Chapter 6 #2
“But that’s the beauty part.” I gear up for the hard sell. “It really won’t be extra work if we plan it together. I was thinking we ask Marcel Creations to cater it. They supply all the tables, glasses, cutlery, then they take it all away when the party is over.”
“Marcel Creations—he’s one of the most expensive caterers in Vegas. He’s done parties at the club for the Hollywood crowd, and when I saw the bill, I nearly choked. Thank fuck, some studio exec was paying for it.”
“Will you please just listen and stop talking about money?” I lay my mug on the kitchen counter and head for the dining room.
“We could have ice sculptures in the shape of snowflakes in here.” Then I point to the family room.
“And maybe even a Frozen theme for the kids. I’m thinking we’ll let people bring their kids since it’s a holiday party.
Marcel will supply everything we need, plus the food, and he’ll also suggest and hire all the extra staff we’ll need. ”
“Staff?”
“Yes, I’m sure you don’t want to spend the night making drinks behind the bar, and I’m not spending it in the kitchen. That way we can enjoy our own party.”
“I don’t know.” He gulps at his coffee. “Sounds like a lot, and I barely have time to do the shit I have to do.”
“Afraid you’ll miss a night at the club?” I sound snarky, but I can’t hide my disappointment, especially when I laid out how easy it would be to host.
“Yeah, that’s it exactly.”
“You mean to tell me you can’t come home early one night next week?”
“On one of the busiest weeks of the year? That’s exactly what I’m saying.
We got big company holiday parties in the VIP, smaller groups in the main room, and just the general public looking to kick back on their days off.
The week between Christmas and New Year’s is a busy time in Vegas, and a huge moneymaker for Wicked. ”
“So, you’re saying even if I fund the entire party, you won’t take a night off?” My stomach knots with anger, but I keep my voice level.
“Won’t you and Izzy be busy at Selective that week too?”
“All the events we have coming up are already scheduled. We’re completely booked, so I can’t add any new events.” I close the distance between us and rest my palms on his chest. “I’m asking for one night, Nick.”
“Let’s not start that again.”
“You’re telling me it’s too much trouble to set aside one night for me?”
“You’re twisting my words again.” He screws up his lips. “I know what this is all about. You’re still pissed ‘cause I missed Portia’s concert last night, huh?”
My hands drop to my sides. “It’s not about that, but you have missed quite a few things over the last couple of months.”
“Shit, it’s not like I’m out pissing our money away. I’m working, making us more money.”
“I understand that, but you said you wanted to be a father to Portia.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” The little vein on the side of his neck begins to pulse. “You know I do.”
“You couldn’t make Portia’s parent/teacher conference, Back to School Night, or the Halloween parade, not to mention dinner dates with other couples I’ve turned down because I know you’ll say you’re working.”
“And I better keep working to support all this.” He waves his arm toward the monster Christmas tree in the foyer.
“What are you trying to say?”
“All this bullshit. Decorating the house like a fuckin’ department store.”
“Don’t worry about your precious money; I paid for all this because it makes me happy, and it puts a smile on Portia’s face. I also plan on paying for the party I’m hosting, but I’m not doing it alone unless you’re on board and willing to take the night off.”
“Right, take the night off to entertain people I don’t even give a shit about.”
“You don’t give a shit about Izzy, Samson and Jax?”
“Don’t twist my fuckin’ words again. You know what I mean. If I leave the guest list to you, you’ll have fifty people here.”
“Seventy-five, not including the kids.”
“Seventy-five people?” The vein pulses harder.
“It’s not like the house can’t accommodate that many people.”
“Doesn’t mean we have to pack ‘em in.” He throws up his arms. “This is exactly what I was talking about.”
“You used to like to go out and have fun, but lately you’re—”
“Fuckin’ tired. I pulling ten, twelve hours at the club, and when I get home, I’m exhausted, but you just don’t seem to get it.”
“No, you’re right, I really don’t. You’ve been complaining since Thanksgiving about every little thing I do. Just because I want to make our house a home and entertain a few people.”
“That’s ‘cause you’ve been off the rails for weeks, and seventy-five people is not a few.”
“Off the rails?”
“Ever since Thanksgiving, you’ve been crazy manic with the decorations, the gifts and all the other shit that goes with it. When you’re not working, you’re on your computer buying shit we don’t need. Now, you wanna invite seventy-five people—of whom I’ll know maybe five.”
“Are you telling me how I can spend my money?”
“You’re driving me fuckin’ crazy with this shit. I don’t know what you’re trying to prove, but it’s too much.”
“Really? Well, maybe I’ve gone a bit overboard cause you act like it’s not even the holidays or our first holiday all together.”
“We got everything we’ve ever wanted, but for some reason, it’s not enough for you.” Nick’s eyes narrow. “You having second thoughts about us?”
“Why would you even say that?”
“‘Cause the only thing that’s changed in your life the last few months is you and me getting back together, and moving into this house with Portia.”
“Is that what you think?”
“You left me once.”
Nick’s words hung between us like a silent nuclear bomb.
“I can’t believe you’re throwing what my father did in my face. You know I didn’t want to leave that night, but if I hadn’t, you would’ve lost everything.”
He closes the distance between us. “Look, I shouldn’t have said that.”
“No, you shouldn’t have, but you did, so I guess the next thing you’re going to say is that I kept Portia from you for ten years.”
He cocks his head, and I push further. “Go ahead and say it. At least that part is true, but you know why I did that too, because I didn’t want you to feel obligated to me or to Portia.”
His dark eyes burn into me. “If you think that, then you don’t even know me.”
“Maybe I don’t.”
Nick storms out of the dining room, and I follow him.
“So, you’re shutting down?” I know I’m pushing him, and I’m not really sure why. “Instead of talking this out or even fighting this out, you’re shutting down.”
“I’m not doing this.”
“And that’s it. You don’t want to talk, and I have no say in the matter.”
“You have plenty to say about everything,” he throws over his shoulder.
“This can’t just be about me decorating the house and wanting to have a holiday party.”
He spins around to face me. “We were apart a long-ass time, babe.”
“Yes, we were, and we went over all that, but you can’t let it go. You can’t forget how I kept Portia from you, can you? And now you’re going to punish me.”
Nick stays silent. His dark ebony eyes, so much like Portia’s, bore into me, and I can’t look away.
“Go ahead and say it.” I push him further.
“Say what?”
“That you still haven’t forgiven me for keeping Portia a secret.”
“I said, I’m not doing this.”
“Why not? Afraid of what I’ll say, or maybe you’re afraid of what you’ll say.”
He throws his hands up in the air. “Maybe you don’t even want me to live here anymore.”
“When you first moved in, you said you wanted us to get married,” I remind him. “But you haven’t mentioned it since.”
“That’s ‘cause I’m trying to build up the business. I wanna make sure we have enough money and don’t have to struggle.”
“Just sounds like an excuse to me.” I stand my ground. “If you really wanted to marry me, nothing would stop you.”
“It’s just not the right time.”
“Maybe there will never be a right time for you.”
“I refuse to throw you and Portia into a life where you have to scrounge to survive. Maybe that’s a little over the top, but being poor again is a ghost that haunts me every fuckin’ day, which is why I work my ass off the make money.”
He heads up the stairs, and I call after him, “All you talk about is money, money, money, but money won’t keep you company, and it sure won’t warm your bed at night.”
The bedroom door slams, and my eyes fill with tears as I stand alone in our beautiful foyer with my perfectly decorated balsam fir tree.