Inevitable Fidelity (Book 3 in the Original BOC Series) ✔

Chapter Twenty

Tension. It overwhelmed the room at dinner that night.

Nathan glanced around the table where he was seated beside his wife and daughter, pausing from eating the delicious meal Mrs. Jennings had been kind enough to make two large pots of, even with the raging hormones from the young people in the house.

His eyes first looked over at Sam who was sitting on the counter on the other end of the room, glaring at the bowl in his lap. He hadn't even touched it when Mrs. Jennings handed it to him cautiously. Sam had quietly thanked her, but didn't move.

And that was saying something when Sam wouldn't eat food.

Nathan's eyes traveled to his brother's college friends sitting across from each other.

The boy kept glancing up at the brunette across from him who was staring at her soup like she was in pain. At intervals between painfully staring at her bowl and actually taking a small sip, the girl lifted her brown eyes over at Sam. She'd stare at him, like she'd hoped he'd look at her, but when he just kept glaring at his own food, the girl sighed and returned to her soup; the process starting all over again.

Nathan turned his attention to the other three adding to the tension in the room.

The blonde girl who Nathan wasn't sure was his little brother's girlfriend or not was seated beside Chambers. She kept brushing her finger tips along Chambers' forearm, whispering if he was alright and his brother just nodded, raising a brow before looking down at his soup.

With Chambers, the soup would only hold his attention for so long.

His green eyes lifted, looking across the room where Sophie had also isolated herself just as her partner had. Chambers would stare, his jaw locking tightly and would lean back in his chair, giving up on trying to eat so he could stare at Sophie the rest of the dinner. She didn't have a bowl of soup in front of her on the counter where Sam sat on the upper level in front of her. There was just a glass of lemonade and a napkin with chocolate chip cookies and a few strawberries on it.

Sophie's dark expression focused on the treats in front of her, her arms crossed under her chest while her jaw worked itself from side to side. Her lip curled at one point and Nathan felt sorry for the inanimate cookies and fruit with that intensely belittling glare Sophie was giving them.

Nathan looked at his wife beside him who glanced up at the same time. She pursed her mouth, shrugging a shoulder. For once, Mara didn't know what to say and Nathan felt hopeless to begin with.

He frowned at the young people, ashamed that they would be so rude when the Jennings' had been kind enough to let them into their home.

It was uncalled for and he'd definitely be having a discussion with both Sam and Chambers after dinner. He was going to make sure that they both got their heads out of their ass and to keep their personal affairs off the clock when they all sat down to eat.

Other than the innocent bickering between Darla and Max or the few ice breakers from Mr. Jennings to which the adults desperately tried to encourage further in the unsuccessful hopes the other ones would join in, the rest of dinner was quiet.

As some would get up to put their dishes into the sink, others would just get up and storm off.

Sam for example.

The blonde had finally looked up and raised a brow at Sid reaching down to grab Nia's hand who turned in surprise to stare at up at him. Then Sam jumped off the counter, shoving his bowl away and stomped out of the kitchen, slamming the front door behind him.