Conklin's Foundation (Conklin's Trilogy) (23 page)

Oh, why did Mitch have to interrupt!

Once Tyler buttoned his shirt, he held his hand out to me so we could join his immature brother in the larger room.

Tyler sat down to play video games with his brother, while I roamed the room for a bit.  I ran
my fingers across a shelving unit, examining all of the books and old CDs, enjoying learning what Tyler and his brothers must have been like during their younger years.  There was a stack of old board games, and I let out a small shriek of excitement.

Both Tyler and Mitch turned to look at me as though I
was crazy.

“You have Monopoly!  I haven’t played Monopoly in ages!”  I cheered, reaching up to pull the game free from the other board games around it.

I jumped up and down once I got it free, and Tyler and Mitch were both still staring at me as though I had lost my marbles.

“What?  This is the best game ever!”  I
exclaimed, half offended by their stares.

“Uh, no.  This is the best game ever,” Mitch said, holding up his controller, his eyes
returning to the screen.

I rolled my eyes.  “Oh come on.  We are so playing this after dinner.  No complaining,” I
pointed my finger sternly at them.

Tyler smirked and turned back to the video game, focusing just as Mitch had been the whole time. 

Did they think I was joking?  I smiled internally.  These boys and their millions were going to have a run for their money when playing with Max Stine’s daughter at Monopoly.

Chapter 12

“Dinner’s ready,” Nathan informed us, sticking his head through the door. 

Thank God. 

I had spent the last hour with a dull ache between my legs while enduring Mitch and Tyler playing video games.  They cursed and shouted at each other, cheered and taunted the entire time.  Mitch more so than Tyler, but they both were acting like 14-year-olds as they played.

Tyler stood up, throwing the control
ler on the couch and reached for my hand.

“Dude, we aren’t finished,” Mitch whined, throwing his hands
in the air.

Tyler shook his head
. “I just kicked your ass twice.  Do you really want me to continue beating you?”

Mitch mad
e a sour face while standing along with us.  “Whatever,” he pouted.

Tyler smirked and led me to the hallway.  Just as we were passing Nathan, Tyler stopped.

“RJ has to talk to us quickly before dinner.  Same to you, Mitch.” Nathan glanced over to me.

I stood there for a moment then got the picture.  I wasn’t invited to their meeting.  Tyler kissed my cheek.

“If you want to wait for me in here you can,” he said.

I shrugged my shoulders.  “I can go find your mom.”

He furrowed his eyebrows then looked over at Nathan.  Nathan laughed.

“What else could Mom say, Tyler?  Becca alr
eady knows what a grump you are,” Nathan teased, hitting Tyler on the shoulder.  Tyler scowled further as Mitch walked up behind us.

“I don’t know, Mom might kidnap her.  I think she likes her more than she likes me,” Mitch
pouted.

Tyler gave my hand a squeeze.  “Are you sure?”

I nodded my head.  His mother didn’t frighten me.  If anything, she seemed fun and unpredictable.  As Heather said, eccentric.

Tyler, Nathan, and Mitch took off in the opposite direction while I went to find the kitchen.  Once I made my way through the large home, I saw Mary in the sitting room, looking out the window holding a glass of wine.

“It’s nice to have snow for Christmas, isn’t it?”  I asked, wanting Mary to know I had entered the room.  She turned her head back to me, giving me a soft smile. Her eyes looked pained as she took another sip of her wine.

“It is nice,” she
murmured.  She licked her lips and stared out the window as I walked next to her.

We stood in silence for a moment.  It was odd.  Mary hadn’t been silent since I had walked in the door.  She was distracted, her mind drifting elsewhere as t
hough someone had blown out her spark. 

“I’m sorry you had to see RJ and me fight,” she whispered, playing with her necklace with her free hand.  “We butt head
s a lot and unfortunately in public.  We tend to forget where we are.”

I just stood there, not knowing what to say.

A smile slowly returned to her mouth, not matching her eyes.  “Come with me to the dining room.  Dinner is just about ready.  The boys should be there any minute, or at least that’s what RJ said,” Mary frowned, her eyes heavy with emotion.

I nodded my head and followed her to the vast dining room.  I gaped at the large chandelier, examining the fine crystals.  We both took a seat on the opposite sides of each other.  The three women who were preparing the food came in one after another, bringing in dishes of food.  It smelled amazing, and my stomach started to rumble.

I hoped they had something I could eat.  I had cheated already last night and a little this morning.  I would need to eat a clean meal in order to feel comfortable in Tyler’s final present.  My cheeks felt warm as I thought about the gift.  I reached for my glass of wine; I was going to need to drink a few more of these in order to follow through on what I had planned.

“Sorry,” Tyler said flatly, taking a seat beside me.  When I looked up at him he was scowling, annoyed about something.  I wondered what they talked about
.

Nathan follow
ed Tyler and sat down next to Mary while Mitch sat on my other side.  RJ was the last to enter the room and took the head seat at the table.  Once everyone’s glasses were filled with their beverage of choice brought by the help, the family started to pass around the dishes of food.  No prayer and only silence.

The food looked delicious.  It was a traditional Christmas meal.   A large honey baked ham glazed to perfection was
placed in the middle of where we were sitting while mashed potatoes, green beans, sweet potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, glazed carrots and rolls were spread around the table. I filled my plate with veggies, passing the potatoes and casseroles, trying to keep my mouth from watering all over the table.  Tyler looked at my full plate and smiled.  The table was painfully quiet, and Mary looked down at her plate, eyes glossed over and lifeless.  RJ must have really reamed her to take her out of her mood.  It made my heart hurt to see her so unhappy.

Bravely breaking the silence, I set my napkin in my lap and started to speak.  “Mary, Tyler and I are going to be in town the rest of the weekend.  I know you had mentioned maybe going shopping.  Would you like to go sometime tomorrow?”

I felt Tyler’s eyes glaring at me as though I had said something foul.  Mary’s face started to light up, her eyes looking big and young. 

“I would love that,” she whispered.  “Tyler, you could meet us for lunch,” she
added, her voice becoming stronger.

Tyler’s hand gripped my thigh.  I was afraid to look at him.

“I have work I have to do,” he said flatly.  Mary’s face fell again, her eyes focusing on her plate.

My head snapped to Tyler, a scowl forming on my face, matching his.  “You didn’t tell me you had work to do?”  I questioned.  I had a feeling he was making up his story. 

“I didn’t know you wanted to go shopping with my mother,” Tyler said in a menacingly low tone.

I let out a long, frustrated breath and continued eating.

The table was silent again.  Man, this was awkward.

RJ’s cell phone broke our silence.  He pulled the phone out of his
pocket, quickly glancing over the screen then around the table. He started to move his fingers on his keyboard then placed his phone back in his pocket.  Mary watched him intently then her eyes narrowed as though she knew who he was talking to.

“What was so important yo
u had to discuss with our sons making us wait for dinner?” she snapped.  She was regaining her normal feisty self.  It seemed RJ’s phone call had changed her attitude about whatever they had fought about earlier.

“Business as usual, Mary,” RJ
clipped, continuing to eat his food.

She huffed, taking a large
drink of her wine.

“Dad wanted to prepare us for a client’s new idea.  He wants us to s
tart right away, that’s all Mom,” Nathan smiled, looking at his mom with reassurance.  I could tell Nathan was close to Mary and didn’t want to see her hurting or seething.

“Yeah, Lee Chino.  Remember him, Mom?  He would always bring us presents when we were little.
Dude turned into a real badass,” Mitch said as he shoveled food into his mouth. 

There was that name again
. I remembered Tyler’s scowl when he saw my father talking to him and the slight surprise on his face when Michael told us my father and Lee were friends when they were younger.

RJ coughed and shot Mitch a look, causing Mitch to look around the table
confused.

“What?” h
e asked unsure.

“You weren’t supposed to say who the client was you idiot,” Tyler mumbled, tapping his fork on his plate.

“Oh.  I forgot.  Why does it matter if Mom knows?  Not like she is going to talk about the project. Besides, we didn’t even tell her what it was,” Mitch said, rolling his eyes.

“That’s not the point, Mitch.  How can I involve you in important, confidential meetings if you can’t keep your mouth shut and
be professional?” RJ groaned with annoyance.

“I didn’t know you did business with Lee anymore, RJ?” 
Mary accused in a low, questioning tone.

“We don’t, but he needed warehouse space,” RJ said, not looking at Mary.

Mary pursed her lips then continued eating her food.  She looked annoyed by the name of Lee Chino, too.  Why was this man loved and hated at the same time?  I would have to bug Tyler about it later.

“Didn’t Lee date Margo for a
while?”  Mary brought up, staring RJ in the eyes.

Oh, the
pedo nanny! 

RJ took a long drink of his water
, his eyes looking intensely at Mary.

I looked over
at Tyler to see his expression which was the same as it had been throughout dinner: bored and irritated.

“
They did date, yes, but as far as I know, Lee isn’t seeing anyone,” RJ gulped.

Mary’s
gaze grew intense then went smoldering when RJ’s phone buzzed again.

“What has she been up
to?  I always had fantasies about her.  Man was she hot!”  Mitch sighed in wonder.

Nathan coughed, trying to hide a laugh as Tyler stiffened.  RJ rolled his head to look at Mitch.

“I’m having lunch with her next week.  She just got back from London.  Her father lives there,” Mary said, stabbing a piece of ham with her fork.  “She was always so good to you boys,” she sighed appreciatively.

I huffed to myself.  She was a little too good to my Ty.

“Too bad she was so much older, I could have tapped a piece of that,” Mitch laughed.  “Actually, can you give me her number, Mom?  Maybe she would let me take her out for New Year’s.”

Mary rolled her eyes at Mitch then to the ceiling as though she were counting to ten.

Nathan almost choked on a forkful of stuffing while Tyler shot him a glare.

Nathan wiped his mouth, pulling the napkin down to his lap, amusement
written all over his face.  “Too bad you never got the chance, Mitch. Right Tyler?”

Tyler gave Nathan a chilling
look that only fueled Nathan’s humor.

Mary giggled.  “Tyler did always seem to have a crush on her.  It was simply adorable.”

“I did not,” Tyler mumbled, afraid to meet my eyes.

I set my fork down,
too disgusted to eat.  How did she not know about Tyler’s long standing affair with her employee?  The person who was in charge of her children?  The thought sickened me almost as much as picturing Tyler take Margo on this very dining table. 

I gulped my wine, wincing,
trying to forget that thought.  Thank God I had never met the woman or knew what she looked like; otherwise I would be picturing Tyler screwing her in random places throughout this overly extravagant house.

Conversation was minimal the rest of the dinner, but the air was thick and uncomfortable.  Mary still wasn’t as lively as she was when Tyler and I had first gotten here, but a few sparks came off of her.  She would glance every now and then at RJ, and instead of looking annoyed, she looked sad and hurt.

RJ’s phone buzzed again as the help started to take away our p
lates.  He put a half grin on his face then put the phone back in his pocket.

“I have an urg
ent meeting I need to attend this evening,” RJ said, fumbling with his watch.

“RJ, it’s Christmas
,” Mary said sounding angry while sadness shown on her face.  Even though she couldn’t stand RJ, it was clear she was in love with him.  It was written all over her face by how she reacted to him.  “Can’t you spend just this one day, this one
evening
with us?” Mary pouted quietly, cocking her head at RJ.