Kelly has kids. Kat has kids. All three of Mark’s older siblings have families of their own.
But what about Mark?
Mr. Wolff was walking towards the kitchen and away from his grandkids. Mrs. Wolff was seated in what looked like an all-season patio. Denise and Kelly were on either side of her. Three other women were with her that I did not recognize, including an older woman who had to be Mark’s grandmother.
Too many people. I had prepared to meet Kat and her husband and kids, Kelly’s husband, and the grandparents. But there were so many more strangers in my line of sight. And to top it off, I hadn’t been in the Lakehouse before. It was all suffocatingly new. I had prepared myself to deal with the newness, but hadn’t prepared to deal with the hugeness.
The house was everywhere. There were people everywhere. Too many people.
Keegan introduced me to their Uncle Rick and Kelly’s husband.
Mark’s uncle is here. I wasn’t ready for that.
Rick pointed out his daughter and grandkids.
Uncle Rick brought his daughter and his own grandchildren...
I gulped and hung back, sticking quietly by Mark’s side. I didn’t talk unless I was spoken to.
I should have been better prepared! I thought I had enough information to survive this party, but I knew nothing! NOTHING! Why are all these people here? I should have pretended like Mark was taking me to the club. Then I could have focused on Mark and let everything else wash off me.
But I didn’t do that... so I’m not ready for this.
“Hey, are you okay?” Mark asked me discreetly.
“I’m fine,” I said with a monotone.
“Where’s my Bedazzler? You haven’t said anything since we’ve been here. You barely said ‘hello’ to my grandmother.”
“Maybe I am feeling bad.”
“Maybe.” He took my hand and excused us from his mother’s company. I couldn’t keep straight how many people I had met—it had all gone by in a blur. When did we make it out to the patio again?
Mark escorted me down a hallway. This house is huge! Where the hell are we going! Mark led me into a cozy, yellow room facing the Lake.
“Take a breath,” Mark said. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Nothing.” I rushed at him and gave him a hug. I felt so small—like I needed to smell him and feel him and center myself around him. He murmured in my ear and rubbed my back until my lungs finally started working again. I pulled away from him slightly.
“Better?”
“Yes.” I sighed and let the tension out of my chest, suddenly exhausted.
“Was that too many people? You do fine at the club.”
“There’s so much going on at the club I just give up on trying to remember it all. But here... there’s going to be people I need to talk to later, so I was trying to keep straight everyone I hadn’t met before—your sister Kat and your brother-in-law and your grandparents. I had enough room in my head for them, but then your uncle shows up and there’s all these other kids.”
“I have a big family.”
“I do too.” I hugged him again. “But I know all my family, and I don’t know yours. You told me it was just going to be your brothers and sisters.”
“A couple aunts and uncles will probably come. Uncle Rick always comes to our stuff, and his whole family. His son will probably make an appearance, too.”
Great. That would have been nice to know a couple hours ago.
“I’m sorry, is this important?” He held me as I shook my head. “You made a face like I did something wrong.”
I have a face like that?
“Yes,” Mark said. “You do have a face that lets me know I did something wrong. And yes, it is very easy to read your face.”
“Stop doing that.”
He kissed me. He hadn’t stopped touching me since he pulled me out of that room full of strangers. “Is this too many people?”
“No. I just... thought I knew who would be here. Then there’s all these other people. I can’t explain it.”
“Do you get this worked up at your family functions?” He patiently waited until I shook my head. “What about when your cousins bring their dates, like I’m bringing you here?” We swayed back and forth in the yellow sitting room. “How do you normally deal with strangers?”
I felt embarrassed to talk about it. “Normally I go with my mom and dad and we get there early. Then I see everyone as they get added to the party. I sit on the front porch and watch them park.”
“Do you want to sit on the front porch for a while? You did like the chairs.”
“No. I’m fine. I’m better now. I know Mel, and your parents, and Keegan and Denise.” I sighed. They would have to be a good enough anchor. “Who else do you think might show up... that you didn’t tell me?”
“Let’s see... there’s so many people in my family that I can’t remember them all. Uncle Rick has a son and a daughter. You met his daughter, Sandra. She has three kids, something like middle school or early high school. His son, Don, might make an appearance. Don’s younger and has four kids, including a baby.”
We slow danced in the private room while Mark rattled off names from his extended family... the ones he could remember. I stared out at the Lake and let his voice wash over me.
“Are there going to be fireworks?” I asked suddenly.
“Yeah, usually. Down at the pier.” Mark followed my gaze. “Looks like Uncle Rick already set them up.”
“You know, those are really unsafe.”
“So are cigarettes.” He kissed me on the cheek. “Do you want to stay in my grandmother’s sunrise room or are we ready to face my evil family?”
“Face the evil family.”
“Why don’t we go outside and talk to the kids first?”
“That’s a good idea. This house is too freaking big. I can’t process it. Why would anyone want a house—an estate—this big?”
“Because we have a huge family. And Grandma always wanted to have the room to house everybody when we fly in. This place is so fucking busy in the summer.”
“This place is so large that it has a guest house for the people who work the estate.” Mark wasn’t as weirded out by that as I was. Who grows up and thinks this is normal? “If we move out to the country, we’re having a freaking normal-sized house. Even Keegan’s house is too big.”
“I can always tell when you’re anxious... you regress back to your non-curse cuss words.” He squeezed my hand. “It’s so cute.”
“I fucking hate being called ‘cute’!” I had fallen into his trap without thinking.
Of course he knows I hate that word.
He cheerfully swung our hands and directed me out the side door away from the party. We walked around the bushes and snuck up behind the kids playing near the water.
“Whatchedoin’?” Mark asked loudly. Gabby and Caleb turned to us immediately. Caleb flew to his uncle and got a huge hug. Gabby was stuck between wanting to run at us and wanting to run away.
“Hi, Gabby,” I said.
“Hi,” she said shyly.
“Uh oh, does Gabby still need to get warmed up to Chris?” Mark asked. “I bet if we threw her in the water—” He lunged at his niece. She laughed and galloped away. Then Mark introduced me to his other nieces and nephews. They showed us the bluegills they had caught.
“Is that all the beach there is?” I asked, pointing to the rocky shore. Who had I become? Is that all the beach you have at this very unimpressive, small home? My mind was still shattered into tiny pieces by the fact that we were on a lakefront property... my mouth wasn’t quite lined up with my brain.
“We’re not allowed on the pier,” Caleb lectured. “Uncle Rick said so.”
After we spoke with the kids for a few minutes, Mark and I walked up the bank to the fire pit. I waved at Gabby as we passed, but she immediately looked away and galloped at full speed in the opposite direction.
“She’s scared of me again,” I said with a la
ugh.
“She’s not scared of you. She just needs to get used to you.” He stopped at the seats around the fire pit. “Why don’t we sit here?”
“We’ve got to go talk with your family.”
“They’ll come to us. Watch. Let’s sit here. We normally gather out here anyways.” Mark turned his head towards the shore and called loud enough for his nephew to hear, “We can start a fire... don’t you want to start the fire?”
Caleb teleported to our side before his emphatic ‘YES’ reached our ears. The two of them set up the kindling teepee together. Then we sent Caleb inside for paper and matches. He returned with paper towels and his great-grandpa... the original Mr. Wolff.
“Who are the hooligans out here wanting to start a fire before dinner?” Grandpa Wolff asked.
Caleb pointed at Mark immediately. “Him and Chris,” the kid said, throwing me under the bus, too.
“You know we don’t use firestarter around here?”
“Yes, Great-Grandpa. That’s what the paper towels are for!” Caleb said.
Grandpa Wolff shredded and crumpled the paper towels for us and Caleb stuffed them in between the sticks. Mark lit the match and stuck it where Caleb directed. Thus, we successfully started the fire. Caleb’s male cousins were loitering behind us like we were doing something cool but they wanted to pretend it was lame. Gabby was perched on the Lakehouse porch near her mother, watching us intently.
Mark and I settled in by the fire. The older kids returned to the bluegills. Caleb sat in Mark’s lap and babbled happily about what he had just learned in school. Gabby appeared at one point and corrected half of what Caleb described. Then she scooted closer to Mark.
Then she finally answered my questions.
I had my two best friends back.
Mark’s mom was the second Wolff to visit us. She had a pitcher in her hand and two plastic cups. “Here you go, boys,” she said, pouring drinks for me and Mark.
“Thank you, Mrs. Wolff,” I said after Mark thanked his mother.
“Call me Martha, please.”
“What about me, Martha?” Caleb asked. Mark squeezed him and Mrs. Wolff playfully swatted her grandson and acted offended.
“These are adult drinks. If you want juice, you can get it from the fridge.”
We chatted with her until she decided to return the pitcher to the fridge. Mark let Caleb have a sip of his drink.
“Mark!” I whispered, scandalized.
“What? It’s just a sip. I did the same when I was a kid. You want to try it, Gabby?”
Caleb took that moment to spit most of his sip out on the ground. Gabby shook her head, but then she leaned forward like she wanted to try it so Mark let her take a sip. She giggled and said it wasn’t bad.
I wanted to slap Mark upside the head. “You know they can all see us from the house? They probably saw exactly what you just did.”
“Let them yell at me. I can take it.” Mark took a deep swallow from his cup. “This is the life, isn’t it guys? Relaxing with the fam...” Mark smiled at me and we shared a look—he was including me in his ‘fam’.
AS MARK PREDICTED, the rest of his family slowly migrated out to the fire. The Wolffs rotated spots so that at one point we had ten people around the fire chatting to one another. Mark and I stayed planted in the same seats until it was dinner time.
Dinner was a crazy affair. The Wolffs had a big enough dining hall to fit everyone in attendance. It had a huge, L-shaped table that overlooked the Lake. We didn’t sit for a formal dinner since it was too hot with all those bodies in one room. The meal was more of a free-for-all after Grandpa Wolff said grace.
Mark and I sat at the large table and ate. Two of his cousins joined us and we had a nice conversation. Mark did not leave my side the entire night—he was true to his word. We sat by the fire together, we ate together, we talked to his parents together....
He nearly followed me into the bathroom, but I didn’t want to start any funny business so I glared at him until he let the door shut. Based on what had happened the previous night... it was better to be safe than sorry when it came to physical intimacy. He had agreed to the ‘one day for sex’ a week rule, but I knew he could recharge quickly (and he was becoming notorious for thinking up ways to get more sex days out of me).
After dinner, we took a private stroll around the property.
“How are you holding up?” Mark asked.
“Fine. Much better. I like it when people come to me instead of the other way around.”
He put a meaty paw on my shoulder and pulled me to his body, then kissed the side of my head. “You’re back to the normal Chris... the guy who spits out random facts and charms everyone with your intelligence.”
“I don’t do that,” I denied.
“Only when you’re stressed out.”
“What about you, Mr. Humble? I’m in the athletic department of my agency, but I get a lot of runway gigs because of my fun personality and handsome face...”
“That’s the truth! It’s still humble if they want to talk about my career. If they bring it up, we’ve gotta talk about why I’m so successful.”
“Ugh. You brag a lot.”
“And you always have to know something about everything.” He held my hand again. “Let’s take a look at Gramps’ boats.”
“Of course he has a marina.”
“It’s a small alcove big enough for four medium-sized boats. Not a marina.”
We looked at the Wolffs’ boats. One was a large powerboat capable of holding ten people easily, or twenty people standing for a party. The other boat was a sleek design, built for skiing and tubing.
“This is hard for me to believe,” I said as we sat on the retaining wall. “The house. The marina. The cars. The pier. It’s all too much.” I shook my head in awe. It was like a dream property.
“You get used to it,” Mark said.
“I hope I never get used to it,” I said softly. The truth was, I was already starting to take it for granted. The jacket I was wearing was one that Mark had picked out for me. The jeans I wore were the ones we bought online together—though there were now two other pairs in the dresser at home that he bought without my consent. “Don’t buy me a car,” I said seriously, suddenly gripping his hand.
“What? Where did that come from?”
“Just don’t do it. It won’t be a surprise. I won’t be happy. Don’t do it.”
“I wasn’t going to.” Mark wasn’t a good liar, especially not to me. He could tell that I knew he was lying. “I might have thought about it. I can’t believe we drove Melanie in that piece of shit. It was so embarrassing!”
“Don’t do it.”
“I wasn’t going to... without your permission. But what if we got a little Honda? A little, used, gas-efficient car. Are they still doing Cash for Clunkers?”
Don’t pretend like you know what you’re talking about. “I wouldn’t use that program even if it was. It’s a welfare check to the auto industry. I don’t believe in that.”
He guffawed at me. “It’s free money! If you can use it, you need to use it.”
“It shouldn’t have existed in the first place.” And if you used it, isn’t that a welfare check for a rich person?
“Don’t be so stubborn. If I find you a cheap, nice car, will you consider buying it?”
I shook my head. “I have a new apartment. And I’m apparently going to Italy in a week...”
“You’re gonna love it. All you have to pay for is your flight.”
Stop. Stop doing so much for me.
“I don’t need that.”
“I know. What you need is to work on your editing. Why don’t we go get your printout and start on a final draft tonight. I already finished the first few chapters. I’ll read ahead of your edits and give you my comments.” He stood up. “Time to edit with the fine-tooth combs.”
“You don’t need to spend any more time in front of the mirror,” I scoffed.
“Clever.”
We unloaded his car. There was a small reading nook in the guest wing of the house. Mark and I claimed that area and worked frantically until sundown. His mother found us after about an hour and I explained how this was a final polish and I had to put in a ton of hours over the upcoming week. She left us to do our thing.
I set down my pen. “Let’s go watch the sunset.”
“K, bro.” He was focused on the papers, reading one line at a time and pausing. I watched him work—his face so focused and so handsome. My man. I had golden swirls in my stomach. He glanced at me. “Am I the only one working here? Fucking hell.” He slammed down the pen.
“Thank you for helping me. You do a good job.”
“Anytime, babe.” We shared a chaste kiss that Mark tried to turn into something more.
“Down to the Lake,” I commanded.
“Yes sir.” He saluted.
We wandered through the magnificent house. I had memorized the floorplan of the guest wing, so I was more comfortable navigating through the halls than when we arrived. We walked past a room with a half-closed door.
“What is that?” I said, stopping and taking three steps back. Mark let me explore. I pushed on the door. It opened and I saw what had caught my eye from that brief glimpse—a large cutting board designed for making picture frames.
“This is my grandma’s craft room.”
It’s huge!
“Wow,” I said, for the hundredth time that day.
“You want one of these in our future house?” he asked, teasing me.
“No,” I said, unsure if I really meant it.
“We could always turn the guest room into a craft room.” He had made that offer before, back when we were trial boyfriends.
“Then we’d have to fill it with stuff. Wow, look at these cabinets, they’re perfect. This half of the room is for standing and this half is for sitting. She has a computer area with a scanner.” I strolled around the room. “And this window looks out over the side property where the marina is.”
“So she can see Gramps when he’s playing with his boats.”
“Look at these pictures,” I said, skimming through a collection of watercolors.
IJUH complete Page 25
