Chapter 16 #2
Along with Mom’s drinking, I haven’t told Josie about Dad’s cheating. Josie said that her dad died when she was a toddler, but from everything she’s heard, he was a loving father and a great guy. She has a good relationship with her mother and sister, and losing her dad brought them close.
In contrast, my family might seem perfect, but we’re a disaster underneath.
I don’t know why it’s hard for me to admit that.
Maybe because I’ve spent my whole life putting on a good face and pretending things are different.
But if there’s anyone I can open up to, it’s Josie.
I reach out to take her hand, and she gives me a soft smile.
In that moment, I decide I’ll tell her everything.
I want this relationship to be different than Mom’s and Dad’s, full of honesty instead of secrets.
Alice stops by with our drinks, and I glance away from Josie to find Dad watching us from across the table.
After Alice deposits the last glass on the table, Dad reaches into his pocket and pulls out a stack of bills.
He peels off two and hands them to Alice.
I can’t help wondering if this is all for Josie’s benefit.
Could that be why he so readily agreed to come into the dining room for drinks?
Did he want to show her what it’s like to be the people sitting at the table instead of the person serving it?
My suspicions are confirmed when we’re standing in the lobby and Dad tells Josie she’s welcome to come over and swim in our pool.
Usually, he doesn’t show much interest in having me bring friends over unless it’s for one of his rare parties that show off our family’s wealth.
I want to tell him that Josie isn’t going to be impressed with our money, and there’s no way he’s going to manipulate her into encouraging me to come back here to work in his company.
But this obviously isn’t the place, and I don’t want to put her on the spot, so I give a non-committal shrug. “I have a regatta this week.”
An awkward silence stretches across the lobby, and Josie clears her throat as if to fill it.
I’m dying to spend every free minute with her, just not at my parents’ house.
Not until I’ve told her the truth about my family.
But I don’t want her to think this has anything to do with her, and I need to salvage this.
“We could plan it for after the competition, though.”
“Okay, we’ll let you kids work it out,” Mom says with a smile.
After Dad and Mom head out to the parking lot, I turn and take Josie by the hand.
“Hey,” I say gently. “I’m sorry if that was awkward.
It’s not that I don’t want you to come to the house.
It’s just…” I rub the back of my neck. The sailing club lobby isn’t the place to get into my family dynamics.
Anyone could overhear. After the regatta next week, I’m going to tell her everything.
But for now, I give her a sideways grin.
“Well, you already think of me as an entitled rich kid. I’m trying to show you there’s more to me than that, and taking you to my parents’ mansion probably isn’t going to help my case. ”
Josie’s lips curve into a smile. “But you thought taking me out on your fancy sailboat would make you seem like a regular guy?” she teases.
“Okay, okay. You’re right.” I hold up my hands as if in surrender. “Maybe I am an entitled rich kid and there’s no escaping it.”
“I don’t actually think that about you,” Josie says, more seriously now.
“And I don’t mind if you don’t want to hang out at your parents’ pool.
To be honest, I’d be a little nervous to bring you to my house, too.
My mom would insist you stay for dinner, half the neighbors would stop by uninvited, and my sister would end up interrogating you. ”
I grin at the thought of all that warmth and chaos. “That sounds like fun. How about we make a deal?” I suggest. “You come and be wine-and-dined at my place, and I’ll come for questioning at yours. And neither of us will judge the other one for what our families do or say.”
Josie taps her finger on her cheek as if she’s considering it. “Fine,” she says. “But I have one condition.”
“Name it.”
“When I come to your house, you have to show me the Akiko Walker.” A flush of excitement spreads across her face, and relief washes over me. Thank God I didn’t totally screw this up.
“I’m willing to consider it,” I drawl. “If you show me more of your work. Because if I show you your favorite artist, you have to show me mine.”
Her green eyes shining, Josie holds out her hand. “Deal. As soon as you’re back from your competition, we’ll plan it.”
As I reach out to shake her hand, her features soften.
“What?” I ask. “What are you thinking?”
Josie bites her lip. “I’m thinking I really like the idea of you hanging around the kitchen island at my house.
You’d probably charm my mom, and Madeline would have a raging crush on you by the end of the night.
” She looks down at her hands. “Is it crazy that the idea of you fitting in with my family feels right? I know we haven’t known each other that long. ”
I remember the coincidence of the short distance between Stanford and Berkeley.
How unlikely it is that I’d meet the perfect girl during the summer before college, and she’s going to be only a handful of miles away.
“Maybe it is right.” Maybe things are starting to fall into place.
Mom and Dad seemed better than I’ve seen them in forever.
Dad promised to change and to get Mom to go to rehab. Maybe he’s really following through.
Or maybe everything just seems easier with Josie by my side.