Page 122 of Say My Name

“The rules are very clear.”

“There are no rules.”

“That sounds like something a cheater would say,” Elena calls from the other end of the table, and the casual way she takes my side makes something in my chest feel settled.

Rachel laughs, and Cliff turns toward his sister with an expression of exaggerated betrayal. “You’re supposed to be neutral.”

“I’m in finance. I follow the evidence.”

Her eyes meet mine as she says it, private amusement flickering between us.

Cliff sees that too.

His expression doesn’t change, but his attention sharpens.

By the time lunch ends, Theo is asleep against me and Sophie has declared our team victorious. Rachel and Elena take her inside to wash her hands before we leave.

Cliff waits until they disappear through the patio door.

“What’s going on?”

I keep my voice even. “That’s a broad question, Cliff.”

“With Elena.”

I knew he would ask eventually. Knowing does not make the answer easier.

There are terms in a signed contract. Months of negative tests. Nights in her bed and mine. Her body spread across her desk beneath me. A fertility specialist’s recommendation. An agreement made in her kitchen two days ago.

None of it belongs in a rushed conversation while our families are twenty feet away.

I could lie. I could tell him a fraction of the truth. Instead, I choose to deflect. “What makes you think something is going on?”

Cliff leans back in his chair. “I’ve known you for most of my adult life.”

“And?”

“And you don’t spend an entire meal tracking anyone’s location unless you think they’re about to cost you several million dollars.”

“I wasn’t tracking her.”

“You knew where she was every second.”

“She was sitting at the same table.”

His eyes narrow. “You also moved your chair when the sun hit her face.”

I glance at the chair leg, still angled from when I shifted enough to block the light.

That had been instinct. I hadn’t considered that someone else might notice.

Cliff did.

“Elena can take care of herself,” he says, his voice low.

“I know.”

“She’s also very good at convincing everyone she doesn’t need anything.”