Chapter 5— Family, Oh Family

Chapter 5— Family, Oh Family.

Dinner was already far gone when Kallista descended the staircase again. The hum of conversation and clinking cutlery reached her ears, making her stomach churn with reluctance. She’d spent the last hour trying to will herself to face the people in the dining room—and the man who had put her on her ass, literally.

As she stepped into the room, her mother’s gaze immediately landed on her. Dorothea’s smile was full of warning, almost like she wanted to telepathically send Kallista a message as if she knew she was going to bring trouble. Penelope, on the other hand, was all sunshine and cheer, her perfect teeth flashing as she gestured for her to sit in the empty chair across from Jaxon.

“Finally,” Penelope said brightly, raising her glass of wine. “We were starting to think you were going to hide upstairs all night.”

Kallista forced a tight smile as she slid into the chair. Her eyes flickered to Jaxon, who was seated beside the head of the table, on Benedict’s left. Benedict who seemed to have yet another full tumbler of whiskey in his hand.

Jaxon’s suit jacket was off, and the sleeves of his crisp white shirt were rolled up, revealing strong forearms. His posture was relaxed, but his piercing gray eyes followed her every move. It reminded her of the coat she had spilled on.

She hated how unnerved she felt under his gaze and how affected she was by his exposed forearms and by him in general.

“Glad you could join us,” Her step-father said smoothly, his tone carrying a hint of sarcasm.

Kallista gave him a tight smile. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Her mother, ever the peacemaker, quickly interjected. “Kallista, why don’t you help yourself to some roast? Penelope made this set herself earlier today.”

“Of course she did,” Kallista muttered under her breath, reaching for the platter.

They all knew Penelope couldn't do jack in the kitchen. She wondered if her fiancé knew.

“Something wrong?” Penelope asked, her face pinched with concern. It almost—almost made Kallista forget the details of their past.

“Not at all,” Kallista said, stabbing a piece of meat with unnecessary force. “Just trying to figure out how I ended up in this delightful family reunion.”

Penelope tittered nervously, casting a glance at Jaxon. “Kallista, you're my sister, of course you have to be here. Besides, Jaxon’s going to be family soon.”

“Can’t wait,” Kallista said dryly, popping a piece of roast into her mouth.

“Speaking of waiting,” Penelope said, “How is your job, Kallista? Still working at that place?”

She nearly choked on her food. “It’s...fine,” she said, wiping her mouth.

Jaxon raised an eyebrow for the first time that evening almost as if he couldn't believe she had a job—had, past tense. 

“She's a chef. A good one at that. She works at Brio’s Kitchen.” Penelope turned and said, smiling at her fiancé who had ignored her all night.

“I lost my job,” Kallista shot her a glare. “Not that it’s any of your business or like any of you would care.”

Everyone was quiet for a few seconds.

“Just trying to make conversation,” Penelope said with a fading smile turning to their mother for help. 

Of course she was the bad person now against the helpless and innocent Penelope.

Her grip on her fork tightened. “Try making less of it.”

All the while Jaxon’s eyes were on her.

By the time dinner ended, Kallista was ready to bolt. But as everyone moved to the living room for dessert, her mother caught her arm, her expression serious.

“Why didn’t you tell me you knew Penelope’s fiancé?” she asked in a low voice.

Kallista blinked at her. “I don’t know him.”

“You don’t?” She frowned. “Then what was that earlier?”

Kallista let out an exasperated sigh. “I bumped into the guy once. Literally. How was I supposed to know he was Penelope’s fiancé?”

Her mother’s frown deepened. “When did this happen?”

“The day I lost my job,” Kallista said, crossing her arms. “I wasn’t paying attention, and I accidentally spilled coffee on him. That’s it.”

Her mother’s expression turned thoughtful. “You’ve had a rough time lately, haven’t you? With Penelope’s wedding stuff around the house and everything else. I mean since the break up with Devon you've been off. But it's been three years, darling. You should learn to move on from the past.”

Kallista’s jaw nearly dropped. Had her mother forgotten that nearly four years ago she had been in love with Devon Grey, who after meeting Penelope started treating her in all the wrong ways until he broke things off with her because he and Penelope were in love. And her mother had asked her to move on then and now. They had almost gotten married!

Dorothea took her daughter's speechlessness as agreement. She hesitated, then reached out to touch her daughter’s arm. “I know this isn’t easy for you, being back here. But Penelope deserves to be happy. Can you at least try to keep things civil and stop being mean to everyone?”

“Define civil,” Kallista finally caught herself and muttered before brushing past her.