Pleasures of Promise Lake by Marti Shane

Author:Marti Shane [Shane, Marti]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-12-22T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

Jake imagined tonight differently in his head. They’d sat with Sam’s friends and family at the Royal and had a perfectly good time despite the circumstances. With his parents…he was disappointed to say the least. She’d barely touched her food, and he could tell his Mom was tired of her short answers.

Are you from Atlanta? Yes.

You went to Harvard? Yes. On scholarship I hear. Yes.

Do you have brothers and sisters? A brother.

Was it nerves? He pushed away from the table, collecting his empty plate. Sam started to do the same, but he encouraged her to eat the ridiculously small portions she’d put on her plate. Jax joined him in the clean-up, ordering his Mom to sit and relax when she tried to join.

“I made an extra pan for you to take with you,” she said. “And there’s cobbler.” She graciously accepted the kiss he dropped on her cheek, Jax doing the same when he passed by.

Jax scraped and stacked plates while Jake rinsed and loaded the dishwasher. It was always a race to get it done before his mom came in and shooed them away. He was hoping maybe, with him out of the room, his parents might somehow put her at ease.

“You were right,” Jax spoke up, tying up the garbage. “She’s got a stick up her ass.” He shook out a new bag, wrestling it over the rim of the can. “Maybe meet the parents was a little premature?”

“Where do you think I’ve been the last three days?” Jake snapped, shoving the dishwasher closed.

“She has parents?” Jax asked, confused. “I mean…I assumed she didn’t because her grandmother...” Jax trailed off.

“Sloane raised her.” He faced his brother, leaning on the opposite counter. He kept his voice low. “Her mom’s a piece of work. Showed up at the funeral strung out on something. Sam hadn’t seen her since she was six.” He pictured Sam, cool and in control of her mother’s antics as she told her to fuck off and die. She had the same defenses up tonight, and he hated it.

“How’d she handle it?”

“Like she handles everything,” he said, not sure how to explain.

“She got a dad?”

“As far as I know her mom’s still with him. No one talks about him.”

“So how fucked up is she?” Jax asked, and despite the humor he injected, Jake heard the concern.

“An occasional stick up the ass.” He shrugged, not sure what else to say. “I feel bad for Mom.”

“Don’t. Sam will warm up to her.” Jax pulled out his phone, snapping a picture of the two trays on the island.

“Travis?”

“Yep.” The response on his phone was instant, and his heart lifted at his brother’s smile. Promise was already good for him. Sam, too. He was just…lighter. Jax turned the screen showing Travis holding a fork in his hand. “Did you know he took Sam to prom?” Jake glared at his brother who only smiled. “He said she’s a great kisser.” Jake spun the towel in his hands, Jax dodging as he popped it toward his thighs.

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