Chapter 17 #2
Lilit paused and wiped a stray tear with a swipe of her long, manicured fingernail. I sat on the edge of my seat. I’d never heard her speak about something so reverently. William was also rapt with attention, stroking my hand with the pad of his thumb.
Lilit drank more of her martini and continued.
“Rebecca and I were together during a time when same-sex relationships weren’t common in the public eye.
So we were often discreet and secretive.
It was difficult, but we were happy. One day, she was supposed to meet me at the café for lunch.
I waited for hours, and there were no cell phones back then, so it wasn’t until later that evening when her cousin knocked on our door to let me know.
He was the one person in her family who knew about our relationship.
He told me the police stopped by her parents’ house and told them she was struck dead by a vehicle while crossing the road. ”
My heart broke watching her relive the painful memories. “I’m so sorry, Aunt Lilit.”
Lilit waved her hand in a throwaway manner and took in a deep breath to compose herself. “I’m okay. Sometimes I go years without talking about her, so it’s nice to hear her name on my lips. To tell someone how incredible she was and how much we loved each other.”
I squeezed William’s hand, and he reciprocated in kind.
She took a beat. “So when I see young lovers such as yourselves, it reminds me of the good times. And how lucky I was myself. You do realize how lucky you are, right?”
“Every damn day,” William said with conviction.
I smiled at him. “Yes.”
“Well, then.” Lilit clapped her hands. “Don’t take it for granted. And for god’s sake, scream it from the mountaintops.”
I knew my aunt was referring to the fact that I still hadn’t told my parents about William yet. “Do you have any pictures of Rebecca?”
“Yes, somewhere around here. I travel with my photo albums. When you get old, sometimes all you want to do is live in the past.”
We got up to go inside, but William excused himself to answer a phone call.
Lilit followed me back into the house. “Quite the catch, Nairie. Well done.”
“I think I’m in love with him.”
Lilit paused and smiled fondly. “That’s obvious. So what are you waiting for?”
“To tell him?”
“Yes, and your parents.”
We entered the sunken living room, and Lilit riffled through the side table cabinets to find her photo albums.
I looked down in shame. “I don’t know. I don’t want them to ruin it.”
Lilit chuckled and brought out a humongous album the size of an encyclopedia. We sat on the couch side by side as Lilit fingered through the many pages of her incredible life.
“That’s a big risk. But William deserves better.” She paused, searching through the album, and looked at me. “I think your family could do with a little more truth these days. Tell him, my girl. And soon. I want you to have a life as fulfilling as mine.”
Lilit thumbed through the pages and landed on a time period with Rebecca in it. “That’s her.”
I looked at the time-worn photo of my aunt in her youth. She looked positively effervescent. Her smile was so bright and carefree. She looked like an exact replica of Cher in her heyday. Lilit’s arms were wrapped around a smaller woman with short blond hair and kind eyes.
Lilit took in a deep breath and stroked the edge of the photo. “She looked like Grace Kelly.”
I grabbed her hand and squeezed. “She was gorgeous.”
We looked through more photos, but something about what she said earlier niggled in the back of my brain. “What did you mean about my family needing truth? You made it sound like there were more secrets.”
Lilit nodded and smiled. “It’s not up to me. Your parents need to make that call, but you’re not as different from them as you think.”
I pondered that and wanted to press for more, but Lilit wouldn’t budge.
We spent the next couple of hours catching up and looking at photos. William would join us intermittently between calls until we gathered our things to leave.
“William, it was nice meeting you.” She leaned in for a hug and looked over his shoulder at me, miming to squeeze his buns.
“I hope we see you again soon. Please stop by the inn. Your stay will be completely free,” he said.
Lilit pulled away. “Oh, yes, as if I need to worry about paying.”
She winked and punched William’s thick bicep.
On the car ride back, the sun was setting over the city and I looked over some of the photos of Rebecca that Lilit let me borrow.
She also gave me a piece of fabric from Rebecca’s periwinkle dress.
I decided the painting for Lilit would be of Rebecca, and I was itching to get back home to start sketching ideas.
“Your aunt is wonderful.”
“I know,” I sighed forlornly. “I wish I spent more time with her over the years.”
“She’s had quite the life.”
“I think I’m going to paint her a portrait of Rebecca.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“And I’ll introduce you to my parents this weekend. As my boyfriend.”
William squeezed my thigh and looked at me with the biggest smile. So damn handsome, like a roguish Disney prince too sexy for fairy tales.