Chapter 30
BELLE
Isat on the sidelines at Reaper practice. Again. I hated it. I wanted to be out there knocking my best friends down.
When Mel blew the last whistle, everyone came and collapsed, breathing hard.
“Bet you’re glad you sat that out,” Robin said as she started taking off her wrist guards.
“Are you kidding? I want to get out there. No one can block Mel like me.”
“How much longer until you can get back out there?” Mel asked.
“Eight weeks tomorrow, so as long as everything goes well at my next doctor’s appt, I should be out there again soon.”
“Good, we need you out there,” Eleanor said as she bumped me with her shoulder.
“So, I was going to ask. If any of you are free tomorrow, do you want to come out to Raph’s and swim? He’s got a great pool.”
“Seriously?” Mel asked, pulling back in surprise.
I nodded.
“Can Ava come?”
“Of course! He said I could invite you and the kids.”
“We’ll be there, it will be a great end of summer,” Eleanor said.
“With school starting next week, I know Leo would love it too,” Mel said.
“Like at his house? The ginormous one on the edge of town,” Robin said with an air of disapproval.
“That’s the one.”
She looked at me with a judgmental look that only Robin can give. “I’ll be there. I need to know more about this guy.”
“Okay. Good. This will be good!” I’m not sure if I was trying to convince myself or them.
***
The next day, I had made lemonade, Rice Krispies treats, and a pitcher of margaritas in preparation for everyone's arrival.
Raphael was standing by the bar with a deep V between his brows.
“So Eleanor Tremaine is coming with her ten-year-old daughter Ava and her boyfriend Alex Prince.”
“Yep.”
“And Mel, who is the captain, is coming with her son Leo, who is also Alex’s son because she is married to his ex-wife, and everyone is good with that.”
“Yep! They are neighbors and co-parent like a dream.”
He nodded like he was trying to commit it all to memory.”There was one more, right?”
“Yep, Robin Sherwood. Although her derby name is Robin Banks, so you might want to keep an eye on her,” I said with a chuckle.
He nodded and took a deep breath. Because I knew him so well by now, I could see the small tells of nerves setting in. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him chew his bottom lip quite like that.
“You got all that, big guy?” I said with a playful pat to his forearm.
“I believe I can manage,” he said.
There was a knock at the door followed by voices.
“Good, because they're here.”
A moment later, Geoffrey rounded the corner with a familiar-looking group of women carrying pool bags who looked familiar but out of place all at the same time.
“Wow, this place is incredible,” Eleanor said, breaking the ice.
“Welcome, we’re happy to have all of you. Is Eleanor correct?” he said, taking her hand in a firm handshake.
“Yes, I’ve seen you around. It's nice to officially meet you.”
He made the rounds, shaking hands and introducing himself like he was at a business lunch, that was, until a little hand pulled on his sleeve.
“Excuse me, sir? Is your castle haunted? Do you have ghosts?” Ava asked so matter-of-factly.
He looked at her, taking her question seriously. “I haven’t seen any, but in a house this big, it’s hard to tell.”
Ava just nodded, her serious expression never leaving her face.
“Can we swim now? I want to swim!!” Leo said, bouncing up and down.
“Of course, that’s why we are here. Right this way, sir.” Raph said as he started guiding them all out onto the back patio.
He guided them down the steps to the lower area of the yard where the pool and pool house was. “If anyone needs anything or to change, the pool house is open. I will join you all in a moment.”
Raph turned and walked back to the house, and before she could even turn around, there was a big splash. Leo was already in the pool.
“I need to go change,” Mel said.
“I got him,” Alex answered as he set the pool bag next to one of the loungers and slipped his shirt off, ready to get in with Leo.
I looked around the pool as Ava slowly got in, testing the water carefully while Leo was already pretending to be a mermaid.
Alex was being the best pool dad around as the women all took a moment to sit poolside.
Eleanor, with her blue one-piece and long blond hair, sat next to me.
And Robin, with her short dark bob and curious green eyes, sat on the other.
Then Mel came out of the pool house, her box braid pulled up into a bun on her head in a Yellow bikini.
“So this is where you live?” Robin finally said.
“I guess, at least for a while," I shrugged.
“Has he yelled at you again?” Mel asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah, I heard about that,” Robin said with a glare.
“Yeah, we talked about that. We’re good. It was a bad night. He apologized.”
“Good,” Mel said, crossing her arms over her chest.
They all just looked at me. I wish I could make them understand, but it wasn’t my story to tell.
Then Raph came out carrying a tray of drinks, followed by Geoffrey with a tray of snacks. It had the Rice Krispies treats I’d made, plus some candy the kids would love. He set the trays down and then brought me a spritzer.
“Thank you,” I said, taking it from him as he kissed my head.
“Can I get you all anything to drink?”
“I made a pitcher of margaritas, or we have spritzer. I also got some Capri Suns for the kids,” I said.
Raph brought us all drinks before he went and sat on the edge of the pool, talking to Alex and the kids like it was the most normal thing in the world.
I couldn’t take my eyes off as Ava swam over to him and started asking him questions about the house.
The two of them looked like they were discussing real estate, not haunted houses, but Raph just rolled with it.
I turned back to the girls to take a sip from my glass, but they were all staring at me. “What?”
Eleanor just smiled.
“So you and the beast?” Mel asked, with a small smile, like she was finally understanding.
I just shrugged. While there still was nothing final, I couldn’t deny there was something, and that something was becoming more and more real.