Chapter 1
ABI
Ten Years Later…
“Great work, Samantha. The hydrangeas are TDF-gorg!” I compliment as I spin the flowers, making slight adjustments that aren’t needed but I can’t help but stick my hands in them. Samantha long ago started doing jobs on her own, but this one is too important to not have my special touch.
“I know,” she preens, turning this way and that, offering pose after pose.
Janey, sneaking up behind Samantha, holds a finger to her lips telling me to be quiet. It takes a hard bite of my lip, but I do it just long enough for Janey to smack Samantha on the butt. The echo is sharp. So is Samantha’s screech as she whirls.
“Bullseye!” Janey exclaims as she blows on her hand.
“I’m gonna get you back for that!” Samantha promises. At the same time, she grabs for Janey, aiming to land a smack of her own to Janey’s generous backside. And then they’re swirling around me and I’m somehow involved too.
I land a smack of my own to Samantha, but mostly, we just dissolve into giggles. Right up until the vase of hydrangeas starts to tilt.
That stops us cold in our tracks with matching looks of horror as we all reach to settle the arrangement on the front foyer table.
“Maybe we save this battle for the shop this week? We’ve got a lot to finish before showtime.” I swear it’s like herding kittens high on catnip when the three of us work together on something this important, but a good dose of craziness helps us deal with the nerves.
Janey and Samantha throw me matching half-ass salutes, but given the way they’re eyeing each other, I’m reasonably certain that as soon as I leave the room, they’ll continue the melee.
I point V’d fingers at my eyes and then flip them around to communicate clearly that I’m watching them.
“You break it, you buy it,” I warn, knowing that everything from the rug beneath our feet to the table the vase is sitting on, is way too expensive for them even though I pay them well.
“Oh! Hey Courtney!” Janey’s looking over my shoulder, presumably to my sister. She might be my younger sibling, but she’s the boss of every room she enters. Including this one, even though it’s at our parent’s house.
“Everything looks great!” she says, going right to the flowers we almost destroyed. After a quick appreciation, her eyes turn to me and widen in shock. “Except for you, Abs. T minus one hour till people start arriving and I’m assuming that if you look like that, Maisie looks even worse?”
I will not let my daughter be insulted like that, so with one hand on my hip and one finger pointing in her face, I snarl, “Take that back or you’re going to lose your Coolest Aunt crown!”
She’s not cowed in the slightest. Instead, she smirks because she knows she’s got her competition beat, hands down. “Aunt Vi might have friends for Maisie to play with, but she doesn’t have an indoor trampoline, fully stocked arts and crafts cabinet, and membership at the science museum.”
“Are you buying my daughter’s affection?” I accuse as I fight a smile.
She raises a sharp brow in response.
Courtney really is a great aunt for my daughter, Maisie, and Vi’s kids, Carly and the twins, Aida and Aldo, though she does have a tendency to spoil them, sugar them up, and then send them home.
See? She’s the best.
And also, she’s right unfortunately. Looking at the dirt under my manicure and knowing that I haven’t fixed my hair yet, I’d be willing to bet that my daughter is probably in need of an actual bath before party time.
“I’ll go find her.”
I’m halfway to the back door when Courtney calls out, “Mom already sent Maisie upstairs. She’s probably pruney from her bubble bath by now.”
And like that, I’m jealous of my daughter . . . and considering taking a bubble bath of my own. I wonder where my sexy husband is? Maybe he could join me for a quickie if I throw my hair into an updo?
“No time for any of that,” Courtney says, able to read my mind. “Thirty minutes and I want everyone in the parlor for a family meeting before guests arrive. Don’t be late or we’ll move the meeting to the bathroom and then Mom and Dad will see that tattoo on your ass.”
“You’re the worst. You swore you’d never use that against me!
” I haven’t gone tattoo crazy like Lorenzo, who’s nearly covered beneath his clothes now with black linework that’s sexy as hell, but let’s just say that I have stopped by to see Reno a few more times since the night we got our wedding band tattoos.
“Not using it against you. Just telling you how it is. Tonight is too important to leave anything to chance.” With that, she goes back to looking at the tablet in her hands, checking her list again.
She’s definitely already checked it countless times before, so that she’s doing it again, is a sign of her nerves.
“Court,” I say kindly, getting close to her but not touching her with my plant-y hands. She drags her eyes up to meet mine. “You’re ready for this, one hundred percent.”
“You think?” she asks softly.
“Everyone knows you are, especially Dad, or he wouldn’t be retiring and leaving the reins to you.” I know that’s her biggest worry – disappointing the man she’s modeled her career after.
“I know.” She doesn’t sound sure and I glare at her. Stronger, she says, “I. Know. This is everything I’ve been working for. And I’m ready. I guess I just can’t believe it’s actually happening.” She huffs out a tiny laugh, “I think there’s a part of me that thought Dad would never retire.”
“Really? I figured Mom would have him doing month-long retiree cruises years ago.” Dad doesn’t know that Mom really does have one of those booked for three weeks from now. Part retirement gift, part ‘get him out of Courtney’s hair’ gift.
Courtney slaps a hand over my mouth, looking over her shoulder like Dad might hear me. I lift a wry brow at the same time I lick her palm.
“Ugh! Gross! What are you . . . ten?” she cries. Janey hands her a towel, knowing that Court isn’t the type to just wipe the spit on her nice dress. As she wipes her hand off, she jerks her chin toward the stairs, “You have twenty-five minutes now. Better make good use of them.”
I’m halfway up the stairs to do what she said, which is not necessarily what she meant, when she yells after me, “Send Lorenzo down now. No time for hanky-panky and I could use his help in the kitchen.”
Ugh. She’s such a spoilsport.
In my bedroom, I see my dress hanging on the closet door and my shoes sitting below.
On the other door is Maisie’s dress. I grab her emerald green one and head toward the master bedroom, knowing that if she’s in a bubble bath, it’s in Mom’s deep garden tub.
I knock on the door to be safe because I don’t want to accidentally walk in on Mom and Dad in a compromising position if I’m wrong about which tub Maisie is in.
“Come in,” Mom calls, but I still open the door slowly, with one hand over my eyes. “We’re decent, dear,” Mom laughs.
I move my hand to see Mom straightening Dad’s already-straight tie, but she comes my way once she sees the dress. “Here, give me that and I’ll make sure Maisie gets ready while you get cleaned up. She was out in the garden again, ‘rescued’ some worms.”
“Thanks, Mom.” As I hand the dress over, she sees my dirtied cuticles and clucks her tongue. Under her breath, I’m sure I hear her say ‘like mother, like daughter’. I don’t think she’s talking about me and her, but me and my ‘free spirit-verging on feral’ daughter.
Back in my room, I hop in the shower, resign myself to my usual messy updo even though I’d had grand illusions of actually fixing my hair into something fancier this time, and do a quick makeup application focusing on heavy mascara and red lips because that’s all I have time for.
Okay, I’m ready.
The flowers are ready.
Mom’s getting Maisie ready.
Oh shit . . . hopefully, Courtney tracked down Lorenzo because I totally forgot that she asked me to do that. Oops.
Lorenzo
I can’t help but hang out in the kitchen with the caterers.
You never know what trick you might learn, what recipe you might taste, what ingredient or presentation you might discover.
Of course, Morgan had asked if I wanted to caterer tonight’s event, but I wanted to be here as family, not working in the kitchen all evening.
Ironic that’s where I end up anyway. But at least I can duck out when Courtney calls a family meeting.
In the living room, I find most everyone already assembled.
Ross and Violet are sitting on the couch with their three kids – Carly, Aida, and Alto – between them.
Kaede is standing slightly behind Courtney, who’s quietly discussing something with Morgan.
Kimberly is sitting on the couch listening to a very animated story from my daughter, Maisie.
The story is apparently about . . . worms? I’m not surprised.
The only suspicious absence? My beautiful wife.
I point to the stairs, silently asking if I should go track her down. There’s no telling where my lovely bride has gone off too, or what she’s gotten tied up in.
Courtney shakes her head. “I sent Karl to grab her. You’ll have to fill her in because we have a timeline to stick to.”
I nod, not willing to get in Courtney’s way when she’s in Boss Mode.
“Good. Tonight is important, we all know that. I need everyone to be on their best behavior,” Courtney starts and Morgan lays a gentle hand on her shoulder.
“Honey, I think the only one that needs to hear that is still upstairs.”
I’d defend my wife, but Morgan’s right and we all know it, so I just smile with a shrug.
If Abigail’s impulsivity gets her in trouble, I’ll take special delight in handling it .
. . and her. The very idea is actually rather appealing and I wonder if I could help her find a little moment of crazy tonight that won’t set Courtney off.