I Hated You First by Rachel John
Clay
It wouldn’t be a Harwood family event if I didn’t get spit-up on me at some point, and apparently today would be no exception.
“Burp him, please.” Melissa handed Jax to me no less than four seconds after I walked in before following her mother-in-law to the kitchen to deal with a baking emergency. I possessed some sort of baby magic that had started with Raelyn. For a while, I was one of the few people who could hold her without causing her to cry.
“Hey, buddy.” I sat on the edge of the couch and balanced Jax on my knee, gently patting his back until he burped like a trucker. He smiled big before a trail of milk leaked out of his mouth and onto the burp cloth below him. I thought I was in the clear until he waved one of his chubby arms around and managed to pick up a handful of spit-up from the burp cloth and glom it on the arm I was holding him with.
“Thanks, dude. Much appreciated.”
Parker and John walked in and shook their heads at the sight of me. They both loved Jax, but neither were great with babies except to make faces at them and hand them off the second they yelled or smelled.
“Where’s everyone else?” John asked me. “Lauren’s truck is here.”
“I’ve only seen Melissa and Charlotte. I assume Connor’s at the grill. He’s much better at not burning stuff than the rest of us.”
Parker made a face. “Lauren’s probably off making out with her boyfriend somewhere. She always gets out of cooking.”
The thought of her off making out with some guy who I knew wasn’t her boyfriend caused my head to pulse, so I focused on the second part of what Parker had said. “She gets out of cooking because she can’t cook.”
“And why do you think that is?” Parker waved his arms out like a prosecutor making his case. “She does it on purpose. The same way she used to get out of taking out the garbage because she said the neighbor’s dog growled at her through the fence.”
John, looking bored with our argument, walked into the kitchen. Charlotte squealed, and John’s chuckle followed, along with his deep baritone serenading her with his off-key version of an Elvis love song.
I couldn’t help but smile. John and Charlotte were never shy about their exuberance in seeing each other.
Parker collapsed on the couch next to me. “I don’t know why they have to make such a production of it.”
“That’s because you’ve never known someone you wanted in your arms every time you saw her.”
“Um, what?”
I continued to pat Jax, reminding myself my secret was safe. If Parker hadn’t figured out I’d been desperately pining for his sister for the past seven years, today would make no difference. Even so, I had an answer ready to throw him off the trail. “You forget I didn’t grow up with that. I’m still not sure if my grandparents even like each other.”
Parker sniffed. “I’m sure they do. They’ve spent fifty years together.”
“They have common goals and a mutual distrust of strangers. That’s not love, that’s being practical.”
I could tell Parker didn’t agree with me, but then, I didn’t agree with his assessment of his parents either. It was better to leave each other to our biases.
Melissa hurried back in, arms outstretched to take Jax from me. “I’m sorry, Clay. I didn’t mean to leave him with you for so long. Oh, and Connor is asking for you two. He said if he has to sweat all over a grill, you should too.”
“And yet he didn’t ask for Lauren. Typical.”
“Give it a rest, Parker.” I frogged him in the leg and took off before he could get me back.
Outside, I got to work arranging the backyard tables and chairs according to Charlotte’s directions while Parker and Connor argued over whether the steaks were done or not. Lauren was nowhere in sight, but I had a feeling that had nothing to do with cooking and everything to do with hiding her not-boyfriend from the family. For someone she was only casually dating, she sure was worried about what he might think.
Raelyn tugged on the bottom of my shirt. She had a kickball tucked under her arm that was almost as big as she was. “Will you play ball with me, Clay?”
“Well, of course, you little rag-a-muffin. I was wondering when you’d come say hi.” I stole the kickball from her and ran off, knowing she’d follow.
We kicked it back and forth in the grass under the treehouse until Melissa called for her to come and go potty and wash her hands before lunch, which of course, Raelyn did not want to do. Melissa ended up chasing her down and carrying her into the house like a screaming sack of potatoes.
John headed my way with a deep frown, and a sense of foreboding settled over me. We hadn’t talked about Lauren since he’d asked me to come today, and I had a feeling that was what he wanted to talk about now.
He glanced around, as if afraid we’d be overheard. “Have you seen Lauren yet? I want to see this guy who’s so special I’m not allowed to meet him.”
“Are you surprised?”
John frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You told her she could get out of the Idaho trip if she brought him today. She’s not going to take that without making you sweat a little. That’s how you Harwoods are, am I right?”
John blew out a frustrated breath. “I guess.”
“She told me not to come today.”
“Does she know I asked you to be here?”
“No. And let’s pretend that conversation never happened. I can’t do these little favors for you, John. You’re abusing your boss privileges.”
“I suppose I am. Sorry, Clay.”
He walked off, and I let out a sigh of relief. He’d try again, no doubt, but I felt better for telling him anyway. I kicked the ball up from the bottom of my shoe and bounced it on my knee. I’d always sucked at soccer, but Parker and I had perfected the trick shots that made us look better than we were.
There was a sudden creak overhead, and I glanced up at the treehouse, just as Lauren’s head popped out the window. She looked as mad as a hornet. If she’d overheard our conversation just now, I was so dead.
“You have some explaining to do, Clay.”
Yep, she definitely heard. On instinct, I backed up, but she came down the ladder fast, running at me the second she hit the ground. I took off, throwing the kickball behind me to slow her down. I was almost to the white vinyl fence that separated their property from the neighbors, prepared to hop over it in one bound, but she caught me around the waist and took me to the grass, sitting on my back for good measure. I craned my neck around and took in her look of angry satisfaction.
“This isn’t fair. I’m not going to wrestle you, Lauren.”
“You’re only saying that because you lost.”
I rested my chin on my arms and sighed. “Fine. Say your piece.”
“What favors?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She reached down and tickled my sides, and I immediately jumped in response, almost rolling over to tackle her and make her stop before my better judgment kicked in. I could not wrestle with Lauren. Not ever. My only choice was surrender.
“Okay, okay. I’ll talk.”
“What favors have you been doing for my dad?”
“I cancelled his appointment with the dermatologist for him and rescheduled it.” Which was true. Charlotte would have lectured him about missing it again, so he asked me to do it.
“You know that’s not what I’m talking about. You told my dad no more little favors just now. What did you mean?” She slid off me and sat in the grass, looking much more serious. “Please, Clay.”
Her sad brown eyes did me in. And my goose was cooked anyway. There was nothing for it but the truth. “He asked me to come today and give him my opinion on your guy.”
“And you’ve done this before?” She looked so hurt and vulnerable, that I reached out and gripped her ankle, holding it like I might have held her hand if I could.
“I’ve never talked to your dad about your dating life before this week, I swear.”
“Then why now?”
“I guess because he noticed how good I am at making fun of…”
“My boyfriends? And he thinks I broke up with them because of things you said? You wish you held that kind of power over me, Clay.”
“I’ve never held any power over you. Trust me, I know.”
Our eyes met and something potent passed between us. Something I shouldn’t have allowed.
“Lauren?”
We glanced over at the guy walking towards us who I could only assume was Denver. I released her ankle and jumped to my feet, brushing off the grass.
He put out his hand to shake mine. “You must be one of Lauren’s brothers. I’m Denver.”
“Clay.”
Lauren got to her feet and kicked at the ground. “Clay is like the extra brother I never wanted.”
Denver laughed. “Well, that’s rude.”
“No, I mean, he’s a neighbor kid who refused to go home. He’s best friends with my brother.”
“Oh, cool.” Denver glanced behind us at the back porch where the O’Dells and the rest of Lauren’s family were standing, watching us with rapt attention. “Um, your mom says lunch is ready, Lauren.”