Chapter 10

DOM

"So, when does your mother get to see this new place of yours?" Elaine Mulder asked, pinning me with an acute grey stare that could tackle the biggest rugby player on the squad to the ground. Her fingers were steepled over her empty plate, knife and fork neatly aligned on top of it while she waited for the rest of the men in the family to finish their food.

It was mom's way- to get us while we were at our weakest, normally during feeding times. So that's why I knew there was more to her question than that.

I finished the chunk of steak and potato I had been chewing and considered her. "You're more than welcome anytime, ma."

Her smile was small. "Wonderful. Perhaps we should pop in over the weekend. It would be lovely to see Braylee again."

Ah, there it was. I ducked my head, sawing through another piece of sirloin as if my life depended on it, as if the steak was trying its best to escape my plate. Beside me, Seany let out a snort of amusement. The little twerp knew all too well what mom was about to get at and for a moment I felt bad for him- he was the only one of her three boys still living under her roof, after all.

Elaine Mulder was a force to be reckoned with... none of her boys- hell, not even her husband- could fart sideways and get away with it under her roof.

"Wait, you're living with Braylee?" Bryce asked incredulously from the other end of the table. My older brother by two years had joined us for dinner, at my insistence, since I hadn't been able to make the family weekly roast or braai over the last weekend because of the move.

"Yeah, so?" I have him a shut the fuck up look or I'll push you into the side of dad's car again look.

Bryce set his cutlery down with emphasis, turned around in his seat and plucked one of the many, many framed photos mom kept on top of the sideboard directly behind him in the dining room. He brandished the photoframe towards me, tapping his forefinger on someone featured in the print. "This Braylee Mitchells?"

"Right, can everybody just calm the fuck down?"

"Language, Dom," mom reprimanded. "And Bryce, we all know who Braylee is-"

"I don't!" Seany made to grab the photo frame from Bryce so he could study the image, too. He made an appreciative whistle. "Damn, she's hot."

"You're sniffing around the wrong heels there, boy. She's thirteen years older than you," I snapped, yanking the picture away from him and setting it face down on the table beside me. I didn't even look at the picture because I knew what it would reveal- a picture of me and Bray, captured at Sadie and Sipho's wedding last year. It was professional, and we'd both been done up good. Bray wore a stunning bridesmaid's dress of deep blue with a tight bodice that pushed up her tits and made her eyes glow. She was bronzed from the sun and her dark hair hung in elegant wisps around her face.

All of that was pressed against my side, crowned with that sultry smile that promised forbidden secrets only my imagination could endure. We'd been paired together at the wedding as part of our best friends' bridal party, so our picture had been taken numerous times, and of course Sadie, being the sociable little rabbit that she was, made sure everyone and their parents apparently got a copy of them.

And Elaine loved a sentimental picture of her perfect little family, especially when someone cleaned up well for an occasion.

"You never know, she may find me appealing as a younger man," Seany bragged, stuffing his mouth full of his dinner.

"Why do you have this up?" I asked my mother, gesturing to the picture in front of me. I mean, was it not bad enough that I couldn't escape Bray at home, and then to be confronted by her at my parents' house?

"It's a nice photo," mom said.

"Listen, if you're not going to give it a shot with Braylee, can I?" Bryce asked, and I thought his tone was a little too serious for my liking. I offered him a glare, trying my best to think that the anger I felt at that question was not brewed from an ugly pot of jealousy.

"Who's Dom giving it a shot with?" Dad asked, coming in from the kitchen with his second helping of mom's dinner. He sat down and eyed me sceptically from the head of the table. "He's dating someone seriously?"

"No, I'm not," I said. "Listen, this topic is officially closed-"

"Oh, hunny, don't be so offish," mom cooed, reaching over to squeeze my arm. "We all care about you, is all, and Braylee is such a lovely young lady. She could be good for you. So tell me, how is living with her again?"

And mom's kind words had a way of deflating me, like they always did. I huffed a breath and ran my hand through my short hair, kinda missing the length I used to have- easier to tug when I was frustrated. It was natural for my mother to ask after me, especially because she knew of my tight-knit circle of friends I had made in university... considering that when I started there, I'd had none. It had been a rough time, and I'd put my parents through hell. So of course they had been ecstatic that I'd found a community that cared about me, a community that helped me excel and find my passions again.

"It's..." I didn't know what to say though. I had a lot of conflicting thoughts on living with Bray that I hadn't looked at properly. "She's... everywhere," I finished over my words with an audible sigh.

"Oh..." Mom's fingers on my arm gave a comforting squeeze. "You don't sound too happy, dear."

"It's not that, it's just..." Ah, Christ, how did I explain it without coming off as utterly insane? I decided to just spill it all, because mom knew everything about me and often gave me some of the best counselling. She'd been my rock through some of my darkest times. And for a moment, I could forget about my dad and Bryce and Seany. I knew ultimately that they'd understand, though Bryce may rib me for it until the day I died. "She's everywhere and it's doing my head in. Maybe it's because I've lived alone for so long, but I feel like there's not enough space for the both of us in those mountains."

Elaine gave me a little smile and took a sip from her glass of water before speaking. "Well, that's only normal, dear. Maybe you could coordinate things a bit so that you only pass each other on your way to do certain things- like eating breakfast at different times-"

"I've tried," I said, or whined- begged- I don't know. "I can't escape her. She haunts me. It... there were little fucking rocks outside my door on Wednesday- she said they were called puma's eyes or tiger's tits or something. They cleanse energies or protect from evil intentions- whatever. Anyway, so now I have little fucking rocks on my chest of drawers."

Seany snorted with laughter.

"And I kinda like that I have little fucking rocks on my chest of drawers," I added, glaring him down. He held up his hands placatingly.

"Crystals," mom corrected. "That's sweet that she's giving you crystals, dear."

"And then," I was on a roll now, "I can't even drink my coffee in peace every morning because the moment I go into the kitchen, Bray is already outside in the yard with her yoga mat, praying to the sun in some mindfuckery of a position. I can't ever find my dog because he's with Bray, so when I do need to get Trevor I have to find Braylee, and she's always napping, or reading, or perched all cute on that huge sofa of hers wrapped up in a blanket even though it's hot as balls."

"Riiight," Bryce drawled. "So the real issue here is that she has gifted you rocks, stolen your dog, and gives you a show in her tight little yoga pants each morning? Geez, tough life, bro."

Mom patted my arm. She ignored Bryce entirely though, and drew my attention back to her. Elaine was in her early sixties, so her hair was more grey than anything else, but she looked youthful for her age. There was an abundance of laughter lines at the corners of her eyes and a kindness about her that drew just about anybody in- which she loved. My mom was a people-person: the more around her, the better.

"You know," she told me, "it's OK to like someone other than Kimmy."

"What? No." The weird gut clench that happened at the mention of her name was less severe, but it was there, and I hated it. I shook my head and moved my arm away from her touch. "That's not what this is."

"Denial."

"Shut up, Bryce."

"Language, Dom."

My phone vibrated in the pocket of my pants. I fished for it and automatically unlocked the screen, while simultaneously telling my family, "Bray is a friend. Topic closed."

"Mmhmm."

"Support your brother, Bryce. This can't be easy on him."

I was two seconds away from banning myself from attending family dinners for a while, but before I could say anything more about it, a message from Bray made my face pull tight in a frown.

Bray: Quick question: do you know if it's possible for animals to set off the motion lights by the house?

I went on high-alert immediately. It wasn't even up for debate that I would call her, considering that I could tell the message stemmed from her worry. Why else would the damn motion-sensored lights be going on?

Excusing myself from the table, I moved into the kitchen, and by the time I was leaning against the counter the dial tone had already sounded and Bray picked up.

"Hey," she said, almost too cheerily.

"What do you mean, is it possible for an animal to set off one of the lights?"

She took a deep breath before answering me. "Really, I'm sure it's fine- the light went on outside the lounge and Trevor has been acting weird, so I was just wondering. I'm sure it's nothing-"

Trevor was acting weird? That dog was the biggest coward on the planet. He'd once jumped at the sound of his own stomach growling and sprinted off howling in terror around the house. "The light went on? Outside?"

"Yeah, but-"

A glass shattered- a distant sound from her end, further drowned out by my dog going absolutely mental nearby. My soul must have turned to ice at that moment. "Bray!"

But then she hung up.

I didn't hang around. I was out the door and bolting into my truck without even saying goodbye to my family. I could explain to them later, but...

But if something had happened to Bray? All because I couldn't handle being around her so I had arranged a late night dinner with my family to give myself a break from all the things she was making me feel?

I drove back to the house faster than I had ever driven before.