Chapter 5 #2
"Shall we sit? Charles and I thought we'd eat out on the balcony, since it's such nice weather today." Mama went straight to the wine outside, filling her glass almost to the brim.
She took a sip and sank into her chair with a sigh. There were only three places set at the table. Lara shot me a look, her gaze warm with amusement. A sympathetic grimace crossed Charles's face, and he pulled out his phone.
"Thompson? Can you arrange another setting and tell the chef we have another addition to lunch? Well, that's not my problem, is it? He should have prepared for second servings, right? Right. Get it done."
"Thank you, darling, you take care of everything." Mama batted her lashes at Charles.
Lara sipped her wine. To appease me more than anything else, I thought. I elected to stay sober, and yes, I felt mighty smug about it. I needed a clear head to scope out this pushy guy. Most of mama's men lasted less than a month and they didn't make themselves at home like this guy.
"Your mama was letting her house manager walk all over her, Ray, but don't worry, I'm taking it all in hand." Charles paused, like he expected me to praise him.
He could fuck right off.
My mama pulled him down to put a kiss on his cheek.
"Charles is a lifesaver. So attentive."
Unlike Papa. Those were the unsaid words. She might still be married to him, but there was no love in their union. I doubted there ever was. Anything resembling affection between them growing up would have been a miracle.
"How long have you been dating?" Lara asked, and my mom's nose lifted cooly in the air. Charles answered for her, jumping in with a tooth-filled grin.
"Oh, I would marry Daniela in a second, but she's still entangled. We're just 'special friends.'"
Special friends? I poked my tongue out in disgust, groaning as my mama and her younger man locked lips in front of us.
"I thought you said she had a revolving door of boy toys?" Lara leaned over in a whisper.
A strand of dark hair loosened in the sea breeze and brushed against her cheek. Her delicate scent drifted over me like silk. A cord of want jolted down my spine, stealing my breath for a moment. I was playing with fire being with Lara, but I couldn't stop myself.
"She does. Last time I found out her newest one was my former best friend. I didn't want another lunch of her fawning, especially with someone I thought was my friend."
"So who is this guy?" Lara laughed softly as the amorous pair opposite muttered sweet nothings.
I shuddered and eyed the wine. Did I have the strength to do this sober?
"Apologies, madam." A smooth voice interrupted us, and another man swept around the table, his arms full of small dishes. "Grilled shrimp, with a garlic butter sauce." He wore a sharp black suit and a white button up, but it hung on his lean frame, like my mother's demands had run him ragged.
The man put down a placemat in front of Lara and fussed with her silver cutlery.
"Thompson, I specifically requested no seafood. I'm not in the mood." Mama grimaced.
"Not to mention, your only son is allergic to it," I interjected, but she waved me off with a distracted scowl.
Lara's hand snuck over and squeezed my thigh. Thompson, the beleaguered professional that he was, paused for a moment. One dark eyebrow raised.
"Ma'am, my deepest apologies." He collected the plates and added, "I could have sworn you expressed a craving for this exact dish when we discussed everything earlier. I'll check my extensive notes to make sure the rest of the menu is correct."
Color flooded my mom's cheeks.
"That's unnecessary, Thompson. Just focus on getting lunch served soon." Charles flicked his wrist in a clear dismissal and Thompson's nose wrinkled, but he cleared the plates in silence.
I imagine working for my mama was a lesson in patience.
Mama was busy emptying her wineglass again. "Are you truly allergic to seafood? What about the salmon we had at Chester's a few weeks ago?"
"Not me, and it's shellfish. Only since, ah, I was five years old. Our maid took me to the hospital because you and Papa had something else to attend."
I could still smell the sharp chemicals and the eerie beeps that echoed through the hospital. I'd tossed on the hard, thin bed and called for my parents like a fool. Lara's hand squeezed my thigh, and I realized she'd never taken it off me. Warmth spread through me.
"Ah," Charles interjected, chagrined, unlike my mama. "I believe that was us, dear."
Her hardened gaze was unfocused as it drifted toward the ocean. "Oh, that's right. I remember now."
"I suppose that's the downside of dating men closer to your son's age. You get them mixed up," Lara joked, and my mama sucked in a sharp inhale.
Wind brought the ocean in, and the salty brine cleared my lungs. But the mood around the table was already bitter.
"And you? Larsa? Do you have anyone special in your life?" My mama gave Lara a thin-lipped smile.
Lara shrugged and winked at me. "All the good ones are taken."
I wondered about her ex, the one sending her violent messages. Was Lara attracted to red flag men? That boded very well for me. If there was one thing I excelled at, it was being a complete, toxic mess. Also, I looked fantastic in red.
"Never stopped me." Mama sniffed. "Your papa was in some sort of entanglement before he fell for me, you know. I've always had the burden of being beautiful. Did Ray tell you about the movies I starred in before he was born?"
"He mentioned something. Were they big roles?" Lara poured a mineral water and the bubbles rolled to the rim.
Charles pecked a kiss on Mama's head and brushed her hair away with a lingering touch. The show of affection seemed genuine, but I didn't trust it. A genetic predisposition to paranoia.
"Well, no, they weren't starring roles, but I had great potential. The director praised me for my…" she pressed her finger to her lip, "what was it?"
"Your ability to cry on cue," Charles and I said at the same time.
I wasn't surprised he'd heard this story before. It was the first one rolling off her tongue the minute a drop of alcohol landed on it.
"Before I ruined her chances by being born, whoops." Damn, I wanted a drink.
I wanted to get back in Betty and speed down the coast until adrenaline swallowed every other feeling in my body.
Until there was only the glorious rush in my veins.
My mama's eyes glittered, and I fought the urge to laugh.
Our lunches rarely ended without a tantrum or tears.
I guess it was waterworks today. I patted Lara's hand on my thigh. Brace yourself.
"Well, I guess I'm just the worst mama in the world. Il peggiore."
She pressed a napkin to the corner of her eye. Charles fussed, offering wine and empty platitudes. She peered at me over the white square and dissolved into a fit of sobs when I stayed silent.
She was a terrible mom.
I was a terrible son.
The Donatos were rotting fruit infecting an entire tree.
Lara stood up and held out her hand to me. "I'm calling it. Let's go."
I looked at her in confusion as my mama's wails split the serenity of the ocean. A spray of seagulls veered in the opposite direction to avoid her theatrical display.
"Your mama is hurting. Can't you console her? Blood is blood, Ray. Don't forget who raised you." Charles bundled my mama into his arms and gave me a reproachful look.
That was enough. I was trying so damn hard to be civilized, but I was not about to be lectured by a stranger who had barely more years alive than I did.
My papa was disappointing, and I didn't need a lecture from someone vying to be equally mediocre.
The silverware clattered as I launched out of my chair.