Maya’s room or rooms were on the second floor. Apparently, she had one as a pseudo office and workspace while the other was for relaxing and sleeping in. I’d thought my home was well decorated, but seeing Evelyn and Maya’s home was a reality check. My home was nice, but theirs definitely looked nicer. Their carpets, paintings, furniture just seemed to match and they even had air fragrances in certain spaces which I usually despised, but theirs were neither overpowering nor unpleasant and just made the air fresher.

“Did you and your mom decorate?” I asked as I took a seat on her bed, somewhat uncomfortable. The only time I'd ever been in a girl’s room had been with my ex’s girlfriend and that whole relationship had not ended well, then again her room looked dull compared to Maya’s which was nicely decorated, though in a more stylish way. A few posters covered the wall, some at odd angles that seemed to work. It was also spotless, and very well organized despite having a sort of chaotic feel to it.

“We did it together,” she answered, taking a seat on her desk chair. She spent a long moment staring at me with a thoughtful expression as I grew more uncomfortable and I was about to ask something, anything to break the silence when she spoke. “So, Kaiden, is it true that one time you spent an hour in your uncle's cupboard because you thought it would take you to Narnia?”

My eyes widened slightly. “Well, that came out of left field. Yeah, I did, when I was like seven. How do you know that?”

“Uncle Dylan told me,” she replied. “He told me and mom a lot about you.”

I suddenly grew somewhat nervous. “Like what?”

She smirked. “Not much, well apart from all the times you tried to hide when he tried to take you out somewhere and of course, I can't forget the detailed description of the day you, and I quote, sharted in church.”

It took all of my effort not to cringe as I screamed at my grand uncle, hoping his ghost was nearby to hear my inner thoughts. Why in the hell had he told them that, out of everything, why that? God, now that she’d brought it up, all the memories were coming back.

“He really told you that?” I asked in disbelief.

“He did.” She chuckled. “I mean you were eight but still, your uncle had a way with words.”

“Oh god.” I placed my head in my hand as she burst into giggles. This was not how I'd expected things to go when she’d invited me to her room. I mean I’d known anything sexual was off the table, but still, I hadn’t expected to be mocked.

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry.” She sighed. “It's just I've heard a lot about you and now that I'm finally meeting you, it's well… you don't seem as energetic or lively as he said. You seem, well, no offense, sort of average.”

That stung ten times more than any of the laughter, especially since she was damn right. I’d let it happen when I'd decided to follow the bullshit advice my parents had told me. It may have been too late to fix my former life, but I'd sworn to myself after the whole debacle that it would never happen again.

“Maya, Kaiden, foods ready, wash up, you two can make out later!”

It was nice to see Maya get embarrassed for a change, and I opened my mouth as a sudden burst of confidence ran through me. “We’ll be done in a moment, let me just get my pants back on!”

Maya shot me a disbelieving look to which I just shrugged. “All's fair in love and war.”

I don't know what the hell that meant, but it sounded cool and like it worked with the situation.

“So not as dull as I thought,” Maya said as she stood.

“I’m getting back in the rhythm of things,” I replied, somewhat surprised at my own words. Now that I didn't have to deal with my parents and all the responsibilities they’d pushed upon me, I was more relaxed, and well, I wanted to be that person my uncle had described me as. Not the dull shell of man my parents had forced me to become. That I'd so willingly allowed myself to become.

I didn't think upon those thoughts for long as we left the room and a wonderful aroma reached my nose.

“That smells good,” I said, my dry mouth suddenly salivating.

“You're in luck,” Maya said. “My moms cooking her signature steak dish. It's to die for.”

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It certainly smelled like it was to die for, and when we reached the dining room, my jaw dropped at the variety of food on display.

“I don't remember it being Thanksgiving today,” I muttered mostly to myself, but Evelynn must have heard it as she smiled.

“I thought you could do with a little variety.” Evelyn took a seat at the table and motioned me to sit across from her and Maya. “And I like cooking for guests.”

I didn’t know what to start with, so I left it up to Evelyn to make me a plate. There was steak cut into strips and wrapped with smoked bacon, covered in some sort of sauce. There were mashed potatoes, gravy, a gourmet-looking chicken salad, grits, and garlic bread next to what I thought was bisque. For drinks, there was wine and water, and while normally I wasn’t a drinker, I allowed myself a cup that time along with the meal.

My first bite of steak was heaven. “This has to be the best steak I've ever had, and that's saying something. I grew up in New York and some of the steakhouses there are very good.”

“How is life in the big city?” Evelyn asked. “I’ve never left the state or Oldmire.”

“It's a wonderful place,” I answered. “Truly a city of dreams in a way, full of hustle and bustle, and there's a lot of variety there, but it gets tiring after a while, at least for me it did.”

“You worked there?” Maya asked.

“Uncle never told you?” I replied, confused. He’d told them about my embarrassing stories but not my work, then again, it's not like he’d ever approved. “I worked in a law firm, the same law firm as my mom and dad.”

“A lawyer?” Evelyn seemed surprised.

“I would have been,” I said softly. “I was a damn good associate but… things didn't pan out.”

“How so?”

“Maya!” Evelyn hissed. “Can't you see he doesn't want to speak on it?”

I raised a hand. “No it's fine, in fact, I should tell someone, and well if Uncle Dylan trusted you and saw you as family then why the hell not, it's not like it will matter anyway. My parents and I were close but not in the normal way. It was work for the most part when I was with them and joy when with my uncle, but at the time I always saw my life at the firm, even when my uncle warned me.”

I closed my eyes for a few seconds as memories flooded back and my hands shook. I took a long deep breath as I steadied them.

“You don't have to—”

“No!” I interrupted Maya with more firmness than I'd shown in years. “I need to get this off my chest. I'm not… good when it comes to social interaction and my only girlfriend was only possible thanks to my mother.”

I expected pity or disgust, but to my surprise, no negative emotions showed on their faces, nor did it look like they were looking down on me.

“It was good for a time, and things were looking up.” I took another deep breath. “Until a month ago when I stumbled into my dad's office. Normally he locks the door, but this time it was open and I just walked in. Walked in to find him and one of the interns having sex.”

“He was having an affair?” Evelyn asked, anger clear in her voice.

“Yes, but that's not the worst part.” I chuckled, though there was no mirth in the sound. “You see, I'd gotten my girlfriend a job at the firm… as an intern.”

Maya almost dropped her glass in shock, but I went on before I could stop myself.

“Yes, my own father was cheating on his wife, my mom, with his son's girlfriend.” The last few words were a growl as rage reared up its ugly head, but I pushed it down with a force of will.

“That's…” Evelyn began.

“All kinds of fucked up,” Maya finished much to Evelyn’s displeasure if the frown on her face was any indication.

“That's not the end of the story,” I said. “You see, on the same day, a close friend of mine, at least who I'd thought was a close friend, had me fill in some forms for him and take care of some legal work. Forms and work that got me in very big trouble, especially when everyone took his side. So not only did my parents divorce but my father was fired and he ran away with my ex.”

“Damn,” Maya muttered. “Did you get fired?”

“More than that,” I replied with a sigh. “I almost got arrested, but luckily all they gave me was a fine that left me with little. Things would have turned out worse if Uncle Dylan hadn’t left me his home and wealth. That was just the perfect way to make things even worse. My favorite family member dying.”

I shook my head, feeling both worn out, but also like a massive weight had been lifted from my chest. It probably hadn't been wise to just spout off things to people I'd only met recently, but it was as though I couldn't hold it back anymore.

“I'm sorry you had to go through that,” Evelyn said, reaching out and grabbing my hand across the table. “I know how it feels to be… betrayed.”

Is that why she was single? In any case, I decided not to ask about that.

“Anyways, how about you two?” I questioned, trying to change the topic. “You two seem like you're very into fashion and design.”

Evelyn seemed like she had more to say on the former topic, but thankfully Maya spoke before she could. “Yep, we own the largest clothing store in town, and do custom clothing.”

“Oh yes,” Evelyn added happily. “We even deliver all over the state now.”

“Just the two of you?” I asked, thankful she’d let the prior subject go even though I’d been the one to bring it up

“It started off that way,” Maya explained. “We used to live in one of the trailers on the other side of town, and owned a small corner shop. We built up from there, and now we have over a dozen people working at the store.”

“Your uncle was a great help in that,” Evelyn said. “He invested in us when no one else would.”

I smiled. “That sounds like him. He always liked helping people. Did he tell you about that time he made me work in a warehouse when I mouthed off to him?”

“He did,” Maya chuckled. “If I remember the story correctly, you said something about not wanting to shop in a poor person's store.”

I winced. “Yeah, I was a little spoiled at the time. I'm thankful he worked it out of me.”

We spent the rest of the meal reminiscing about my uncle and talking about lighter topics, ending it with a toast to him. I ended up having a few more glasses of wine, and I felt a pleasant buzz as I stood after the meal.

“Thanks for the meal, Evelyn,” I said as she walked me over to the door. “And the company. It's been a while since I've had an actual pleasant conversation with nice people.”

She gave me a tight hug. ‘You’re welcome back anytime.”

I pulled back and gave Maya a cheeky wink, the wine pushing me to do something I wouldn't think of if I was sober. “We’ll finish what we started upstairs next time.”

I didn't wait for her reaction and walked off to the sound of Evelyn’s chuckles, and an indignant sound from Maya.

I felt more relaxed than ever as I made my way back home. I hadn't been sure at first, but after that dinner, I knew why Uncle Dylan had seen them as family and had helped them. Despite Maya’s teasing personality, she was nice and honest, as far as I could tell, and Evelyn made me wish she’d raised me instead of my real mom, as bad as that sounded.