29. Gabby
29
Gabby
I can do this; I repeat the mantra in my head. I just need to find Lilli and everything will be fine. I’ll tell her how I met most of the family, we’ll laugh about my stupid ladybug comment to Luis, and we’ll stick together for the rest of the cocktail hour.
“Champagne?” A waiter practically shoves the flute in my face.
“Sure.” I’m not a fan of the bubbly stuff, but maybe this will help me look like I fit in better.
As I walk around on a mission to find Lilli, I pick up tidbits of conversations here and there. One couple just came back from a cruise, another is putting an addition onto their house, and someone’s grandkid just got into an Ivy League University. Everyone’s conversations seem phony. Their tone of voice and body language does not resemble a causal exchange amongst friends or even acquaintances. It’s like everyone is bragging or trying to outdo one another. All of which is making me feel extremely uncomfortable .
Continuing to meander through the crowd of pretentious guests, I spot Victoria up ahead. While she’s not the Jones I was looking for, I can at least ask her if she’s seen Lilli. I pick up my pace to catch up with her. I almost make it when a tall, redheaded man looking at his phone knocks into me. My heel turns as I try to maintain balance. I manage to hold on to the champagne flute, but the liquid inside goes flying right onto…
“My dress!” Victoria shrieks at a decibel I didn’t know was humanly possible. “You ruined it!” If looks could kill, I’d be dead five times over.
“I’m so sorry.” I gasp. “It was an accident.” I point to the redhead who I realize is Seamus. “He bumped into me.”
“Oh, so now you’re going to put the blame on my husband?! I can’t believe your audacity! I’m so happy my parents are introducing Alex to Octavia right now. At least she knows what it takes to belong here.”
My head spins at Victoria’s words. I knew I wouldn’t fit in, but they’re introducing him to someone else? A wave of nausea hits me. Technically, Alex and I aren’t officially anything, but would he choose someone his parents approve of?
It hurts to think that they went to such lengths to make me feel unwelcome, especially without even getting to know me. Well, all except for Lilli. Normally, I wouldn’t care what others think of me, especially if I were back home surrounded by my friends. But being here, amongst all this wealth and arrogance, is making me crumble.
“Move along, folks. Nothing to see here!” a familiar voice chimes in. Lilli makes her way up to her sister and stops. “Go fix your makeup, Vic, your mascara looks a little runny. I’ll handle this one.”
Victoria turns on her heels and stomps in the direction of the bathroom. Seamus, still not paying attention, spins and bumps into a waiter carrying a tray full of shrimp. The little crustaceans scatter around the floor. Guests jump back as if the shellfish will come back to life and attack them.
“Oh, this just keeps getting better and better.” Lilli breaks out into a mischievous grin.
“I’m so sorry.” I grasp onto Lilli’s arm, trying my hardest not to fall apart.
“Oh, honey. I’m not talking about you. I’m talking about my brother-in-law and his phone obsession. Trust me, no one is going to remember a little champagne spill after this.” She points to the floor as three waiters frantically clean up the shrimp.
“Victoria said your parents are introducing Alex to someone.”
“I know.” Lilli grimaces. “I mean, I didn’t know, but I overheard Roberto telling Isabella and I started looking for you. I’m so sorry we got separated.”
“There you are.” Alex steps around a waiter. A look of relief washes over his face when he spots Lilli with me. “We need to leave.”
“What on earth is going on here?” a man’s voice bellows throughout the crowd.
“Shit.” Lilli stands on her toes to look over the mass of guests. “That’s our dad. You guys better get out of here before he catches up. Even though none of this was your fault, he’ll put his own spin on it and make you feel guilty.”
“She’s not wrong.” Alex frowns.
“Go ahead and take the limo we came in. I’ll catch a ride back home with Luis.” Lilli pulls us in for a double hug and before I know it, we’re back on the road to Starboard Beach.
** *
The mountainous landscape passes by in a blur as I keep my focus out the passenger side window. I look at the time on my phone and realize it was less than twenty-four hours ago that we were on the same road, just headed in the opposite direction. What a crazy twenty-four hours it has been. We heeded Lilli’s advice and took the limo back to Alex’s parents’ place where we changed out of our formal wear, packed up our belongings, and hit the road. Alex was silent during our time in the limousine and also as we gathered up our stuff from the guest house. I figured he’d be more talkative once we got in his car, but we’ve been driving for about an hour and he hasn’t spoken a word. Well…I guess that goes both ways because I haven’t said anything either. I’ve been debating if I should bring up the events of the night or open with a lighter topic and work our way up to the harder stuff.
“Did you know that Scotland’s national animal is the unicorn?”
“What?” He turns to look at me.
“I had a patient last week—a little girl with a nasty case of pneumonia. Anyway, she was obsessed with unicorns and told me that.”
“What the hell does that have to do with anything?”
“Nothing really. It’s just better than sitting here in silence.” I cross my arms over my chest and glare at him. Unfortunately, my body language doesn’t work because he keeps his eyes on the road. I know he’s trying to keep us safe while driving, but we can’t ignore what happened back in Elmwood Grove and apparently, that’s what he’s doing.
“I’m going to stop at the next exit and fuel up,” he says flatly. “It’s the last one for the next fifty miles, if you need to use the bathroom or anything…”
“Perfect. I’m starving.” Besides the one little stuffed mushroom and mini crab cake I had at the cocktail hour, I haven’t eaten anything since lunch with Lilli. I begin making a mental list of junk food I’ll purchase at the rest stop because this night certainly calls for all things sweet, salty, and bad for you.
A few minutes later, Alex pulls up to the gas station pump and I hightail it into the convenience store. I choose an assortment of snacks and do a little victory dance when I come across the display of Alex’s favorite brand of beef jerky. I’m not sure if he’s eaten anything since breakfast. Maybe all we need is some food in us to get a conversation rolling.
My hope deflates as soon I settle back in the SUV and take in Alex’s stiff demeanor. Even worse, he rejects my offering of beef jerky or any other snack, for that matter. We’re about twenty minutes back into our journey and I can’t take it anymore.
“Okay, clearly, you’re upset about what went down tonight and I get that. But do we have to drive back the rest of the way like this? I can’t stand the silent treatment anymore.”
“I’m not giving you the silent treatment.” He takes his eyes off the road for a second and gives me a confused look.
“Well, you could’ve fooled me because you’ve been as cold as ice ever since the limo drive back. I’m sorry the party turned out to be a disaster and I’m sorry I didn’t live up to your family’s expectations—”
“What?!” He turns the steering wheel a hard right. I grab onto the oh-shit handle above me as the SUV skips across the shoulder and up onto a grassy area. He shifts into park roughly. We both jolt forward, and the seat belt locks around my chest.
“What the hell are you doing?” I try to catch my breath while unbuckling the seat belt.
“Are you serious?! You think I’m upset because you didn’t live up to my parents’ expectations? What on earth would make you think that?” He too unbuckles his tightened seat belt and shifts sideways to face me .
“Well, at first, I thought you were mad at your parents, but you’ve been so standoffish, so I started wondering if you were disappointed in me. Maybe I could’ve acted more sophisticated or something. I don’t know. I’m not sure what I could’ve done differently. They didn’t really give me a chance.”
“Man, I’m screwing this up.” He lets out a long sigh and scrubs a hand down his face. “God, Gabby. I don’t think I could ever be disappointed with you. I’m embarrassed. Embarrassed about this weekend, my weird family, just everything. Why would you want to be with someone who has a family like mine?”
“What? Because I know you’re not like that. Your family doesn’t define who you are. You can’t choose who you’re related to, and I’m certainly not going to hold that against you. Alex, I love who you are. You’re the guy who’s been there for me every step of the way. I want to be that for you, too.” I’m not sure if he heard me or not because his face still looks tortured as he continues talking.
“My parents have always voiced their opinion about my life choices, but up until tonight, they never tried to take matters into their own hands. I can’t help but think that maybe there’s some truth to what they’ve been saying.” He stares out into the distance. “Maybe I do have an issue with growing up.”
Oh. My. God. Where is this coming from? What on earth did they say to him?
“No. No. No.” I grab his face and force him to look at me. I’m so pissed that those pretentious people are making him doubt himself. “ No dejes que te afecten. Don’t you dare let their words get into your head. They may have known you all your life, but they don’t know who you truly are. I know the real Alejandro Jones. The one who knows what he wants and is not afraid to go after it. The one who’ll drop everything to help a stranger in need. The one who has the ability to make everyone feel like they’re the most precious gift on Earth.”
“Stop, you’re giving me a big head.” His mouth hangs open as the innuendo he didn’t intend to make registers. We both begin to laugh, thank God. The hard lines around his face soften and the man I adore starts to come back from over the edge.
“You know what?” I take a breath and realize I can turn my anger into something else. “I’m not mad at your family. I feel sorry for them because they’re missing out on an opportunity to know someone as amazing as you.”
My life has improved so much since Alex has entered it. How could I have possibly denied my feelings for him for so long? Of course, as soon as I think that, harsh reality slaps me in the face as we both turn our heads to the sound of a fire engine screaming down the highway. We watch in silence as it whizzes by and disappears around a bend. That’s why. I can’t lose him.
“Stop that.” He senses my sadness, reaches across the center console, and pulls me in for a hug.
“I’m trying to get past my fear.” I squeeze him like he’ll fade away if I let go.
“For what it’s worth, I think you’re making fantastic progress.” He places a kiss on my head. “Take all the time you need. I’m not going anywhere.”
We spend the rest of the ride home playfully arguing over music and sharing way too many snacks. I get him to try his first Snoball and am highly insulted when he says he isn’t impressed. We discuss the party and some of the ostentatious things I overheard while I was searching for Lilli. Alex opens up about the short meeting with his parents and how turned off he was by Octavia. My heart soars when he reassures me that I’m the only woman for him. I trust this man with everything. The more quality time I spend with Alex, the more I can’t imagine my life without him.
We pass the sign for Starboard Beach’s city limits, and disappointment settles in. I don’t want this night to end.
“Hey, Alex? My eyes focus on the muscles in his forearms as he navigates his way around a particularly winding road. I never paid attention to things like that until I started reading romance novels. Yup, I get the appeal now.
“Yeah, baby girl?”
“Since we didn’t plan on coming back until tomorrow and it looks like a nice night, do you think maybe instead of going home we can go count stars?”
“You’re not sick of me yet?” The corners of his mouth turn up and I realize I make him happy just as much as he makes me.
“Not at all. I’m enjoying all this extra time with you.” I look at him and smile. “You’ll have to thank Carter once we get home. I think your plan is working.”