The Mute Mistress

The Mute Mistress: Chapter 13

He groaned with joy. "I've missed you!"

Two tanned-skinned three-year-olds wrapped themselves around him. He asked for his kisses and their small mouths touched his cheeks.

"You should babysit or better yet come over more often," Joseph sighed before requesting his twins not suffocate Nathan and climb in the booth.

Everyone sat before the waitress approached and took their drink orders. Nathan pressed his cheek into his fist, watching Joseph argue lightly with his son, Alok, about eating at all. His brother shot him a look of annoyance before pointing to a different item.

"This is thoroughly entertaining," Nathan chortled.

"Yeah, you just wait your turn. You'll have so much fun when your children refuse to eat until it's an obscure hour of the day or night," Joseph finished through his teeth looking at his boy. "It's like they know when to unleash brand new habits when mommy's away for two weeks, huh?"

Anjuli scooted close to her uncle and smiled. "Okay, but you have to give my phone back when the food comes."

Joseph slouched and picked up his menu, "Baby bro, I haven't heard from you since your party."

"Yeah, I've been busy."

"Busy hiding and going to events with Karina." He said her name playfully, but Nathan flashed his brows.

His brother was already peeking at him over his menu. Nathan rested his elbows on the table and began, "I can't do it anymore."

"Which part?"

"The pretending and waiting for I don't know what."

"I thought this was a win-win situation. You get the contract and loving relationship with the daughter to the vice president to the company you want to partner with."

Nathan didn't miss the sarcasm. He didn't address it until after the waitress returned with drinks and took their orders. Giving the phone back to Anjuli confusing the waitress's visit to the table, he went on, "I have to end things with Karina."

"Why?"

"She's been at the house for the past three days now, and I make sure to avoid her."

"Sounds possible in that massive house," Joseph grinned. "But you've been doing that for how long now? Is staying with her really worth this business relationship? You've been in correspondence with her father for years."

"I thought I could wait it out, but lately it doesn't feel as important. Even if I get it, I don't know if I'll be satisfied."

"Have you considered returning to Dr. Harli?" Joseph suggested seriously.

"Yeah, it's been a consideration."

"Remember when I went through something similar before I turned thirty?" When Nathan nodded he continued, "Well, I can't say it's the exact issue, but I get what it's like to feel completely lost. You were still in school, and Laura was busy getting her life together with Paul, but I didn't know how to share that with my younger siblings. And there was no way in hell I could tell mom or dad."

Nathan looked at his brother strangely. "I had no idea. What did you do?"

"Well, I did turn to Belle and she suggested therapy. Me being an asshole didn't want to do that, despite knowing what it did for her. So for another year, I did nothing about it. I mean, I was doing well. The money was good, I made it to CFO of the technical services unit in Smart Industries, and I was busy."

Nathan recalled the busyness his brother went through. He never considered it was a form of avoidance.

"But above all else, I was angry."

"At what?" Nathan inquired.

"I didn't know until I met Chandni. I saw her in the boardroom at an Eastern conference one day and thought I HAVE to talk to her. And then before the end of the meeting, I heard her speak. And it hit me once I heard the strong accent. I had to admit I was afraid of the judgment. Hilarious right? None of us are close to mom and dad, but I heard them in my head." Joseph scratched his chin and laughed to himself. "Right then and there, I had to decide if I would listen to my gut or keep trying to impress people who didn't see me."

Nathan averted his eyes, thankful the waitress returned with their food. He never intended to look for love, he reminded himself. He never imagined agreeing to let Belle rush a new live-in made in the guest house would have resulted in him rethinking his life. From his brother's recounting, he now knew how to call the pain now that Mary refused to see him.

Nathan picked at his food and his brother caught him. When asked a second time what was wrong, he confessed. "I met with Rafal today."

Joseph's creased forehead smoothed out as he surveyed his brother's face.

"You know I always thought he was a lot like dad," He chuckled wryly. "Sounded like him too when he rejected my offer again."

"What do you mean he sounded like dad?"

"I never told you before I started my own real estate ventures, I wanted to work under dad. But he didn't trust me with all the partying or the fact that I rarely opened up to him. And he told me until I could man up, taking me under his wing was not the best choice for his legacy."