Chapter 12 #2
I see the opportunity to screw with him a little though and take it.
“‘The type of person who would move in…’ Was that a veiled invitation asking me to move in with you?” I question innocently.
By the time ten seconds have gone by with Mark frozen in place, unsure of how to extricate himself from this situation, I burst out laughing.
“Sorry,” I gasp between laughs. “You should’ve seen the look on your face. ”
“You know you’re kind of a dick, too,” he mutters.
“Yeah. I know. And I also know you like it.”
“Yeah. Well.” He clears his throat. “Yes, I’ll come to dinner on Saturday.”
“Okay. I’ll let Vaughn know. And you’re not wrong, by the way. That does sound like something I would do.”
“But you told him about me anyway,” Mark says, and the smile tugging at his lips sends guilt roiling through me.
“Hi Jeanette,” I say, her arms wrapping around me as I step into the house.
“Alyssa! I swear it’s been weeks since I’ve seen you!
” she replies as she squeezes me. Jeanette has the same honey-blond hair as Katie, only hers is streaked with grey now.
“You’ve dyed your hair!” she says as she steps back, fingering a lock.
I guess this is going to be an ongoing thing—at least until every person who’s ever seen me sees me again.
“Yes. Do you like it?”
“You know I think you look lovely with whatever hair color you choose, dear,” Jeanette says.
Katie rolls her eyes from where she’s standing just over Jeanette’s left shoulder, and I stop myself from laughing.
Jeanette means well, but that was definitely mom-speak for ‘I don’t like it, but I’m too polite to say so.
’ I’m used to Jeanette’s mild disapproval though, and it doesn’t bother me in the same way that it bothers Katie.
I know she means well. Most of the time.
I’ve always found it interesting that she and my dad are only a couple of years apart in age and grew up in the same house with the same parents.
Aside from their looks and intelligence, they have almost nothing in common.
Meanwhile, Katie and I aren’t siblings, and though we spent the second half of our childhoods together, we only saw each other a few times each year prior to my dad’s incarceration.
Despite that, we’re much more alike than Jeanette and my dad.
“What have you been up to, mom?” Katie asks, taking the focus off me and my hair. We’ve always been good at running interference for one another.
“Work, mostly,” Jeanette huffs before launching into an extended story about hospital politics—which is the other reason I went straight into private practice. A steady salary and a billing department sound nice, but not nice enough to put up with that headache.
We make our way to the kitchen as Jeanette shares the ongoing battle surrounding the hospital’s employee shortages and the administration’s latest staffing changes. We’re gathered around the island picking at the cheese plate Jeanette set out when she abruptly changes the subject.
“Katie, I heard about this really cute one-bedroom apartment from one of the nurses! It’s the unit right above hers, and I think you should check it out. Let me send you the address.”
“Mom—” Katie begins, but Jeanette cuts her off. Jeanette has been subtly pushing Katie to ‘go back to normal’ for a while, and each time she does it, it makes Katie feel a little worse.
“No, you’ll like it. It’s perfect for you, and you can’t keep doing online tutoring and living with Alyssa forever. You’ve got to get a place of your own and go back to work sometime.”
“Actually, Jeanette, I like having Katie live with me. She’s welcome to stay for as long as she wants. I’d rather have someone using my spare room than have it sitting empty.”
“But Katie has to—”
I cut her off, not bothering to hide my irritation.
She hasn’t brought up Joey Carmichael, but somehow she still found a way to tell Katie she’s doing it wrong.
Jeanette has good intentions, but that doesn’t make her actions helpful.
“Katie doesn’t have to do anything. She is working, and she can stay as long as she wants.
By the way, my dad says hi. He was hoping you might come to visit soon.
He said it’s been a while,” I state flatly, staring her down.
She sighs but lets it go. Since I became old enough to visit my dad on my own, Jeanette has only bothered to make the drive twice a year—usually once around Christmas and again near his birthday.
I suspect even those visits stem more from a sense of obligation than any real desire to see him, which is fine.
My dad didn’t actually mention her. Their indifference is mutual.
“Very well. How’s work been, Alyssa?”
“It’s been good. Thank you for asking. My days are booked more often than not.”
“That’s good. It’s good to be busy,” Jeanette replies with what I’m pretty sure is her personal mantra.
“And she’s dating someone new!” Katie says, and I shoot her a glare. Mark is the last thing I want to talk about, not that I’ve told Katie that. It would only make her more curious, which isn’t something I need.
“You are? What’s his name?” Jeanette asks.
“Mark,” I say, using his real name since odds are Katie has heard me use it when talking to him over the past week.
“And what does Mark do?”
Both Jeanette and Katie have their eyes locked on me, and I try not to squirm as I slowly chew my cheese and cracker to buy time. Eventually, I swallow and say, “He works with troubled youth.” It’s kind of true.
“Oh, he’s a counselor!” Jeanette supplies. “You must have so much to talk about.”
“Mhmm,” I reply noncommittally. “Yup. Lots in common.” I grab another slice of cheese and hastily assemble a cracker sandwich before they can interrogate me further.
“I still haven’t met him. You should invite him over for dinner soon,” Katie tells me.
What is it with everyone wanting me to invite Mark to dinner? I wonder as I say, “Yeah. I could do that. I’ll mention it to him when he gets back to town.”
“Where is he now?” Jeanette asks.
“Visiting family,” I lie. “He’s from Louisiana. He’ll still be away for a bit yet.”
The oven timer dings, and I release a pent-up breath as the topic changes to how good the food smells instead of my quasi-fake relationship with Mark.