Wedding Bells #4
“Because you aren’t giving me an inch in any of this.
I could’ve come here with ill-intentions and anyone who didn’t actually care about my son would’ve been happy if I had nefarious intentions.
That meant that they would’ve had a way out of this situation.
But not you. You’re not sitting here meekly taking anything, you’re unapologetically being yourself.
” Faith folded her arms on the table careful to keep her elbows off like etiquette demanded.
“Is that a bother?”
She was silent her eyes intently studying my face the same way her sons did before she smiled. Her smile was broad and natural, which is where she differed from her offspring.
“No. I adore that, actually. If I had been you thirty-five years ago, Ori wouldn’t be here. So I guess something good came out of that misery.”
A glimpse into her past that she didn’t seem bothered to discuss. I hoped she’d be willing to elaborate on it.
“This story sounds painful.”
The server came back with our champagne and set the bucket down on the table. She poured Faith’s drink with a flourish and then looked between the two of us, seeing if we needed anything. I took a sip of my drink and gave her a nod that it was well made. She glanced at Faith who also nodded.
When the server left Faith turned to me and she looked more nervous than before.
“What do you know?”
“Very little, honestly. About any of this. It’s never been something that I’ve been involved in.
My father’s affairs. Business or otherwise.
My focus has always been on my education and now my career.
I’ve lent time as a consultant in case he ever needed help with the business but the need for this is still beyond me. ”
“There’s always a reason, Asha.”
I kept my glass in my hand swirling the blue liquid against the crystal walls feeling uneasy with her words. “What does that mean? And are you purposefully trying to sound ominous or are you simply doing it for the effect?”
“I’m giving you the warning that no one gave me all those years ago.
You might think it’s something as simple as an agreement, but it’s not.
” She leaned back in her seat her face tight and I knew it was more the memory of her past than her concerns for my future.
If nothing else, I was sure she knew her son would protect me but she couldn’t help but worry because of what she’d been through.
“Now, which party do you think is being less than altruistic?”
“I don’t think it’s a lack of altruism on anyone’s part. I think it’s more complex than anyone is letting on.”
“Again, doesn’t bode well for this union.”
Her smile was soft, almost wistful and I wondered if I’d offended her. “With Ori, there’s never any guise. He’s always straightforward. I know nothing of your father but I know about your mother.”
“Please don’t tell me you’re one of her social media followers.”
My mother had gotten it into her head that she wanted to be an influencer.
Sasha always laughed at that idea. She said that my mother’s only desire in the world was to make other people jealous of her and I could tell that’s exactly why she was doing it.
My father told her that if she got robbed he wasn’t replacing any of her stuff or allowing her to claim it on their insurance and run up the premiums.
“Your mother has a social media following? Do they know that?” I knew the they before she needed to elaborate and I could only assume they’d done an extensive background check on our whole family. It made me wonder what they thought of her. And if they thought I was anything like her.
“I’m assuming that you mean this collective of interests that governs everything.”
She smiled at my description but seemed happy that I wasn’t putting a name to the collective. “Yes. Them.”
I shrugged unsure of what they knew because I hadn’t bothered to ask.
“I’m sure they do. I can’t imagine that we haven’t been thoroughly vetted back several generations to ensure we weren’t doing anything nefarious.
Well, nefarious dealings that are counterproductive to whatever end they need.
” We shared a smirk and it was a silent unspoken acknowledgment of what we were involved in.
“They’re thorough.”
My head tilted as her words rang out loudly in the crowded restaurant. “An odd choice of words.”
Faith looked confused as to what I meant and she sat her glass down on the table. “I’m sorry?”
“You said they instead of we. From what I understood, you were the linchpin in all of this. Why are you speaking about yourself as though you’re powerless?
“Because I am now. My seat is now Pappy’s.”
“I absolutely refuse to believe that’s true.
I’ve met the man albeit briefly, I’m sure he would give you the in if you wanted it.
” Sitting here with Faith I didn’t get the same feeling with her that I got from my mother.
I knew when women were full of shit and that wasn’t Faith.
She felt… troubled but not in the way I’d assumed.
“How do you think that?”
“Because you gave birth to the head of the family.”
She laughed as though I wasn’t aware of their fracture before she turned serious. “My son despises me.”
“I think more accurately your son only knows the child version of events and you probably need to fill him in on the reality. At least the reality from your standpoint.”
She flinched and I didn’t soften the tone of my voice because there was no negativity attached to it. “That sounded like a dig.”
I let my fingers play along the rim of my flute as I shook my head.
“No, it sounds like the truth. Humans have a natural affinity to exaggerate or to make themselves less culpable of harm they’ve caused.
It takes someone truly detached from their emotions to be an accurate reporter of history.
Everything has a slant. An angle. A motive.
Yours is that you love your son. I’ve never experienced that type of maternal love myself but I’ve seen how mothers should care for their children.
You still have that despite the fact that you haven’t been around for a few decades.
That alone leads me to believe that you’re not a monster. ”
“I see what their angle was now with you.” She wagged her finger her face once again free of tension as she nodded in silent agreement.
“Pardon?”
“You’re smart. And not normal smart. You’re probably somewhere near the genius level of intelligence if I’m not mistaken.” She sat back in the smooth, deep emerald velvet of the booth and waited for my confirmation.
I suppressed a smile but there wasn’t a need to answer her. There was no way to do so without sounding arrogant. “That could be true but no one would really know that.”
“They go over everything with a fine-tooth comb, Asha. They don’t allow weakness into the family.”
“You seemed like you had a story you were ready to tell. Is that still something you wanted to do or are we stopping with a drink?” It was my turn to sit back and get comfortable because I was ready to hear whatever this story was.
“I have a bottle of champagne, free time and good company. I think it’s time to have this conversation with someone. Maybe after I speak with you I’ll have the nerve to talk to him.” She took a deep drink of her champagne likely shoring up her courage and I felt like we were getting somewhere.
“You reached out to him he said. So it’s not as though you haven’t been around.” I’d wondered what had been the impetus for her to reach out now. Was it because we were going to be married and she felt that it was her way in?
“Around, but not active.” Her response was slightly guarded and I pressed her to elaborate.
“Now I’m intrigued.”
“Are you ladies ready to order?”
I’d been here often enough to know several of the things I wanted to order off the menu.
The Sunbird was a beautiful restaurant that took its name from the collared sunbird, which was in most of sub-Saharan Africa.
The colors of the restaurant, the vibrant chartreuse, deep teal and emerald, were also taken from the coloring of the animal.
It wasn’t like a lot of other places in DC that were only for show and ambience.
They served actual food and the service was always immaculate, in addition to having a beautiful space with a great location.
“What do you recommend?”
“Are you someone who eats or do you exist in the realm of food in fuel?”
She grinned at my question immediately making me relax. “I didn’t come here for a salad.”
Thankful to hear it I posed another question, hoping she’d agree. “Do you mind if I order for the table?”
She closed her menu and shook her head. “By all means.”
“To start could we get the Lobster scampi Mac and cheese, the marinated beef skewers, an order of calamari and the house salad to split, please?” The server added everything onto her tablet nodding her head and repeating it out loud before she gathered one of our menus and walked away.
“You said this was to start?”
Faith looked confused but I wasn’t someone who played with eating. Having been once deprived of the ability to eat for days I refused not to indulge.
“Big brain needs fuel.”
“To be young and to eat whatever you want.” Faith was still a very attractive woman so I had no idea what she was seeing if she had issues with her form.
“Is that all?” The server looked between us, and I wondered if she were silently judging my order.
I smiled not wanting to be rude since I was unsure of the motivation behind her question. “For now. We’ll be here a while.”
“Do you need another 75 or would you like me to pour your glass?”
“Champagne will be fine.”
With a nod, the server topped up both of our glasses before placing the champagne back in ice.