Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
The Romero house looks like it was built at least a hundred years ago, if I had to guess from the Victorian style.
The crowded entryway opens directly onto a staircase.
There’s a sweater hanging over the banister, a pile of books on the third step.
To the right, there’s a cozy dining room, and to the left, a sitting room with a floral couch and miss-matched armchairs.
There’s no hallway, no veins connecting the rooms, just one room built upon the next.
Wood floors and an eclectic old-world aesthetic round out the feel of the place.
The maze of rooms give it a well-worn, lived-in feel.
The kind of house haunted by happy memories. I love it instantly.
“Cosmos? That you?” A woman’s voice calls as soon as the door closes behind us. “I’m in the kitchen.”
Cosmos takes my coat and hangs it on an already crowded peg on the wall. With a hand on my back, he guides me through the dining room to a door that leads directly into the kitchen. The room is toasty warm, and the whole place smells deliciously of cooked garlic, onions, and thyme.
A woman with grey-streaked auburn hair glances over her shoulder at us, but doesn’t stop stirring the pot on the stove. She’s wearing a long floral dress covered by a ruffled apron in another floral pattern.
“Hi, Mama.” Cosmos crosses the room and wraps an arm around the petite woman who only comes up to his shoulders.
She tilts her head for him to place a kiss on her cheek, then swats his arm with the back of her hand. “That’s for missing an entire month of family dinners. And now your sister tells me you’ve—”
“Mama, this is Hazel,” Cosmos cuts her off, holding out his hand toward me.
Her eyes go wide, like she’s only just realizing I’ve been standing in the doorway this whole time. She shakes her head in exasperation before turning back to her son. “You could have called and warned me.” She does a double take, looking back at me, mouth falling open. “Wait, Hazel? The Hazel?”
They have some kind of silent conversation I’m not privy to, while I awkwardly stand there, still only half-way in the room. I’m not sure whether I should feel embarrassed or flattered that he’s already told his mother about me.
She hands him the wooden spoon. “Keep stirring.” She wipes her hands on the dishtowel hanging from her shoulder as she steps closer to me.
If I didn’t already know she was his mom, I’d know now. They have the same eyes. She makes eye contact for an awkwardly long moment with an intense look on her face and a smile that I can only describe as sad. No, wistful.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Romero.” I hold out my hand. “I hope I’m not imposing.”
“Imposing? Ptsh.” She brushes my hand away and, before I know what’s happening, her arms are around me. “I’m so glad you found my Cosmos. You’re welcome here anytime.”
Her immediate acceptance is a little alarming.
I’m not sure anyone’s ever welcomed me so easily before.
I feel an intense urge to live up to whatever she’s been told about me, which feels incredibly difficult, since I don’t know exactly what she’s been told.
Panic builds in my body the longer the hug continues. I don’t want to disappoint her.
When Mrs. Romero pulls away, there are tears glistening on her high cheekbones, which only increases my alarm.
She hastily wipes them away. “And none of this Mrs. Romero nonsense. My name is Camilla, and that’s what you’ll call me.
” Her lips lift in the same crooked smirk her son wears so well. “For now.”
I’m not sure how I’m supposed to take that last comment, so I just smile and repeat her name back to her.
There’s a loud shriek from upstairs, followed by footsteps pounding on the ceiling above us. I look at Cosmos in alarm, but he’s smiling.
“You two better not break anything!” Camilla yells up a set of stairs that lead from the kitchen to the second level of the house. “Go change the record, would you, Cosmos? This is cooking music, not dinner music. Hazel, run upstairs and tell everyone it’s ready.”
She goes to the cabinet and gets out a stack of plates. I shoot Cosmos a panicked look behind her back. The noisy clanking of dishes stops. Cosmos’ brown eyes ground me back in the moment and ease my nerves. His smile is gentle, relaxed.
“Don’t worry, darling. I won’t leave you on your own,” he whispers before looking away. “You can’t put her to work yet, Mama. We only just got here.”
His mom tsks at him. “Well, you go then. I don’t want dinner getting cold.”
Cosmos takes my hand and leads me upstairs.
I feel like I’ve been on my back foot ever since I walked into this cozy little house.
It’s nothing like the tiny, one-story house Mom and I share, or the house on the cul-de-sac where I grew up.
Everywhere I’ve ever lived has been quiet.
Most of the time Mom’s off at work, or quietly reading.
Growing up, when Jeremy wasn’t working, he would be golfing.
Home has always come with a side of loneliness.
This place is different. It’s loud and messy and familial. It makes me miss Mom and wonder how she’s doing. I grab my phone as we reach the top of the landing. “I’m gonna check in with my mom. Is that okay?”
Cosmos gives me a concerned look, but then points to an open door at the end of the hall. “Come find me when you’re done.”
I try calling, but when she doesn’t answer, I shoot off a quick text.
Tonight’s the first time I’ve left her completely on her own.
Aunt Joan’s come down to visit a few times when I’ve needed to leave, so between the two of us, someone’s always been there.
Mom assured me she’d be fine. She planned to curl up with a romance novel and go to bed early. But I’m still worried about her.
I also want an excuse to take a breather before meeting another member of Cosmos’ family. It seems like they already know about me, while I know very little about them, and that makes me uncomfortable. I don’t like being unprepared.
Mom:
Stop texting me and go enjoy that man of yours.
He’s not mine. Well, I guess I don’t know if he is or isn’t. This is just a first date, and we haven’t really talked about what we are to each other. But I’m meeting his family. That’s got to mean something.
A woman steps out of the room Cosmos entered.
She’s stunning. Probably in her early thirties.
Her clothes are stylish and clearly expensive, though her silk blouse is half untucked out of her pencil skirt, which is a little crooked.
She’s got a phone pressed to her ear, and she’s talking in a smooth, soothing voice.
“Slow down, Amy. Take a deep breath. Just tell me what happened.”
She glances at me, smiles, straightens her skirt, and steps into one of the other bedrooms. I make my way toward the laughter at the end of the hall.
Cosmos is sitting cross-legged on the floor. A little girl, about seven, if I had to guess, is directly in front of him on her knees.
“No. No. Aunt Cece does it much better. Try it like this.” She suddenly opens her mouth and shrieks, which explains the noise we heard downstairs.
Cosmos imitates the sound at half volume before he notices me watching from the doorway.
The little girl follows his gaze and spots me as well.
If Cosmos hadn’t told me that his niece was Julia’s daughter, I’d still know.
She looks so much like her mom. Short bobbed straight dark hair, thin lips, green eyes and a pert little nose that tilts up at the end.
“We’re learning the mating call of the cicada,” she says.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a child use the word mating before. “Well, it sounds very convincing.”
Cosmos winks at me. “I’m an expert at irresistible mating calls.”
I laugh, and the little girl wrinkles her nose.
Cosmos hops to his feet. “Riley, this is Miss Hazel.”
“Is she your girlfriend?” Riley asks with almost no inflection.
Cosmos looks at me, and time stops around us. “How do you want me to answer?” He pauses for a breath, stepping close, his eyes searching mine. “Because personally, I want to say hell yes.”
Relief is a drug, making me relax and soar at the same time.
I love that he’s so unembarrassed about admitting what he feels and what he wants.
Normally, it would freak me out. I’d want to keep things casual and unofficial for a while before adding the pressure of a title.
But being with Cosmos makes me want to say hell yes, too. All I manage is a nod.
We look away from each other.
“Yep, this is my girlfriend.” Cosmos stands, crosses the room, and slides his arm around my waist, pulling me to his side. The movement is more natural than it should be, considering it’s the first time he’s ever done it. But it feels right. And reassuring. Like two puzzle pieces snapping together.
Riley tilts her head and squints at me. “You’re not as pretty as I thought you’d be.”
Apparently, the whole family knew he was interested in me before I did, and I can’t say I’m completely comfortable with that.
“Your lips are thin, and your ears are a little big. You have nice eyes, but I don’t see how they’re magic.”
I swing my head toward Cosmos. He rubs his cheek and doesn’t look at me.
“When exactly did your uncle tell you about me?” I ask, trying to keep my tone casual.
“Hmmm.” Riley tilts her head, contemplating for a few seconds.
“It was before the school play and after our field trip, so I guess almost a month ago.” She stands up and steps uncomfortably close.
“Maybe if I look more closely, then I’ll see the magic.
” She tugs at my wrist to get me to bend down, so she can grab my face in both her hands and look in my eyes.
Cosmos and I will definitely have a conversation about this later.
I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be telling people what we can do.
For starters, most people won’t believe us.
They’ll think we’re batshit crazy. And if they do believe us, won’t they want to study us or something?
It seems like something the government would want to study, use, and monetize. No, thank you.
Hopefully, his niece is the only one he told about the time-stopping thing. But I have a growing suspicion that’s not the case.
“Sorry to disappoint, Riley. But my eyes aren’t magic.
” I try to soften the blow and distract her from whatever her uncle told her by adding, “It is pretty miraculous that our eyes can do all that they do, though, taking in information from the world, letting us see a cicada.” Riley seems like the type of girl to be won over by science.
I squat down, so I’m kneeling on the floor with her.
“Did you know our eyes see everything upside down and then flip it back around?”
“It’s actually our brains that flip the images,” Riley says matter-of-factly. I can’t decide whether I should be embarrassed to be corrected by an seven-year-old, or impressed. I decided to be impressed.
“Well, they’re amazing, none the less.” I pull my purse around so I can reach the gift I brought for her. “I brought you something.”
Her smile starts slowly, on just one side of her face, and then spreads.
“Open it,” Cosmos prompts, and I get the impression that he’s just as eager to see what it is as she is. It’s clear he loves her very much.
Riley unwraps the dinosaur book I’d brought. It’s full of interesting facts and beautiful pictures. As soon as I saw it, I thought it’d be perfect for a dinosaur lover.
“I have this one,” she says curtly. “Besides, I’ve decided insects are cooler than dinosaurs.
They’re like dinosaurs that are still living.
Some scientists just figured out that tarantulas were around all the way back in the Cretaceous period.
” She points to the terrarium on the table along the wall, and for the first time I realize there’s a giant tarantula in it.
“That’s Mr. Harry. MooMoo lets me bring him here when she watches me.
You should have gotten me a book about tarantulas. ”
The little eight legged monster skitters closer to the glass like it knows we’re talking about it. My skin starts to crawl, and my palms sweat.
“Riley,” Cosmos says with a bit of authority sneaking into his tone. “That was rude. Thank Hazel for the gift.”
I stand up and take a step back, trying not to look at the tarantula, which just makes me more anxious. If I don’t look at it, I won’t know if the monster somehow gets out.
Riley’s head tilts, and her brows pinch together. “Why was it rude?”
“It dismissed the effort that went into the present,” Cosmos replies.
Placing a palm on the center of my chest, I try to calm my heartbeat and focus on the conversation. I really hate spiders. I swear the thing is staring at me with a death glare.
“Oh,” Riley says. “Okay, I’m sorry. Thank you for the book.”
She reaches for it, but I don’t let go right away. It feels like the only weapon available to me if the tarantula gets out somehow. The fear is clawing at me like eight massive spider legs.
“How about I return it and get you one about insects?” I say, attempting to act casual.
Riley’s whole face lights up. “Can you get me Spiders of the World: A Natural History? That would be amazing. It has more than a thousand different species of spiders in it.”
It takes all of my control not to shudder at the thought of just holding that book.
“You okay?” Cosmos whispers.
I nod, keeping the book against my chest. I’m not ready for Cosmos to know about this phobia.
Not yet. Everyone always tries to lecture me about how most spiders are harmless and there’s nothing to be afraid of.
They don’t seem to realize that fear isn’t rational.
It can’t be dismantled through arguments and lectures.
“I’m fine,” I squeeze out through tense lips.
I think he can tell I’m lying, because he takes my hand in his and gives it a tight squeeze.
“Dinner!” Camilla yells from downstairs.
I force out a smile. “I’ll see if I can find it.” I’ll just have to have the store gift wrap it so I don’t have to look at it.
Riley rewards me with a wide grin before running out the door. “MooMoo, guess what Aunt Hazel is going to get me?”
“Aunt Hazel?” I lift my eyebrows at Cosmos.
He holds his palms up in front of him, his smile at full force. “That’s all her.”
There’s a warmth in his eyes that consumes my attention. An expression that makes me think he doesn’t mind his niece’s assumption one bit.