Chapter 16 FAMILY TIES
Chapter 16
F AMILY T IES
Charli’s eyes snap open and she lets out a smile. She can’t wait to tell Viv about her tryst. For a moment there, it was getting dangerous, but she has it under control now. Noah needs to be watched, as it’s clear he wants more. He’s like a dog that needs to be corrected from time to time. Sorry, Noah. There’s no more to be had starting next week. Get it while you can!
She turns to touch him, but his side of the bed is empty. His off-tune whistling drifts in from another room. Pulling the sheet off the bed, she wraps herself in it, then passes through the hallway. He sits shirtless at the living room table, staring at a puzzle. The box shows the entirety of it, a variety of license plates.
She can’t help but smile. “A man who does puzzles ...”
He turns, bathing her with good-morning charm. “I enjoy a good puzzle. In fact, I’m wondering who that woman is I woke up next to.”
“Yeah, me too,” Charli admits. “I really put up a fight, didn’t I?”
“In spirit, you put up a great fight.”
“Whatever that means. You got lucky this time.”
“Hey, I’m the one feeling a little cheap and easy right now.” He stands, puts his hands on her waist, and kisses her. “I feel taken advantage of,” he says as their lips pull away.
She sees right through him this time. “Oh, do you? You poor thing. Trust me, I’m not that easy. And I know that you’ve probably been told that before by some girl standing naked in your living room—probably another American—but I’m really not. It’s just that your ... your ...”
“Yes?”
“It’s your stupid rugged charm, and your quoting of poetry in iambic, and your historical facts, and ...”
Oh, he’s grinning big-time now. As long as she can manage the heat, it’s nice being in the throes of it.
“Well, it was pretty wonderful,” he says.
“I suppose.” She’s messing with him and can’t hide her smirk.
“You suppose? Maybe I need another shot.”
“Not a chance.” Though she instantly pivots to hard to get, he’s probably going to get another shot. Why not?
He turns so glum, his lips turned downward, that he becomes the eighth dwarf in Snow White . She’ll call him Mopey.
Taking on a sinister grin, he tugs at the sheet wrapped around her. She playfully smacks his hand.
“There’s a get-together at the pub for my granny Helen tonight,” he says. “She’s turning one hundred. I want you to come. I want you to meet my family.”
Everything comes to a halt. Her heart. Her brain. The flow of blood in her vessels. “Meet your family?” She thinks back to how it was attempting to meet Patrick’s mother that was the death blow for their relationship. “You don’t want me meeting your family, trust me.”
He backs up. “They’re easy. You’ll have a lovely time. And then Sunday, we’ll see where it goes, maybe a roast dinner followed by a hike.”
“Oh, for Christ’s sake, Noah.” He’s gone and ruined it, hasn’t he?
“What?”
“You don’t get it.” She hates how she’s speaking to him, as if he’s done something wrong. Something horribly wrong. It’s only that he’s stomped out the flame. “What’s the point? Are you going to get down on one knee tomorrow too? Tell me I’m the one.”
“I might,” he says, and he’s most likely joking.
Noah tries to tug off her sheet again. Instead of a fun smack of the hand, she gives him an aggressive push.
“That was a bit harsh,” he says.
She turns away from him and says, “I have to get back. Last thing I want to do is get caught in a walk of shame.” It’s her best excuse for an escape.
“A walk of shame?” He follows her. “Who do you know in this town that’s gonna shame you? What’s there to shame anyway? I’d be happy to walk you back to the pub ... and right through the bloody door.”
Charli dresses while managing to keep him from seeing any of her lady bits.
“What is going on?” he asks. “I saw all of you last night, and now you’re hiding from me? Because I want you to meet my family?”
“It’s fine,” she backpedals. “I’m happy to meet your family. I think I’m a little worn out.”
No surprise, her mother’s voice is in her ear. That’s right, Charli. Run away. That’s what you do. Probably for the best anyway, though. You know he deserves far better than to get tangled up in your toxic web.
Finally dressed, Charli sits on the bed and laces up her boots. She hates herself for feeling this way.
He comes to face her. “Look,” he says, careful not to touch her, “I don’t sleep with people like that either. But you know what, it was pretty damned good. I don’t know what the future holds, but it makes me sad to think about. That’s what I was puzzling over at the table. Damn this world for finally putting an amazing woman in my life who lives a world away.” He unloads his frustration with an exhale.
“Let’s catch up in a little while, okay?” That’s all she can seem to say, and she stands and starts out of the room.
He backs off. “Yeah, okay.”
She darts down the steps and goes out into early-morning mist. The river glides by dreamlike, full of poetry and romance. The moss on the terra-cotta roofs on the houses around her glistens with dew. And she wants to take it all and rip it to shreds and burn it to nothing.
Slightly unsure of where she is, she reaches for her phone. Only to discover that she doesn’t have her phone. “Oh, crap,” she says to herself, turning back to the old mill where he lives. She goes to the entrance but doesn’t know which apartment to ring. It was the second floor, but there are two options.
She’s beyond mortified and is tempted to leave it there and buy a new one when she gets back to Boston.
He appears at the downstairs door, dangling her phone like a carrot. “Forgot something?”
She doesn’t want to reward his smile by offering her own. She barely looks at him as she snatches it back like he’s stolen it. “Thanks.”
“So will I see you?” he calls out to her as she makes her second getaway.
“I’ll text you in a bit, okay?” It would be nice if she could have a fun fling with a handsome Englishman and go home and laugh with Viv about it. But no ... she couldn’t even make it two days without messing it up. What’s worse is that he’s just a nice guy and a gentleman.
It’s a sleepy town; Noah was right. A few people are out getting their morning exercise. A homeless man sips coffee and sucks the last life out of a cigarette. Most places are closed. She finally sees an open bakery and pops inside, taking momentary refuge in a cappuccino and a croissant at a corner table. She needs a game plan. Is she making a mistake? She can’t bear the idea of returning with an apology. She’d surely mess it up a second time.
Checking her emails for the first time of the morning, she sees Marvin responded while she was sleeping. She takes a calming breath and reads his message. Family is most important. We can cover for you a few more days. Please keep us posted. Well wishes to your mother. —Marv
Charli reads it again and again, making sure she didn’t miss something. Apparently copying his boss made all the difference.
Ignoring the time, she texts Viv next. You wouldn’t believe what I did.
A response comes a minute later. Charli, it’s early. What’d you do?
I had a thing with a hot guy and then deliberately blew it up.
Wait, isn’t that what you always do?
Charli feels better for a moment—validated even—as she types: Hahaha . At least she’s consistent. She catches Viv up.
Her friend finally texts: Sounds to me like you like him. You should see where it goes.
Oh, I know where it goes. I ended up fast-forwarding the whole thing.
You’re impossible. Nothing I could say would change your mind.
You’re a lawyer.
Not even the best lawyer in the world can convince you to do something when you’re against it.
He wants me to meet his family.
Charli, I can’t with you. You’ve met a guy that you like. He likes you back. And he wants you to hang around. Why in the world wouldn’t you?
It’s complicated.
Sounds like the most uncomplicated situation in the world.
Charli can’t possibly explain what’s going on inside her, how she can already see the future. She can already feel the pain of what it would be like to disappoint him. Like with Patrick but worse, because maybe she is even more attracted to Noah.
Charli lies in bed above the pub most of the day, trying to read but mostly tossing and turning. She texts back and forth with her father for a while, making sure he’s okay. She tells him she’s in a holding pattern until Monday, and he suggests that she try to enjoy herself. She is in Winchester, England, after all. There are worse places to be , he texts. And it sounds like this Noah character is worth getting to know.
Maybe her father is right. And yet it would be so much easier to return to London for a couple of nights, or to even switch hotels. The guy has some kind of superpowers to make her feel this way. Patrick had certainly not infested her thoughts in such a way. She can’t stop thinking about what it was like sleeping with Noah. It was like a fuse had been lit when they’d first met, eventually winding its way up the stairs to his apartment ... and then ... Bam! She’s never had sex that good in her life.
At one point, she literally eyes the window and considers dropping her bag down and jumping and making a run for it. If she weren’t worried that she might break an ankle, she’d do it. Then she’s talking to herself. “What would be so wrong with a couple of more days running around with a cute guy?”
Finally, she relents and texts him. See you tonight, okay? I think all the travel caught up with me. She takes a long hot bath, shaves her legs. At six, she’s trying on outfits and putting on makeup while psyching herself up to go downstairs.
By seven, the party is hopping below her. Down two flights of stairs, she enters through the back to find the pub packed. It smells like beer and good food and a burning fire. Night has fallen outside, and the streetlights cast an orange glow on the cobblestone street.
“You’re Charli, aren’t you?” a voice asks.
“I am.” Charli offers a smile and regards the older woman staring at her. She wears a cardigan over a white blouse. A part equally divides her short hair, which is dyed the hickory color of Charli’s floors back home. No doubt Noah’s mom. The two of them share many of the same features, though worry lines have worn into hers.
“I’m Robin, Noah’s mother. He’s told me all about you.” Her accent sounds exactly like how Charli envisions someone of royalty to speak, incredibly proper and sophisticated. More evident, though, is that Noah has told his mother about Charli.
Robin makes friendly conversation for a moment and then opens her arms toward the bar. “We can’t have you going thirsty.”
Charli finds Noah pulling a cask ale. Victoria is on the other side of the bar, making a round of Irish coffees.
“Don’t you say a word,” Charli whispers to him.
He stays focused on his task but smiles wider. Those big bright whites sparkle in front of her. “I didn’t say a thing.” He finally takes a peek at her and then goes back to finishing the beer. “What can I get you?”
“Anything but beer, please.”
“No beer, coming up.” He slides the beer across the bar to a patron. “Enjoy, mate.” He then inches toward Charli and reaches for her hand. She lets him take it. “Did you have a nice day?”
She shakes her head at him. Apologies are not easy. “I’m kind of complicated, if you haven’t figured that out.”
“It’s my favorite part about you. How about a chardonnay?” He allows a cute grin. “You Americans love chardonnay, right?”
“How about whiskey?”
“Ah, there you go.”
He pours her an Irish whiskey and drops a cube in it. “Take two of these and call me in the morning.”
The first sip calms her. She starts to say something but stops and takes another swig of whiskey.
“Are you gonna hang around a few more days?” he finally asks.
“I guess so.”
He nods. A woman joins them, and Noah says, “Charli, meet my sister, the ever warm and always cordial Marianne.”
Charli turns to find a younger version of Noah’s mother. They share the same scowl. A freshly applied coat of fire-engine-red lipstick demands attention. Large gold earrings that match the gold of her dress dangle from her ears. And she looks like she’s a complete mess. Charli doesn’t know why, exactly, other than she sees so much baggage in those eyes, and in the way she’s looking at Charli. Perhaps it’s like looking in the mirror.
“Hi, Marianne. So good to meet you.”
Marianne looks at her in a way that says, Is it nice to meet me? Or are you afraid of me?
Charli’s heard enough Marianne stories to know some of the baggage. The ugly divorce, the painkiller phase, the church phase, now the healing phase. At first glance, Marianne certainly lives up to Noah’s stories he’s shared during their time together.
“I love your earrings,” Charli says. She never compliments someone on their earrings, but she’s scrambling for conversation.
Marianne doesn’t flinch. She lets out a grunt. “Uh-huh.”
Thank heavens Noah throws a buoy into the icy water. “Marianne, could you be sweet for one moment?”
She looks at her older brother. “What would be the fun in that?”
“Oh, I don’t know. The sweet taste of civility. The embrace of kindness.”
Marianne looks at Charli and rolls her eyes, like Noah is the unstable one. “He exaggerates, if you haven’t noticed. Believe me, he’s not all he’s cracked up to be. If I were you, I’d be on the next train back.”
“Oh, I’m not here for him. I’m tracking down some missing pieces of my family tree.”
“Ah, that’s right,” Marianne says.
“And how about you? What do you do?”
Marianne goes colder if that’s even possible. She could dive into the river and turn it into ice. “You’re looking at it. I run the books around here.”
Marianne and her mother back on the Cape would love each other, absolutely love each other. “Ah, you’re the smart one.”
Marianne seems to like the compliment for a short second but then lets skepticism rule. “I’m the one who doesn’t like people, so I’m best hiding out in the office.”
“You and me both.”
Marianne drinks her wine, and Charli drinks her whiskey.
Noah says, “You two would like each other. Charli, Marianne is a lot of fun when she climbs off her broom.”
“Oh, I’m a witch, am I?” She extends her middle finger.
“Yeah, but you’re also my favorite sister.”
“I’m your only sister, asshole.”
“I love you, Marianne.”
Marianne makes an ugly face and gives him another birdie. At least she knows she’s difficult. It’s like she keeps her middle finger on speed dial.
Charli notices a flash of gray hair in the center of a group of men bellying over with laughter. “Is that your grandmother?”
“That’s her,” Noah says. “Let me introduce you.”
As Charli says goodbye, Marianne takes a moment to use her sincerity gauge. “You seem okay, Charli.”
Honesty kicks into gear. “I’m not.”
They both snicker.
He guides her toward Helen, who is laughing mightily with a half pint in her hand.
“Granny, I want you to meet someone.”
Helen turns away from the three men she’s entertaining. “Ah, Charli.”
“You know my name?”
Noah shrugs. “I may have talked about you some today.”
Helen touches Charli’s cheek. “You’re spectacular, aren’t you?”
“Thank you. And happy birthday. Are you sure you’re one hundred today? I’d have put you closer to sixty.” The woman is sharp and spry.
“All that sugar’ll get you everywhere with me.” She takes a sip of her beer. “So tell me about yourself, Charli ...”
Charli meets close to fifty other people throughout the night, including Noah’s father, who is not the healthiest man—looks beat up, even—but he’s charming, too, in the way he makes fun of everything. He’s the most self-deprecating man she’s ever met.
Around eleven, the guests clear out, and Noah’s family pulls together three tables and falls into hilarious conversation. Charli’s never seen a family interact this way, tossing aside their differences and coming together like best friends. Even Viv’s family has issues.
Noah’s father is telling a story about how Noah used to call antelopes cantaloupes, and everyone sitting around them is busted to tears, including Charli. It’s a family roast, where everyone’s participating and everyone’s a target, but no one is offended.
“Charli,” his father says to her, “what can we do to keep you sticking around for a while?”
Everyone laughs.
“Oh, I’m leaving Monday. Sadly.”
“Would you take him with you?”
“I don’t have a big enough bag.”
He brushes off the excuse. “We’ll put him in the luggage hold with the dogs. He’ll be fine.”
“And how long would this place last without me running it?” Noah asks.
“Yeah, we’d run it into the ground,” his father agrees. “Guess that means you’ve got to stay here, Charli. What’s keeping you in Boston?”
Charli sits up. “Now hold on. You’re making some big leaps, Mr. Armstrong. I’ve only just met your son.”
“It’s more than that,” he says. “I’ve not seen him glow like this in a long time.”
Charli tenses up, as if she’s walking alone at night and hears footsteps behind her.
“Oh, c’mon, Pop,” Noah says. He looks at Charli. “He’ll say anything to embarrass me.”
Charli fakes a smile.
Mr. Armstrong gives a chuckle that shakes his belly. “Well, I do hope you find a way to stay. You’re welcome here as long as you like.”
“Thank you, Mr. Armstrong.”
“Please call me Andrew. And know that I mean it.”
This man is the genesis of Noah’s charm, and it feels like they’re all trying to woo her in, as if they’re collaborating to convince her to stay. They’re wasting their time.