“Table, please,” Kiegan replied, flashing her a million watt smile, and the green eyed monster inside of me threatened to flare up once more. Stop it. It’s not like you’re on a date. He’s your brother. Besides, let her have him. She can find out how much of an asshole he really is for herself.
The waitress motioned us to follow her, the dark brown ponytail bobbing rhythmically behind her as she walked briskly through the bar with the confidence of someone who spent eight hours a day there.
We walked past the bar on one side, which was almost black, with black stools and hanging lights decorated with mason jars. On our other side was an exposed brick wall, giving the whole place a nice rustic feel, and the waitress took us towards the back, away from the noise and bustle of the bar area, to a quiet table for two.
“Here you are, I’ll be back in a minute for your drink orders.”
I took the menu and immediately buried my face in it. I knew I’d said yes to this dinner, but I didn’t want to have a conversation with Kiegan. I was entirely in this for the food.
“So…” he started.
“So… what?” I replied a second later, when he hadn’t continued.
“So how have you been, Tina?”
“I’ve been good.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Because your apartment doesn’t look like you’ve been doing that good.”
I glared at him from across the table.
“Money isn’t everything, you know. I’m away from you. I’m away from… the rest of the Hunt family. I’m happy, and isn’t that the most important thing?”
“No.”
“No?”
“Well yes, happiness is the most important thing. But you can’t be happy living in a place like that.”
“Just because you’ve never done it doesn’t make it impossible.”
Kiegan smiled.
“I like this new you. You have more spunk now. When we were in high school you were so spineless, you know?”
“And you’re the same asshole as ever.”
Kiegan laughed. “Yes, I am. I haven’t changed a bit, I’m not going to pretend otherwise.”
“So why this? Why take me out?”
“Well ok, maybe I have changed a little. I wanted to see what’s become of my little sis.”
“Stop calling me that?”
“Why, sis?” I could see the twinkle of laughter in his eyes, the sparkle made all the more obvious with the soft light of the lamp shining into those blue pools.
“Because I hate it.”
“I know.”
“Then why do it?”
“Because I get a rise out of you for doing it.”
I shook my head, but before I could retort with anything, a waitress came to our table.
“Can I get y’all anything to drink?” she drawled with an accent that made it obvious she was pretty far from home.
“Bourbon and coke, double,” Kiegan ordered.
“An iced tea for me, please,” I followed up. I was still just over a year away from being able to drink.
“Will do,” she replied, and before I knew it she was gone.
“Are you sure you didn’t come here to brag?”
Kiegan looked like I’d just stabbed him in the heart. He always was so overly dramatic.
“Me? Of course not. I really don’t have much to brag about.”
“Sure. Of course you don’t. You’re just an average billionaire, something everyone can do.”
“When your trust fund starts you off with millions of dollars to invest, yeah, everyone can do it.”
“Then why you? Why not just do what your dad wanted, go to Yale or whatever, get a degree then manage your family business or go into politics?”
“Do I really seem like the type of person to do any of that?”
“I guess not.”
“Exactly. I don’t want…” Kiegan stopped for a second, and if I wasn’t mistaken, he was actually thinking about what words he was going to say next. “I don’t want what my family wants for me. They have never known what was best for me, and they certainly aren’t going to change their minds now.”
“Are you still in contact with them?”
Kiegan shook his head.
“No. I left a few months after you did. I knew something was going on, but I didn’t know what. I knew it was time to go. I was nineteen, so I had access to the trust, and I was off.”
Just then the waitress returned with our drinks.
“So what can I get y’all to eat tonight?” she drawled, resting an elbow on her hip, notepad in one hand and pen in the other.
I ordered the handmade tagliatelle and Kiegan had the burger. We ordered some crab nachos to share.
“Won’t be too long,” she told us with a smile, and was gone.
“That’s why I’m really here,” Kiegan continued, his gaze piercing into mine. Uh oh, I knew this was too good to be true. What does he really want? “I want to know why you left.”
I looked down at my lap, then repeated the answer I practiced the odd time someone found out who I was.
“Well, it’s easy. I had just about turned eighteen, and I decided I didn’t want to live the Hunt family lifestyle anymore.”
“You’re better at shot put than you are at lying.”
I glared at Kiegan. “I could have been good at shot put.”
He shook his head. “No you couldn’t. It would have gotten in the way of your studies, and you would have given it up pretty quickly.”