“Now, Dylan. This is a friendly lunch.” James shook his head.
Who the hell had asked him to speak? Dylan cocked a brow. “Friendly?” How friendly are you with my mother, asshole? Dylan had been dreading this meeting for weeks, pretty sure the vibe he’d been getting from James and his mother meant more than business.
“Dylan.” His mother shot him a warning frown, then eased her lips into a smile when she looked at James. A man several years her junior. Her partner, for God’s sake. “Well, James? Should we tell him?”
Oh no. Please. Anything but that he’d have to call James “Dad”.
James cleared his throat. It annoyed Dylan that the guy looked closer to Dylan’s age than his mother’s, though he knew James to be in his early fifties. Bright blue eyes, black hair that had only recently begun to gray, and a muscular frame held James in good stead with the ladies, or so his mother’s secretary seemed to think. Diane knew everything about everything, and she loved dishing to Dylan during his visits.
James nodded to Dylan’s mother, and she said, “We’d love for you to join us, Dylan. James and I have been talking. We want to cut back on the work we have. Time to start enjoying retirement.”
Dylan frowned. He hadn’t expected that. The relief he should have felt, that his mother wasn’t going to profess her undying love for James, slid under worry. “Retirement? You’re ready to quit the practice?” He knew his mother had money, but not enough that she’d leave a lucrative job so soon. He thought she enjoyed her work.
“No.” James shook his head. Then, to Dylan’s dismay, the other shoe dropped. James covered Barbara’s hand. In front of Dylan. “Your mother and I are seeing each other. We want to start enjoying ourselves more, and we thought you’d be the perfect man to step in. We’ve been talking about bringing someone in for a while, to free up our hours.”
“You’re stellar with your patients, and there’s no one we’d trust more,” his mother said kindly.
What was all this we nonsense? Dylan didn’t often swear, but between his brother and mother, he felt more than ready to curse a blue streak. He deliberately clamped down on his emotions, conscious of the way his mother and James were watching him.
Considering he’d known this was coming, he should have been better prepared to handle the news. He’d analyzed his growing hostility toward James, knew he had issues concerning his own relationship with his mother that he transferred to James, but he hadn’t yet resolved his feelings. Though his father had been dead for over ten years, he still seemed like such a large presence in Barbara’s life.
Dylan cleared his throat and forced a smile. “I’ll have to take some time to consider joining you. I do appreciate the offer, I hope you know.” He swallowed a large mouthful of water and decided to ignore their being a couple for now. “I have my own patients at the hospital, but I’ve been toying with the idea of branching out on my own.”
He couldn’t look away from their joined hands. Especially when James stroked Barbara’s with his thumb.
Jealousy ate at Dylan like a cancer, shocking in its ferocity. Jealousy? Was that it? He didn’t like another man taking the role he’d assumed when his father had passed? Dylan did his best to keep a calm expression and took another large sip of water.
“Dylan?” his mother asked softly.
Saved by an arriving waiter, he brought himself back under control while everyone ordered. The waiter left, and he spoke before he could reconsider his answer, separating business from personal concerns. “Joining you would be a smart move for my career. You already have an established clientele. Many of whom would view me as an extension of you, Mom, to ease the transfer of cases. I’ll also have several who will follow me into the practice, I’d think. On the surface, it seems like a no-brainer. But I’ll think on it, if you don’t mind.”
“I would expect nothing less.” Barbara’s eyes sparkled with joy.
“Terrific.” James slapped him on the back, and Dylan smiled through gritted teeth.
Swear to God, he calls me “Son” and I’ll lose it.
Thankfully, his mother turned the conversation toward his younger brother’s pending nuptials. Gage and Hailey made a terrific couple, and his heart lightened at the thought of being an uncle someday. At the rate those two went at it, he figured he didn’t have long to wait. The waiter brought their food, and they ate while discussing Derrick as well.
“And Sydney. I am so grateful that your brother finally brought home someone I like.” Barbara blew out a breath.
James nodded. “Beautiful girl. Good thing she’s not like her mother.”
Barbara frowned. “Isabel Fields has a lot of issues. I’ve seen her since that last time she was in town, and she’s been calling regularly. But I don’t mind saying I’d like for you to talk to her the next time, Dylan. Tell me what you think.”
“Hell no.” He snorted. “Sydney’s mom is a handful. She tried to seduce Derrick and James the last time we all got together. I think I’m next on her hit list.” He stifled a smirk when his mother scowled at James.
“Not my fault.” James held up his hands in surrender. “I tried to steer clear of her, Barb. But you saw her.”
“True. Isabel equates sex with love and thinks the more men she has fawning all over her, the better her self-worth. You could see that within minutes of meeting her.”
Dylan’s poor brother had one hell of a mother-in-law coming his way. But Sydney didn’t seem to like her mother that much. He figured they might see her once a year. Holidays, maybe. He flashed a side glance at James.
He liked James well enough. The guy had been his mother’s partner for a good fifteen years, and the two had known each other for even longer. He was a decent man, a terrific psychiatrist and had great business sense. He and Dylan often sniped at each other, but with mutual respect, and even admiration on Dylan’s part. But really, James Kincaid—Barbara’s new boyfriend? The woman was nearing sixty. She shouldn’t have the time or energy for a new man in her life. What the hell did she need James for when she had three sons who loved her like crazy?
“What about you, Dylan?” Barbara asked.
He blinked. “Excuse me?”
“When will you be bringing someone home?”
James had the audacity to chime in. “Someone you’ve dated for longer than a month?”
Before Dylan could give the man the set-down he deserved, the waiter returned to clear some plates. Dylan glanced at his watch, and when the waiter left, pushed out his chair and stood. “I’m sorry, but I have to get back to work. We ran later than I’d anticipated.” He took out his wallet and tossed a few bills on the table. “This should cover lunch and a tip. I’ll talk to you later, Mom.” He gritted his teeth but delivered a professional-sounding, “James.” He nodded and left before he could show himself for the immature, unprofessional fraud he’d turned out to be. “Physician, heal thyself” came to mind. If only I friggin’ could.
“Well, that didn’t go well.” James sighed.
Barbara worried. “I knew he’d have a problem with us. Maybe we should have waited until we brought him on board with the business before springing our relationship on him. Dylan’s always been about the practice first and foremost, and he’s not great with change.”
She loved all her sons, but Barbara had always had a special relationship with Dylan. The oldest and still her baby. He’d always wanted to help, always stayed by her side while Derrick and Gage played with their father, mimicking Andrew. Dylan had been her little man, her constant shadow.