16. Elle
“How about The Conjuring?” I asked flicking through my favourite screening channel looking for something to watch.
Tonight was my turn to host girls night, my place was finally back in order, new furniture, new belongings and new memories to make.
“Not a horror!” Claudia shouted from the floor; she was sitting in one of the new bean bags I decided to buy on a whim thinking that Miracle would enjoy sitting in the fluffy covered bag. They were in the same style as the cushions mum ordered for Jami’s office waiting room. According to Josh, Jami had not been impressed with my mother’s decorating skills, but like the smart man he was didn’t complain directly to mum or dare change anything.
“You love horror movies,” I argued looking at my sister. Claudia was truly beaming these days; her face had an aura about it I supposed came with pregnancy. To say I was thrilled for Claudia and Josh was an understatement. Claudia liked to pretend she was strong, hiding her real feelings behind her sarcasm and argumentative nature, but I knew how much the miscarriage of her first child destroyed her. To see her so content, so … maternal somehow softened her hard exterior she was so used to hiding behind.
Poking her tongue out at me, Claudia reached over to grab the remote off me.
“I don’t want the baby hearing scary things,” she said blushing as she started to flick through the channels.
Yes, Claudia Blessing-Gallow blushed. I never thought that was even possible.
Rolling my eyes, I looked over to Gisele who was laying out on my new couch, two cushions piled under her head and a bowl of popcorn resting on her stomach.
“Claudia blushed!” she sang out, tossing a kernel at Claudia then bursting into a fit of giggles. Gisele had also noticeably changed since her relationship with Jamison Jury became serious enough for him to move into her house permanently, my baby sister also exhibited a calmer and accepting aura about her. While she was still overly dramatic, gone was the fear and belief in the family curse she insisted had plagued her most of her life. Now that Miracle was no longer non-verbal and starting to speak more words every day, I sensed that Gisele too was content with her life.
For me it was the complete opposite. Since coming back from my weekend of debauchery five days ago my sleep had taken a full turn around. Usually, I had no trouble falling asleep especially now that the weather was cooler and the need for a ceiling fan was not necessary. Normally I liked wrapping myself up in warm thick blanket drifting off to sleep easily, but the last handful of nights all I did was toss and turn, my mind racing with images of the handsome stranger I spent one night with.
One perfect night.
My tiredness wasn’t just from lack of sleep, there was something bothering me, but I could not for the life of me figure out what it was. Since that weekend I felt … on edge about something. Every time I got lost in my head about that night, a wave of unease always shook me to my core, but for what reason I couldn’t say.
It was annoying to me that I had no control over my emotions and feelings, to me it made no sense. Anxiety was not something I experienced often, but here I was feeling anxious and out of sorts.
Tired of analysing my screwed-up head, I decided it was time to focus on someone else.
“Gissy what is going on with your hot cop?” I asked Gisele, happy to have a subject change.
Stretching her neck to the side to look at me Gisele shrugged.
“Nothing, he’s fine.”
“Fine,” Claudia harrumphed, “Then why is he spending so much time sitting in his car at the bridge?”
“Ahhhhh his job,” Gisele answered drolly, then stuffed a handful of popcorn into her mouth chewing noisily.
“Since when does his job entail staking out the entrance to Blessings?” I asked ignoring the disgusting way she was eating, my interest suddenly piqued. Yesterday at family dinner I could not help but notice that Jamison and Josh were slightly on edge. Jamison checked his phone a dozen or more times, while Josh continually looked over at him with questionable glances. Something was definitely going on and the men were either reluctant to say anything or they couldn’t.
Sitting up, Gisele placed the bowl on the coffee table and sat quietly, from where I was sitting, I could almost see her mind ticking over.
“You know, yesterday he did come home during the day and made a fuss about all the windows in the house that weren’t locked,” she recalled looking thoughtful. “And when it was time for me to pick up Miracle from her friend’s place, he insisted on coming with me even though I dropped her off by myself in the morning.”
“Josh did something similar,” Claudia revealed, sitting up in the bean bag chair, well at least she tried to. “He rang me yesterday afternoon I said I wanted to meet him at home for a quicky, but he demanded I wait for him to escort me.” She said using air quotes for escort.
“You had an afternoon delight!” Gisele screamed excitedly, Claudia’s face going red, redder than even before.
“Hang on,” I interrupted remembering something, “wasn’t dad at your place all day yesterday painting?”
“Yes,” Claudia mumbled, “I completely forgot he was there, but in my defence, he wasn’t visible when Josh and I went inside through the back door. Apparently, he was on the same side as our bedroom window.”
“That explains his weirdness at tea last night,” I laughed remembering the daggers he gave Josh every time he looked at him.
Nodding her head a wicked smile on her face, Claudia started giggling. “He said we traumatised him.”
“I’m not surprised considering I know exactly what you and Josh sound like when in the throes of passion,” I told her shuddering at the recent memory still very much ingrained in my brain.
“Sex is supposed to be loud,” Gisele said inserting her two cents, “Jamison loves it when I make sexy sounds.”
Pretending to dry wretch, I suddenly felt uneasy again, there was something worrying me, but I just could not for the life of me put my finger on what it was other than my out of character behaviour the past weekend.
Shaking off my pensive mood, I snatched the remote back from Claudia.
“My tv, my choice, and we are watching Forensic Files,” I announced pushing aside whatever was wrong with me and enjoy my sister’s company.
“Miracle Evangaline Blessing, your dinner is ready!” I shouted down the hall in the direction of my niece’s room. My house was a little different than Claudia’s and Gisele’s. While it was a Queenslander, the bedrooms were all on the same floor, the upstairs was no more than a single room I used for storage. I preferred to keep my living and bedrooms on the same level, saving me from climbing up and down stairs all the time.
When my parents gave me the option of which of their houses, I wanted I deliberately choose this one for that reason, plus I knew I wasn’t going to need rooms for children. Having kids had never been something I yearned to experience, and Jake had certainly never showed any interest in being a father. Hell, he barely knew how to be a husband. Not that I had to worry about that anymore. Signing the divorce papers had been a weightlifting moment, finally able to take a cleansing breath and say good riddance to my past.
“Miracle!”
“I’m here,” a soft voice said behind me, making me jump in fright. The whole family was still getting used to hearing our girl talk, her voice a foreign sound still.
Turning around, I smiled at my niece’s outfit choice. Her individuality certainly was not foreign.
“You look … colourful,” I told her, choosing the safest word to compliment the explosion of pink, white and silver knitted jumper she teamed with a pair of striped leggings.
“I know,” Miracle grinned, taking her seat at the table. In front of her was her favourite meal.
Mac and cheese with a side serving of Daggy Dogs.
My niece have any better tastes in food as she did fashion, but that’s what made her so special. Miracle honestly didn’t care what people thought of her. Something she did not get from her mother.
Taking the seat across from Miracle I pulled my bowl of Cesear salad with chicken tenders and runny egg.
Yum.
Picking up my fork, I speared a chunk of chicken then swirled it in the soft yolk before bringing it to my lips. The second my lips closed over the morsel my stomach revolted insistently. Jumping out of my chair, I ran for the kitchen sink just in time to hurl in the basin I didn’t even have time to move the dishes that were waiting to be washed.
Gross.