5. Jules #2
“Elena’s summer schedule is dependent on my uncles,” Roman adds. “They usually take a family trip.”
Great, so I truly am going to be all alone with no one other than Drew. It’s not like we’ll be spending time together. That’s never going to happen. It’s just the first time there’s really no buffer.
I glance at Drew just as his eyes flicker to me. In my mind, there’s an evil grin on his face as he realizes no one will stop him from pushing me over the edge of a cliff. In reality, his face remains expressionless as he turns back to his food.
“I’m going to be so busy with my deadline I won’t even notice how fast summer passes by,” I say, with all the confidence I don’t feel.
Under the table, Lavinia sets her hand on my knee, squeezing once. She knows how difficult it is for me to be alone, where the voices inside my head are the loudest.
***
I offer to clean the dishes after dinner as I do most of the time. Whenever Aunt Gemma felt stressed or like she needed to think, I’d always find her reorganizing or cleaning. It’s a habit I picked up without noticing. Some of the best ideas I’ve had for my books came while doing menial tasks.
Lavinia and Roman have already separated the leftovers into containers. I carry the dishes to the sink and turn on the water, letting the big ones soak while I rinse out the rest and add them to the dishwasher.
I look over my shoulder when I feel someone behind me and nearly jump out of my skin when I see Drew.
“Oh my god, why are you lurking?!”
“I’m bringing in the dishes.” He raises his hands slightly to indicate the dirty dishes he’s carrying. “Didn’t realize it’s classified as lurking now.”
I turn back to the dishes, ignoring him. I don’t want to admit that I’m slightly jumpy.
Drew steps up beside me and sets the dishes on the counter. “Do you need help?”
Ugh, I hate him for offering.
“Why? So you can make my death look like a dishwashing accident?”
Drew exhales loudly, looking out the window to the backyard. The whole family is there, sitting under the canopy of fairy lights in the backyard.
“Jules, I’m hurt that you think I’d try to murder you.”
I glance up at him in surprise. Before I can feel any kind of chagrin over my accusation, Drew looks at me from the corner of his eyes, his lips tilting up into the smallest smile.
“Obviously I’m going to have to hire someone to do it through dark channels since I’m likely going to be the prime suspect.”
I look away, biting my lip so I don’t smile at his silly quip. Ew, I should not be smiling at anything related to Drew. We’re sworn enemies.
“What you’re saying is, I need to hire a detective to keep an eye on you. In the event of my death, they’ll take all the evidence to the police,” I say.
He picks up a dish towel and starts to dry the dishes I’m cleaning.
And just like that, we’re washing dishes together, maybe for the first time since we were teenagers and Dr. Callahan had us doing chores.
If it weren’t for her and Aunt Gemma, I wouldn’t know how to do the basic things to keep my life organized and be responsible.
“Please, even my alibis have alibis,” Drew says. “They’ll never be able to catch me.”
“If you kill me, I’ll just come back to haunt you.” I rinse a wine glass under the water and set it on the drying rack where Drew picks it up. “I know a witch. I can probably make it happen.”
Drew scoffs. “Right. You, Lavinia, and your ‘witch’.” He shakes his head in exasperation.
“She once gave me a stone that focused my energy when I was struggling to write, and now that book is on bestseller lists.”
Drew glances at me, his mouth twisted like he’s just tasted something bad. “You don’t really believe that.”
I shrug. “Maybe not. But there’s something to be said about positive thinking. At the time, I believed the crystal was harnessing good energy and I was able to write.”
I don’t add that it was my first book ever, it took three years for it to land on bestseller lists, and I started writing it right after Gemma died.
It was a way for me to feel connected to her because she loved romance novels.
I’m pretty sure the first book she ever bought me was a young adult romance.
“In other words, you’re talented and you worked hard,” Drew says.
I sigh. “Have you ever heard of whimsy? Life is already so difficult. Why do you have to ruin all the fun stuff?”
“I’m not ruining the fun stuff,” Drew argues. “It’s just not practical to believe in witches and magic when the evidence says otherwise.”
“What evidence? Where is the evidence that says witches don’t exist?
Where is the evidence that aliens don’t exist?
Are you seriously telling me that we, as humans, should be so conceited to believe that the entirety of the universe—the universe—revolves around us?
That we’re not just a giant cosmic error?
” Turning the tap off, I face him head on.
Drew throws the dish towel on the counter, crossing his arms as he looms over me. “Where’s the power of positive thinking now? It doesn’t help you believe that you’re not a cosmic error?”
This man has a PhD in getting on my last nerve. “Just because I believe A doesn’t mean I can’t also believe B, Andrew. I contain multitudes. It doesn’t have to be black or white. Life is best lived in shades of grey and a rainbow of colors.”
“So you believe in practical whimsy, thus proving my point that not everything is whimsical.”
“Ugh! You’re completely ignoring my point!” I point a finger at him. “I don’t like you.”
Drew raises an eyebrow slightly, green eyes looking at me like I’m a nuisance he wants out of his life. “I’m not your biggest fan, either.”
With a growl of frustration, I turn to walk away and come to a halt when I see the whole family standing at the French doors leading to the backyard. If the looks on their faces are anything to go by, they likely heard our whole conversation.
Lavinia raises her hands in surrender. “You know what? It was my fault for leaving the two of you alone.”