Page 28 of Thrown Off Balance

“Sure, what did you want to talk about?”

“My son. I know the two of you have been dating for a while.”

“Yes, about six months.”

“Right. I just… I want you to know your job here is safe no matter what happens between the two of you.”

“Okay…” My brows furrow as I process what he’s saying. Does he not want me dating Jude?

“Boy, I'm making a mess out of this.” He chuckles as he runs a hand down his face. “I’ve never been in this odd position before. You’re the only woman Jude has dated who also worked for me. I don’t want there to be problems in the future, so I figured I’d lay all the cards out on the table, so to speak. Am I making you uncomfortable?”

“Not at all.” I wave off his concern.

“You started dating Jude before you knew I was his father. I just want to make sure you understand that your job isn’t connected to Jude. If at any point you don’t want to date him any longer, I don’t want you looking for a new job. You’re one of my best employees and I don’t want to lose you if things don’t work out between the two of you.”

“I appreciate that, Mr. Carpenter.”

My mind spins with his comments. I wonder if he realizes I’ve been questioning my relationship with Jude. Since we went to the first Pythons game, things have been off between us. I don’t like it one bit and it’s making me wonder if our relationship will even go back to normal.

“I hear you know the Robinson twins. Jude hasn’t stopped talking about them.” Mr. Carpenter rolls his eyes.

“I’ve known them since I was in elementary school.” I smile softly, remembering what they were like when I first met them.

Cody was quiet and would smile all the time. Jax always had a devilish grin on his face and he was constantly getting into trouble. They were so much fun to play with.

“Jude said you dated one of them?”

“Yes, I dated Cody for a bit.” I swallow hard, more than uncomfortable with this conversation. “We broke up when my family moved and I hadn’t seen him since.”

Mr. Carpenter opens his mouth to respond, but his ringer fills the air. He glances at the screen and quickly stands.

“Excuse me, I need to take this. If you could get the information together for Jerry by the end of the day, that would be great.” He smiles at me before exiting my office.

I blow out a long breath and sink back into my chair. I can’t believe Jude went behind my back after I asked him not to speak to his father. I'm so frustrated right now. I almost want to take advantage of Mr. Carpenter’s comment and break up with Jude, knowing I won't have to look for a new job.

I shake my head, knowing I can’t do that. Not yet. If I break up with him now, it will look like I only stayed with him for my job. I need to stick it out a few more months, then I can break up with him.

It’s not going to be easy though. Not only because Jude’s been difficult to deal with recently, but also because I can’t stop thinking about what Cody said. I was wrong about him in every way.

Chapter 15

Cody

“Go take this to the pavilion.” Mom hands me another platter of food and shoos me towards the door. I chuckle and do as I'm told.

We’ve been holding Sunday dinners here since Mulberry Lane was created. Mom knew we were quickly outgrowing the kitchen of the old house and we’d need somewhere bigger. I was around two years old when we moved to the house on Mulberry Lane. She insisted on Dad and Uncle Blake building the pavilion so everyone could still get together every week for dinner.

The cool fall air is nice today. It’s just cold enough to need a sweatshirt, but not cold enough for a jacket.

I smile when I find the walls rolled up on the pavilion. Dad and Uncle Blake thought of everything. They said the pavilion needed walls that were able to be rolled up, kind of like a garage. They didn’t want to be inside when the weather was nice, but they wanted the ability to still use this place in the middle of winter.

I approach one of the three long tables and place the dish in one of the few empty spots left. For as long as I can remember, we’ve always had two tables for the meal and one for desserts. Growing up, all of the women contributed to each table. Now, I think Mulberry Lane Bakery supplies all of the desserts. Between Sophia owning the bakery and Emma and Bella working there, they handle it all. We’re spoiled because they’re amazing at baking.

Today there’s a massive cake sitting in the center of the table. In true Sophia fashion, it’s not just a simple sheet cake. She made a four-tiered cake. She said each tier is a different flavor cake and icing. Like I said, it can’t be simple.

I'm sure at least one layer will be cookies and cream because Creed, Wyatt’s little brother, loves cookies and cream. He gets so excited when Sophia makes it for him, so she does it all the time.

I spy a dirt cake, lemon cookies, smores cookies, peanut butter blossoms, chocolate chip cookies, and more. Sophia’s really going above and beyond today. Everything is either pink or blue, making me chuckle. Even the chocolate kisses on the peanut butter blossoms are pink and blue.