AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Cody tapped his elbow to Summer’s. “You’ve barely touched your dinner.”
She dug into the rice pilaf.
“Cake,” Alex shouted from across the table.
“Soon,” Brooke told him. “But you have to finish everything on your plate.”
“What kind of cake do you like?” Summer asked the little boy.
“Chocolate.” He gave her a very serious face, like that was the only acceptable choice.
“A man after my own heart. Chocolate is definitely the best.”
“Uncle hides chocolates in my room for me to find.”
Brooke glared at Cody. “I told you to stop doing that.”
Cody didn’t look contrite in the least. “I know. I ignored you. It’s guy stuff, right, buddy?”
Alex gave another serious look and nod, totally with his uncle on that one.
Natalie dropped her fork on her plate, then looked at Summer across Cody. “If your mom is so awful, why didn’t you look for Dad? Why not demand he take you, instead of her? Are you just like her and you don’t care about him at all? Because he thought you didn’t want anything to do with him. He thought contacting you would open up a can of worms and you’d make him pay up.”
Summer’s heart sank and tears threatened, but she held them back.
Nate leaned forward and addressed his daughter across Summer. “Natalie, you are way out of line. Apologize, then go to your room.”
“I’m eighteen, Dad. You can’t send me to my room.”
“You live under my roof. You follow my rules.”
Summer pushed her chair back from the table.
Cody reached for her. So did her father.
She held up her hands to ward them off. “I think I need some air.”
“It’s too cold to go outside,” Cody warned.
She didn’t care.
She didn’t want to be responsible for ruining what had started out to be a comfortable family dinner.
She didn’t want Natalie to feel hurt or threatened by her presence.
And it hurt to think the younger woman thought Summer was anything like her own mother.
She fled, leaving through the first door she could find, only to discover she’d ended up in the backyard by the pool.
Chapter Nine
Nate pushed his chair back to go after his daughter and apologize.
Cody put his hand on Nate’s arm. “Give her a few minutes to collect herself. She’s not going anywhere. She’s overwhelmed and not feeling very welcome at the moment.” Cody turned his hard gaze on Natalie.
“What?” Natalie looked unaffected. “Everything I said was true. You two are fawning all over her without asking what she really wants from us.”
Nate raked his hand over his head. “All you had to do was be polite. Or quiet.”
