Chapter 3

Didn't she owe me something?

Instead of arguing, I got up, walked over, and opened the takeout box.

Inside were garlic butter shrimp, grilled lobster tails, and clam chowder.

I pointed at the dishes, my expression calm. "Millie, you seriously got this for me? I'm allergic to seafood. Did you forget?"

She paused, looking a bit stunned. "I don't know. It was Ca— I mean, a friend who packed it for me."

"Caleb?" I pressed.

She frowned. "Are you stalking me?"

I held up my phone and opened my social media feed.

I kept swiping, and every single post was her and Mom.

"Honestly, it's almost impossible to miss," I said.

Millie gave me a long look, then turned to the bar, grabbed a bottle, poured herself a glass, and downed it in one go.

Her voice was weary. "It's Patricia's birthday, and you didn't even bother to call. You're acting so stubborn. Do I really have to follow your lead?

"If you'd been a little softer with your mom back then, maybe I wouldn't have had to go through so much. Brandon, I'm really tired."

She was blaming me for not letting her take the easy way out.

I turned and walked into the bedroom, closing the door behind me.

"I want to sleep alone tonight," I said.

After last night's argument fizzled out, we were stuck in a cold war like never before.

While she was at work, I started packing up my stash.

I took all the premium pantry staples from the fridge, including imported aged Parmesan and cured prosciutto.

I packed up every jar of truffle paste I'd been saving for nearly ten years. Not a single one was left behind.

The homemade roasted red pepper relish I'd canned last year was finally at its peak, so I had it shipped out by courier.

I even called a car and had Hepta leave early, before everything else.

It was Saturday night, eight o'clock, and Millie had walked in the door, still in her heels.

"Caleb invited my dad over for dinner tomorrow night. Both families are getting together, and you're coming too," she said.

I paused mid-swipe on my phone. "Do I get a choice?"

She looked straight at me. "Brandon, you know what it means when both families get together for dinner. Don't make this harder for me."

I wondered if she meant we were getting engaged or even married. But I was not sure if the groom would be Caleb or me.

I didn't ask. I nodded and said, "Okay."

Not for any particular reason, I wanted to see where things stood between them.

*****

The next day, when I walked in, the private room was already full of people.

Caleb was right in the middle, getting all the attention. Whatever he was saying had Millie's father, Jeffrey Beck, cracking up, barely able to stop laughing.

As soon as Jeffrey spotted me, his smile disappeared, and he said in a cool tone, "You're late."

My mom, who'd been gone for over twenty years, finally acted like a mother for once.

She slammed her cup down on the table.

"Why are you just getting here now? Making people wait for you. Is that any way to behave?" Mom scolded.

Before I could say anything, Caleb walked over and tried to smooth things over with a smile.

"It's not Brandon's fault. If I hadn't gone to pick up Millie, he wouldn't have had to take the long way around," he said.

I nodded. "Yeah, it really is your fault."

The atmosphere got really awkward for a bit.

Millie gave me a long look, then jumped in to cover for Caleb.

"Something happened at work, so I needed Caleb's help. I asked him to pick me up. After all, you gotta be nice when you're asking for help, right?" she said.

The parents all cracked up.

They were all laughing and chatting like one big happy family, except for me.

Over dinner, the conversation turned to how Millie started her own business.

Jeffrey raised his glass. "Patricia, thanks for taking care of Millie all this time."

With that, he toasted my mom.

"Millie told me all about it. When things were at their worst for her, you were always there, looking out for her. If it weren't for you, she wouldn't have made it," Jeffrey added.

I froze, my fork suspended in midair.

My mom was turning all my effort and sacrifice into a story about her nurturing Millie.

She looked smug. "It's nothing, really."

Mom patted Caleb's hand. "Honestly, we really have Millie to thank for that. Caleb spent three years in Wupraca and couldn't do anything for himself. Luckily, Millie was always checking in on him.

"Whenever I was too busy, she was the one staying by Caleb's side. I should be the one raising a glass to her."

Jeffrey was grinning from ear to ear, kept repeating, "As long as she's happy, that's all that matters."

Millie and Caleb exchanged a glance, then shared a smile.

There was a kind of chemistry between them that I'd never seen before.

I picked up a piece of steak.

But when I finally ate it, it tasted especially bitter.

In three years, Millie had gone on 78 business trips, and 51 of them were flights to Wupraca.

Once, I was laid up in bed with a raging fever.

I asked her if she could stay home this time.

She told me she was sorry, then turned around and boarded the flight to Wupraca.

I thought she was busy with her career.

But in the end, it wasn't work she was chasing. It was Caleb waiting for her.

I set down my fork, brushed my lips with a napkin, and got up to walk out.

Suddenly, Caleb's voice cut through the room. "Brandon, after all these years, don't you ever feel any shame?"

I froze mid-step. "What?"

Caleb snapped, "I can't stand it anymore. You graduated from college. Why are you still sitting around? Millie's not a robot, you know. She gets worn out too."

As he called me out, his concern for Millie was so obvious he didn't even bother to hide it.