairs on my arms stood up. “Hey, Mom?”
She jumped a little at the sharpness of my tone.
“What was the name of your co-anchor? The one who had their gallbladder removed?” I twirled my knife in the air as I tried to remember. “Vaughn, right? How’s he doing?”
“He’s…fine, sweetheart.” My mom’s gaze bounced between me and Charlie in confusion. “Why do you ask?”
“My dad doesn’t have a say in anything that happens to me,” Charlie said smoothly. “He and my mom gave me up for adoption when I was a kid. My uncle is my legal guardian.”
The news stunned even my aunt, who bunched her lips to the side and stared at Charlie contemplatively.
“I’m so sorry,” my mom said, placing a hand over her heart and another on the table as she leaned forward. “I can’t imagine how hard that must’ve been for you.”
Hunter, the bastard, gave a snort. “You’re a little ray of sunshine, aren’t ya?”
“You asked,” Charlie said with another shrug. He sent a polite smile toward Aunt Dinah, pointing down at his plate with his fork. “This lamb is delicious, Ms. Hagan.”
“Thank you, Charles. It’s an old family recipe.”
The silence stretched on forever. Hunter opened his mouth, probably to ask another painfully inappropriate question, but Charlie beat him to it.
“Esmer tells me you’re a lawyer, Mr. Gardner.”
“I am,” Hunter growled, lifting his chin defensively.
“She didn’t say what type.”
“I deal with personal injury lawsuits.”
“Oh, yeah? Had any interesting cases lately?”
“All of my cases are interesting,” Hunter snapped.
Charles waited patiently to hear about these riveting cases. Hunter didn’t seem keen to share.
My mom, ever the helpful conversationalist, jumped in. “Why don’t you tell him about the man who lost an eye at that construction site?”
“’Cause we’re not talking about me right now, Nina,” was the snappish and completely out of character response from my self-absorbed stepdad. “We’re talking about the punk who’s currently boning your daughter.”
“Hunter!” my mom gasped.
I leveled my stepdad with the most hateful look while I screamed profanities at him in my head.
“He’s doing nothing
