Chapter Twenty-Six
Josh
I do my best not to roll my eyes as Klein flushes. Of course Akiko wants to know.
Aunt Jeremiah’s eyes flash over the rim of her wine glass—she knows who the guilty one is. “Yeah, I’m wondering about that too. That asshole John Cocksucking McKinnon mocked my taste.”
I press my lips together, trying not to laugh.
He’s the opposing counsel in a complex lawsuit she’s dealing with.
She believes God created him to fuck with her because every good woman gets a devil to battle.
She’s being polite by merely calling him “cocksucking.” I’ve seen her let go when she decides to be more blunt.
“It’s a long story, but I misspoke,” I lie smoothly as I pull out a chair for Klein.
Aunt Jeremiah’s expression flickers with approval. Although she’s a modern woman, she appreciates little gestures of chivalry. Says they indicate manner and civilization. But that doesn’t mean she’ll let the video incident slide. “I don’t believe you. You aren’t under oath.”
“Do you want me to be?”
Her eyes narrow, but she doesn’t speak to me again. She knows I’d never do anything to hurt the family. “Show me the proper ring, sweetie,” she says, shifting her attention to Klein, whose jaw slackens.
“Did you just call me sweetie?”
“Yes. You’re my niece-in-law-to-be, and this is a casual family gathering.”
“Oh. Wow. Um.” Klein licks her lips, obviously unsure how to take that. Although we haven’t exchanged vows, the family’s accepted her as one of us. She just needs to get used it. “Of course.” She extends her hand quickly.
Everyone leans forward to look.
“Very nice,” Grandma says. “Now, that’s the kind of ring that can be passed down.”
“Exactly,” Aunt Jeremiah agrees with a sigh of relief.
“You all should know by now that I don’t do ugly,” I mutter.
She gives me a look. “Except you put that atrocious ‘heirloom’ on her finger. You’re lucky Ailee’s too nice to murder you. I almost had a heart attack.”
“You mean you had an extra cigar and whiskey,” Dad interjects with a light scoff, and Ares and Bryce nod.
She shrugs. “Better than therapy.”
“It’s lovely.” Akiko’s eyes sparkle. Dad looks at her, then at the ring, with a thoughtful expression, and I can tell that she’s going to get a sapphire ring soon. “Did Josh pick it out himself?”
“Yes,” Klein says. “I love it.” She turns red with a mixture of pleasure and shyness. It’s easy to see she isn’t used to being the center of attention. Not sure why, because she’s a pretty girl with a gentle heart and even more beautiful soul. She’s the only woman I know who glows from within.
She’s way too worried about pleasing my family, which isn’t necessary. They’ll love her the way she is because she’s the woman I chose. We trust one another to make the best choices we can.
Still, to alleviate her anxiety, I texted Akiko to ask if she could cut a large, colorful flower from her garden and make it part of her ensemble tonight. Klein visibly relaxed when she saw the enormous peony in my stepmother’s hair.
“I love the color. Is sapphire your favorite?” Lareina asks.
“You know, I’ve never thought much about it,” Klein says with a small smile. “I never had a chance to buy anything expensive. But when I saw the ring, my heart screamed yes.”
“You can trust Josh,” Akiko adds. “Every woman needs a few classic pieces. And he has excellent taste.”
“But…sapphires and stuff? When will I wear them?” Klein asks with a soft, shy laugh.
Lareina shrugs. “You can wear diamond studs anywhere.”
“Charity galas. Auctions,” Grandma says. “You might want to put something on to attend Lareina’s art shows.”
“I’d love to invite you to my next exhibit!” Lareina says with a bright smile. “You don’t even have to buy anything. I’ll give you a small painting to welcome you into the family!”
Klein’s eyes start to glaze over. “Well…” Her voice is slightly shaky. “I’ve never been to that sort of event.”
I frown a little. Didn’t her sister ever invite her to fashion shows and other events? Then I recall her family’s shitty treatment of her. They probably kept her away because they thought she wasn’t worthy. Assholes. They’re the ones who don’t deserve her.
“In that case, you should try one or two. Then if you decide you hate them, you don’t have to do it again.” Aunt Jeremiah sips her drink.
“Am I expected to socialize for Josh’s career and to help the family’s image?” Klein asks in a small voice. “It might be better if I…” She presses her lips together.
Frustration pinches my eyebrows together. I want to know the rest of the sentence, but her lips are nearly bloodless from pressure.
Grandma shakes her head. “Family is family. We’re not PR reps.”
“If you don’t want to show yourself in public, that’s fine.” I squeeze Klein’s hand. “We can stay home and chill.” I’d love to see her in nothing but my shirt again.
“Look at the time,” Akiko says. “You must be starving after work. Shall we start eating?”
Dad nods eagerly. Everyone else except maybe Aunt Jeremiah, who forgets to eat when she’s working, undoubtedly had something before coming. I just hope Klein had a big lunch when she went out with Bryce’s assistant Amélie today.
Akiko brings out her best pinot grigio and Sangiovese, cold and warm sake and Japanese plum wine. Her stemware and glasses are top of the line—and all the liquors from Japan are served in wide, shallow, gorgeous white porcelain cups.
The first course starts with everyone getting an empty white bowl. My brothers and I exchange looks. Do we have to imagine our food now? You never know with Akiko.
A ladle of clear soup made with chicken stock is poured. As the steam rises, a tree, its gnarled branches laden with countless delicate pink flowers, slowly appears on the bottom of the bowl.
Klein’s eyes widen. “Wow. Is that a cherry blossom tree?” She’s absolutely adorable as she stares at the elegantly done art.
“Yes! Isn’t it pretty?” Akiko beams. “I just had to get these bowls when I saw them in Tokyo last month. This is my first time using them. Thought it was appropriate to welcome you into the family.”
“I…don’t even know what to say.”
“Oh, just tell me you love my food,” Akiko teases.
“I thought you wanted honesty?” I say. Dad gives me a warning look, but Akiko takes it in good humor.
Klein laughs. “I’m sure I’ll love everything.”
Ares dips his spoon into Lareina’s bowl and tastes the soup. “Mmm. Light…delicate…”
“A light soup,” Bryce says. “Now there’s a surprise.” He gets the same scowl from Dad.
The next course is two bite-sized slices of duck breast topped with some kind of green glob.
Each plate has dark sauce, but instead of drizzling it over the pristine bone china, Akiko wrote a highly stylized kanji character, each unique to the diner.
Ares, Bryce and I lean over to read everyone’s characters, since we can read Japanese fairly well.
I freeze at the writing on Klein’s plate: Ai—love.
Memory tugs me back to the time when Klein first brought flowers to my office.
With the morning sunlight streaming in, illuminating her shy smile, she looked like love personified.
I started to call her name but stopped at the first syllable because something inside wanted to follow Ai with chan, a Japanese suffix to indicate affection and familiarity that I often used with my cousins in Tokyo and Kyoto.
So I started calling her Klein in order to avoid slipping and calling her Ai-chan—sweet love. Even though she wouldn’t know what it meant, my brothers would. And most importantly, I would.
When I’m worthy of Klein’s warmth, I might be able to bring myself to call her Ai-chan.
“What do you think? I think they fit every one of you perfectly.” Akiko looks at us.
“What do they all mean?” Grandma asks.
“Mine says autumn because that’s when I was born,” Akiko says. “Wisdom for you, Catalina, and trust for Prescott. Victory for Jeremiah.”
Grandma nods, and Dad places a soft kiss on Akiko’s temple. She smiles, glowing like the moon. Aunt Jeremiah preens—nothing makes her happier than winning.
Akiko continues, “Strength for Ares and courage for Lareina.”
“Wow. That’s so cool.” Lareina leans her head on Ares’s shoulder with a soft sigh. He kisses the top of her crown.
“Dependable for Bryce.”
At that, my twin smiles, and I marvel at how accurately Akiko pinpointed us.
“Love for Ailee because she’s such a lovely child.”
Klein traces the complex strokes on her plate with her eyes, full of surprise and wonder, probably shocked people would equate love with her. I squeeze her hand. “If you want, I’ll show you how to write it when we get home,” I whisper.
“And honor for you,” Akiko says to me. “Can also mean loyalty.”
I freeze and do my best to stay still, lest I squirm. I’ve never felt like I could be worthy of honor and loyalty, not with Mom insisting since I was a child that I’m just like her—a Dunkel.
“Honor. Loyalty. That’s so you.” Klein looks up at me. “I love it.”
Something’s wrong. My heart feels tight, and it’s racing too fast. I look into her brilliant violet eyes, Mom’s evil words fading away, and feel dazed and mildly shaky, like the earth is shifting under my feet.
“The character is totally you,” Bryce says with a grin.
“Thanks.” I turn to my stepmom. “Thank you, Akiko.”
She beams. “My pleasure. I just wanted to show my appreciation for…well, everyone.”
“You can do better than autumn for yourself, though,” Aunt Jeremiah says. “Maybe something like ‘home’…? You have a way of bringing people together and making everyone feel welcome.”
Akiko flushes with pleasure. “Thank you. I’m just happy to be part of the family and glad to provide a warm, comforting place for everyone.”
“Except that the kanji for ‘home’ is a pig under a roof,” says Ares.
Dad levels a stare at him that could melt titanium. “That is enough out of you three.” He turns to his wife. “You’ve done a remarkable job, my love,” Dad says.
We nod even as most of us laugh. Akiko had the unenviable job of marrying a single dad with three emotionally scarred boys. Although she took care to not poke at our wounds, she always stood behind us, letting us know she had our backs.
“Is there going to be any sashimi tonight?” Aunt Jeremiah asks. She’s fond of Akiko’s sashimi, even though there are only ever three slices at the most.
“Not tonight,” Akiko says. “Ailee has a seafood allergy, and I didn’t want any inadvertent cross-contamination. So not even the soup stock base contains fish.” She turns to Klein. “You’re perfectly safe.”
“Oh.” Klein stops, then slides her eyes toward Aunt Jeremiah. A moment later, she starts haltingly, “You didn’t really have to… I mean, I usually just eat around the fish, you know… You don’t have to inconvenience everyone just for me.”
My gut tightens. I know exactly who put that garbage in her head: her cunt-tastic mother and dickless father, who think there’s nothing wrong with ordering a family dinner full of seafood, not caring that Klein wouldn’t be able to eat anything.
Aunt Jeremiah looks at Klein like she just got slapped. “That would make me a bitch, my dear.”
“Exactly,” Lareina says.
“You’re part of the family,” Dad says.
“But I really don’t want to be a bother,” Klein says, almost too desperate to please.
It wrecks me to see her put everyone’s needs above her own, even when it might harm her.
I would’ve never guessed until I saw the way they treated her at Peking Town.
She’s always so sweet and considerate. The hatred for her parents that boils up in me is so fierce that it takes a physical effort not to snarl.
But maybe she and I excel at hiding the damage our parents left behind. Is that why something about her calls to me?
“Good God, child. If we can’t make such a small accommodation, what kind of people would that make us?
It isn’t like we can never have seafood again.
You shouldn’t feel that your needs are a bother for others, especially not here, not with the family.
” Grandma says it warmly, but the firmness in her tone says there won’t be any debate on this point.
Klein takes a moment to process. I tighten my hand around hers, hoping that what we’re saying here sinks in. It’s normal to accommodate, to care for, to show genuine affection for one another. I don’t want her to feel like she’s alone and unwanted, ever again.
“Josh…?” she says faintly, like she doesn’t dare believe it.
“You’re one of us now.” I raise her hand and kiss the center of her palm. “Welcome to the family.”