Chapter 13 The Calvary Has Arrived… and Her Name Is Josephine James
The Calvary Has Arrived… and Her Name Is Josephine James
Ben
I won’t gloat. Not outwardly, anyway. I’m going to take the high road.
I’ll be the mature, good older brother that I am.
It’s going to be hard but I can definitely do it.
I let out a happy sigh as I stare out the window to the front yard.
It’s close to eleven p.m. and any second now, Dominic’s car is going to pull up, and three miserable-looking people will get out.
Well, my mum might not be miserable, but Dominic and Vivian sure as hell will be.
Mum was horrified when I called to say Dominic was giving up on finding love and was marrying a woman, and that the wedding was going to be next month.
My parents are big believers in the sanctity of marriage, in true love, and in honesty.
She immediately made plans to get on the next flight back home so she could do what I had failed to do—talk some sense into him.
(That’s literally what I told her. I had failed and I needed her to talk him back from the ledge.
It’s a little dramatic maybe, but desperate times call for opinionated mothers.)
She was so concerned, she took a cab from the airport straight to the resort when she landed.
There’s a very petty part of me that wishes I could’ve seen her give them the dressing down they deserve.
But knowing it happened (and that Vivian is about to exit stage left) is really enough.
They can pretend to break up on-line, and everything will go back to normal. Yes, it’s going to be wonderful.
Oh, there’s his car now! I hurry away from the window, flop onto the couch, and pick up a book off the coffee table so I can pretend I’ve been sitting here reading while I wait to greet my mum. The sound of the car doors shutting is followed by loud voices.
Oh! They’ve been arguing. This is perfect!
And now … laughter. Lots of laughter.
Huh. Not what I was expecting.
The three of them come tumbling into the house, Dominic lugging my mum’s suitcase while the two women giggle hysterically about something.
What?
Why are they having fun? They’re supposed to be devastated. Or at least quietly resigned to their fate. Not … having a blast. Dominic glares at me from behind them and shakes his head, mouthing, “You lose.”
Before I can mouth anything back, Mum stops laughing and gestures to me. “Oh, Ben, there you are! Come give me a hug.”
Tossing the book, I get up and do as she asked. Every time I hug her, I’m reminded of how little she is. In my mind, she’s still the adult and I’m a kid, until I hug her, and she seems so small and fragile. “There’s my favorite lady,” I tell her.
We pull back and she lifts her hands to my face, holding onto my cheeks. “Let me look at you.”
I give her an awkward smile with my cheeks squished by the palms of her hands. She narrows her eyes. “You look too skinny. Are you eating enough?”
“Of course I’m eating enough,” I tell her, annoyed that she’s talking about my weight when she should be telling Vivian to go pack. She brings her face closer to mine and I get a distinct whiff of booze. “You look sick. Have you been sick?”
“No, I’m not sick. Are you … drunk?”
“A little,” she says, dropping her hands. “Viv and I went for a few drinks to get to know each other before the show.”
Vivian elbows my mum. “And we may or may not have sneaked a couple into the show as well.”
They both erupt into laughter, leaning on each other to stay upright. Then Mum says, “But we’re not admitting anything.”
“No, we’re not!” Vivian answers.
Oh. My. God. Clearly my mother didn’t understand the assignment. She wasn’t supposed to get all chummy and tipsy with the homewrecker. She was supposed to lay down the law, set them straight, and return things to their normal state. “Umm, so I take it you didn’t discuss the wedding?”
My mum nods. “Oh, we sure did. We had a lovely dinner together while I got to know Vivian and I heard all about their big plans.” Turning back to Vivian, she says, “Wasn’t that curry dish to die for?”
“So good,” Vivian agrees. “I could eat another full plate of it right now.”
Okay, that’s it. I clear my throat with authority. “But what you had for supper isn’t important right now, is it? What matters is this situation we find ourselves in.”
Mum waves a hand at me. “Oh that. You were overreacting.”
Whhhhhaaatttt? “No, I’m definitely not overreacting to my little brother giving up on love and marrying a woman.”
My mom shrugs. “Listen, Ben, you’re on the wrong side of history here. Trust me. There are all kinds of love out there, and they’re all equally valid— platonic is as important as romantic.”
Dominic gives me a smug grin. “Yes, it is.”
Mum continues. “If I’ve learned nothing else from Bridgerton, it’s that friendship is the best basis for a relationship.”
Bridger-what? “Friendship? They met last week!”
Pointing to Vivian and Dom, my mom adds, “And they just clicked. They totally get each other, which is so rare. And honestly, what they’re doing is beautiful.”
“What they’re doing is illegal and dishonest,” I say.
“It’s not illegal!” Dominic answers.
“Lying to immigration officers is absolutely a crime. And it carries a hefty penalty of prison time too,” I tell them in a grave tone.
“Pffft,” my mum answers. “You worry too much. Your brother is a brilliant actor and the whole world is already falling in love with them falling in love. The immigration officer will see their videos and will give them the immediate stamp of approval.” She gasps, then turns to Vivian. “You should use my mum’s wedding ring!”
Oh. My. God. Grandma Georgie’s ring? My head feels like it’s about to explode right about now as my mother is holding up her right hand to show Vivian the vintage art deco-style diamond ring. “My mum wore it, and her mum wore it, and now I’m wearing it, and we’ve all had long, happy marriages!”
Vivian shakes her head. “No, I couldn’t, Jo. I wouldn’t feel right about it. But thank you so much for the offer.”
“I want you to have it! It’s not like this one is going to get married,” she says, pointing to me with a dismissive thumb. “And if Dominic gets remarried, it won’t look right on his husband.”
“Mum, are you serious right now? You’re going to give Grandma Georgie’s ring to a perfect stranger?”
“She’s about to be my daughter-in-law. Of course she can have it.”
“It’s a fake marriage!”
“It’s different. It’s not fake,” she answers firmly. “And stop raising your voice. You’ll wake Henry.”
“Henry has literally slept through a hurricane before,” I answer, blowing a long puff of air out my nose. “I cannot believe you actually approve of your youngest child marrying a total stranger—a woman—who’s going to sneak him off to New York for the rest of his life?!”
She gives me a firm nod. “Yes. I do, and not only that, I’m going to go with them tomorrow to pick out a cake and order flowers so I can show my support to the world.”
“What? You’re going on her channel?”
Smiling, she says, “Yes. I’ll do whatever I can to help.
Dominic and I had the best heart-to-heart, and I can see how lovely Vivian here is going to help him live his dream.
And he, in return, is going to help revive her career.
Marriages are built on much less, you know.
At least they genuinely like each other.
That’s more than a lot of married couples I know have. ”
“Okay,” I say, deciding to change tactic.
I turn to Dominic. “Let’s set the whole marriage thing aside.
Have either of you thought about the baby part of it?
Because once the wedding is over, she’s going to need some other gimmick.
And as you probably know from the last five years, raising a child isn’t exactly the same thing as getting a tiny dog you can fit in your Prada bag. ”
Dominic rolls his eyes. “Obviously we already know that, Ben. And no one is talking about children here.”
I look over at Vivian. “Is that true? Are you going to stop at the wedding or will your followers abandon you when they start having families?”
She shifts a little on her feet, her expression sheepish. “Well, I mean, my management team has floated the idea, but only because they believe this is a real relationship.”
I give my mum a ‘See? I told you’ look. “Do you hear this? They might bring a child into this insanity. A real human child.”
“It wouldn’t have to be a human,” Vivian says. “There’s a huge following for people with fur babies.” She looks at Dominic. “Would you object to a well-trained mini-poodle?”
“I’d love one, so long as it’s a French bulldog,” Dominic answers. “Anything for my boo.”
Mum smiles at them, then purses her lips at me. “They could be pet parents. It’s all the rage now.”
“Oh for…” I stop myself and scrub my face with both hands. “You’re seriously all right with this insanity? What about being honest? What about living your truth? Dominic is gay.”
My mother makes a tsking sound and shakes her head at me. “Ben, my sweet, sweet boy, you need to get with the times. The idea that only romantic love counts is so outdated. Have you not heard of a lavender marriage?”
“No, I haven’t.”
“Well, it’s what they’re doing, and it’s lovely—a true partnership.”
Dominic gives me a nasty smile. “Yeah, Ben, get with the times. What we’re doing is lovely.”
Righteous frustration courses through me.
“Lovely? Are you serious right now? What about the sanctity of marriage? Do you even remember what a hard time you gave me when Maisie moved in? And then when we found out about Henry?” I ask, raising my voice.
“You told me how horribly disappointed you were, but this? This is okay?”
She shrugs. “I’ve become a lot more open minded over the last few years, and honestly, it was thanks to you boys. You created a family for Henry together. Not a traditional one, but the one he needed.”