Perfect Together by Kristen Ashley

“And Yves is okay because he had the weirdest coming out ever, seeing as his dad got up in his shit not because he was gay, but because Yves thought he might get up in his shit because he was gay,” Sabre kept going.

“Son—” Remy tried again.

“But you’ve never been okay because your dad was a motherfucker and your mom is a bitch,” Sabre finished.

“Don’t call your grandmother a bitch,” Remy rumbled.

“She beat you!” Sabre thundered, and he didn’t like how the room got all still after he shouted, but he wasn’t done. “She treats Mom like shit. She says crap to Manon that is not all right. And the woman beat you. No. Hunh-unh.” He shook his head. “I’m not going there to say goodbye. I’ll go and tell her I’m glad she’s dying, but I’m not going there to tell that woman goodbye like I give a shit she lives or dies.”

“You will not tell her you’re glad she’s dying, but you will go there, Sabre,” Wyn declared. “Because every single one of us is going to be at your father’s side when he goes there.”

That shut Sabre up.

“Sah, come over here, bro,” Manon called, and when Sabre looked at her, she had a hand reached his way.

“Yeah, bud, come over here,” Yves urged.

He didn’t go over there.

He looked at his father.

“How did you do it?” he asked.

“I think Dad’s had enough,” Manon said. “Please, Sah?”

But Remy asked, “Do what?”

“That shit, it’s supposed to be, like, inherited. How’d you do it? You weren’t like that with us.”

“I found your mother,” Remy answered.

“Then why’d you walk out on her?” Sabre demanded.

“Sabre!” Manon snapped.

“Honey, I think—” his mom started.

But Sah wasn’t surprised even a little bit when his dad answered.

“Because I had been conditioned from a very young age to take special care of the women in my life. And that was ingrained so deep, I didn’t realize your mother could take care of herself. That doesn’t mean she didn’t need me, or I don’t need her. But I was completely unprepared for an evolved, functioning, mentally and emotionally healthy woman to be in my life. It was fine when she was at home taking care of you kids, because that meant I was taking care of all of you, including your mom. And it was fine when she was starting out, because I made more money and I still felt like it was me giving her the life she deserved. And it isn’t okay, but I couldn’t handle it when she started to become successful, not because she might overshadow me or make more money. But because it meant I wasn’t taking care of her. It was messed up and wrong, but that was where my mind went. And that was why I left.”

“We’re talking, though,” Wyn said quickly. “And we have more to discuss, but right now, with what’s happening with your grandmother, we need to rally around your dad.”

Like his mom didn’t say anything, his eyes still locked on Sabre, his dad said, “It was wrong, Sah. I shouldn’t have left. I regret it more than I can explain.”

Oh yeah.

He already knew that.

And what his dad said made sense, but he wasn’t on that.

He was stuck on something else.

“She was messed up and he just left you to that.”

He was talking about his grandparents.

Remy knew that.

“Yes, Sabre, he did,” his dad confirmed.

“I’m gonna go because Mom’s right. You aren’t gonna be around them without us around you,” Sabre decided. “And I’ll do my best to be cool with her because she’s soon gonna be dead. But Pépé better stay the fuck away from me.”

“That’s fair,” Remy murmured.

“I love you, you know that, Dad? You’re a great fucking dad.”

He heard Manon make one of her crying noises and felt his mom get close, but he didn’t tear his gaze off his father.

“I know that, Sah.”

“And a long time from now, when you die, it’s gonna fucking wreck me.”

He wasn’t standing a few feet away from his father anymore.

Suddenly, he was pressed up to his dad with his face in his dad’s neck, his father’s hand wrapped around the back of his neck and an arm curled around his back.

Remy’s voice was gruff when he said, “I know.”

Sabre’s voice was totally fucked up when he said, “Fuck those fuckers.”

“Son,” Remy murmured.

The dislocated shoulder.

The broken arm.

The concussion.

Shit.

Fuck.

He was gonna cry.

His dad helped him do it, holding him with his face shoved in his dad’s neck so no one would see.

The rest gave them time, but then they all piled on, because that was the Gastineau family, and they were in a group hug.

But Dad was the kind of dad he was.

So he kept Sabre’s face shoved in his neck.

Then his mom said something bossy, and his sister said something goofy, and Yves said he was going out to start up the grill (which meant he was hungry), and they all drifted away, leaving Sabre with Remy.

One thing he knew, right then, he couldn’t tell Dad about Myrna.