Ready For It (MacAteer Brothers #2) - M.L. Nystrom Page 0,42
arm. “Food.”
That was enough to break me out of the downward spiral. I smiled up at him. God, it’s so nice to have someone taller than me! “Okay, O-man. Buffet is right over there. Gotta feed my big man and my little one.”
Deloris gasped at the pregnancy reminder and plastered a big smile across her pained face to cover up her slip. My father didn’t react. Too far beneath him.
The buffet contained lots of artfully prepared food bits that were more show than substance. More cucumber stars, stuffed olives, cubes of different cheeses, tiny rounds of mini quiches, triangles of stuffed spanakopita, everything light and pretty, and no bigger than a bite. Owen eyed the offerings and said nothing. He handed me one of the small party plates and started filling one for himself.
“We can go for burgers later if you want. My treat.”
He shrugged and popped a quiche in his mouth. “Won’t starve.”
His short answers bothered me some. He’d been talking more and more to me in the last weeks but hadn’t said much since we got here. I hoped it was only his nerves from being at the party and not nerves from being at the party with me.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” The loud, cutting voice startled me enough that I dropped the bite I’d picked up. Shit, Magnus had decided to make an appearance.
“I’m here at Mother’s request. She left me four messages just yesterday telling me I had to be here today, so I came.”
“Yeah, right. Any excuse to embarrass the family further, eh, Melanie?”
“I’m not embarrassing anyone. She won’t let up when she wants something. It’s better to be here than deal with the fallout next week. You know that.”
“All I know is you have no business showing your face. I talked to Peter, and he filled me in.”
That panicky feeling came racing back up my spine. “I haven’t seen Peter in months. He has nothing to do with anything.”
A waiter came up with a tumbler similar to my father’s. Magnus grabbed it without looking at or thanking the man and took a long drink. From the glazed look in his eyes, this wasn’t the first one. “He told me about your bitch fit in a public place and how you tried to pawn your bastard off on him.”
“You weren’t there and didn’t see what happened. He insulted me enough to deserve a face-full of coffee.”
“Insulted you? You’re the one who got knocked up.”
“I didn’t do it by myself.”
“That’s your problem, Melanie. You always blame someone else for your shortcomings. You never take responsibility for anything. You were a burden as a child and a burden now.” He took a big sip of his drink. “Christ, when I think about the trouble you’ve caused this family, I want to vomit. You’re nothing but a goddamn slut. Makes me sick you’re such a waste of space.”
My gut churned, making me want to vomit myself. My older brother had considered me the ruin of his life since my birth. I couldn’t recall one happy brother-sister moment, only memories of his constant criticism and abuse. Not pretty enough. Not smart enough. Not talented or special. Too tall. Too skinny. Too emotional. Waste of space. Waste of space. Waste of fucking space!
A memory flashed before my eyes. One I’d rather forget.
I floated in the pool on one of the air-filled lounge chairs, my eyes covered in Oakley Wayfarer sunglasses, and a cold glass of iced tea in the cup holder. The sun beat down on my dozing twelve-year-old body. This year there had been many changes in me, both physical and mental, and they happened fast. My height shot up five inches, making me clumsy when I moved. I bumped into doors or rails, spilled glasses at the dinner table, and knocked over things while trying to control my longer legs and arms. Magnus sneered at me with disgust most of the time at my awkwardness, which made me more self-conscious. I grew breasts almost overnight, two big fleshy balls that hurt a lot and were still getting bigger. Bee-Dee helped me get bras that fit and kept them contained, but I still had other kids at school stare and make fun of me. Worst of all, I had my first period. Thank God that started here at home one weekend with no one at home but Bee-Dee and me. The bloody mess and pain had me thinking I was dying, but Bee-Dee explained what was