Evelyn looked amused, like the question was absurd. “Was it?”
Kristen sat rigid. A student in the principal’s office. “He reenlisted.”
“I see.” Evelyn set her spoon down on the saucer. “Well, I can’t say this surprises me.”
Something angry flashed in Kristen’s eyes, but she seemed to push it down. She pressed her lips together for a second. “And why is that?”
Evelyn raised her coffee cup to her lips and took a sip. “Well, a driven man like that wants the same in a partner, wouldn’t he?” She turned to me. “And Joshua, what is it that you do? Or do you build dog merchandise full time?”
The question was condescending. For all she knew, I did build dog merchandise full-time. And what the fuck was wrong with that?
“I’m a firefighter and paramedic.”
“Do you have any higher education?”
Why did I get the feeling the question was meant to be insulting? She had to know not many firefighters also held doctorates. An associate degree in fire science was about the norm. But if I had to guess, anything under a four-year degree wasn’t going to impress her. I couldn’t care less. I was proud of what I did for a living. But she clearly meant to highlight what she considered to be a shortcoming.
“I never went to college. I went into the military after high school. And then the fire academy, of course.”
Evelyn spoke over her coffee. “And how long have you been sleeping with my daughter?”
“Mom!” Kristen stared at her, openmouthed.
I sat back in my chair and dragged a hand down my face. Well, Kristen’s bluntness was definitely hereditary.
Evelyn set her cup on the saucer and put her hands together. “Really, Kristen. We don’t need to play games. We’re all adults.” She gave me a disapproving glance. “I do hope this wasn’t the reason why Tyler decided to search for greener pastures, however. For once I thought you were on the right track.”
Kristen flushed again and my hackles came up. Was this lady for real?
“I didn’t have anything to do with him breaking up with her,” I said, feeling a little indignant. “And neither did she. It’s been hard on her, and I’m surprised you’re not more concerned about how she’s feeling at the moment.”
I felt Kristen’s wide eyes on the side of my face.
I went on. “And if you bothered to ask her, she’d tell you that he broke up with her in a voicemail like a coward.”
Maybe that would knock that joker off the pedestal Evelyn seemed to have him on.
Evelyn’s expression remained placid, and she didn’t get a chance to reply because the server came and started setting food down in front of us.
Kristen looked at her eggs with dismay. She was pretty picky about her food, and she got cranky when she didn’t eat. I got the feeling she’d muscle through this because her mom seemed to have some sort of mind control over her, but she’d hate it.
You know what? Fuck this.
I picked up her eggs Benedict and gave her my French toast. “Kristen doesn’t like her eggs like that,” I said to Evelyn, not even trying to mask my annoyance.
Kristen looked at me like I’d just given her one of my kidneys. I put a hand under the table and squeezed her knee.
Evelyn watched the whole thing with unmasked distaste.
I couldn’t fucking believe this was Kristen’s mom. How did this lady raise someone so cool? If it wasn’t for the uncanny family resemblance, I’d think this was some elaborate joke.
Evelyn draped a napkin over her lap. “Joshua, you might find my impatience with my daughter a little confusing. You haven’t known her very long. The thing that you don’t realize is that Kristen has a tendency to self-sabotage.”
“I highly doubt that,” I said, my jaw tight. It wasn’t her fault Tyler reenlisted.
She chuckled. “You would. But then you’re the most recent proof, aren’t you?”
Kristen’s fork hit the plate with a clatter. “I realize you’re disappointed that Tyler and I broke up,” she said with sudden vehemence. “But it is none of your business. Who I’m fucking is none of your business.”
Evelyn’s eyes smoldered. “Of course. Why would anything you do be my business? I raised you to be a prosperous person, poured myself into your development, and you’ve spent the last five years systematically undoing everything I instilled in you. First you stopped playing piano, turned your nose up at Juilliard. Then you walk away from Harvard so you can play house with