by Tyler Grey
“Oh, I don’t know about that,” I said.
I went on to describe another one of Todd’s genius moves—giving Christian an entire cake for his birthday a few years back. Not only that, but he’d dropped it off with Christian during lunchtime while he was at school, and Christian polished off a good half before racing to the bathroom vomiting.
“Still worth it,” Christian remarked steadfastly.
He turned to Seth with an evil chocolate-toothed grin.
“So, if you wanted to get me a whole cake—”
At that, I got up from the table and gave him a light flick on his shoulder. “Okay, birthday boy, that’s enough out of you for now.”
Seth rose, grinning. “Your mom’s right you know. If we feed you too much, you’ll be too fat and sore to go on any more rides. Let’s check out the other side of the park.”
Once there, we went on a few more fast rides before Christian agreed to go on the merry-go-round. There, even Nana joined us, seating herself in a pink and white sleigh with a grateful lowering of her lids.
Seth and I chose horses ahead of her, while Christian chose a horse on the other side of the ride. As the ride started up and I adjusted myself on my white mare, I glanced over. Nana had her head lolling on the edge of the sleigh, her eyes half-closed. Catching Seth’s gaze following mine, I sighed.
“She’s really done so much for me.”
He nodded, a soft look coming over his features. “You’re lucky to have her.”
“You can say that again,” I said, “She has stood by me through everything. Through all the craziness with Todd and even when my parents—”
I fell silent.
“Sorry. First, I tell you I want to keep it professional, then I go spilling my life story to you.”
He moved his hand to my white and gold pole, then onto mine.
“Hey—don’t apologize. You’ve made your intentions clear.”
A glance over revealed that his enrapt gaze was on my lips. I looked away and moved my hand upwards, so it was no longer under his. And you’ve made your intentions clear, too.
“Anyway, it’s not that bad,” I said, “Lately it’s just been this whole bullying thing and Christian’s transition into the teen years, but that’s always a hard time. I think I’m just tired from all the overtime…” I paused, frowned, and then, switching gears, continued in a cheery voice, “which I’m very grateful for. This whole disclosure project will look great on my résumé.”
Seth moved his hand back to mine. “Don’t do that.”
“Do what?” I asked in a low voice.
“You know what,” he replied, and I said nothing because he was right. Going back and forth from treating him like my friend to my boss was exhausting. Anyway, now the ride had stopped—it was time to get off.
We climbed off our horses, exited the ride, and chased down Christian, who was already raring to go on the Drop Zone.
“Alisha Townsend?” a vaguely familiar nasal voice said.
I turned around to see Fanny Gawlbrooks, my childhood friend, smiling her gloss-smeared lips at me.
“It is you!” she cooed, throwing her arms around me. Her spider-lashed gaze quickly roved around and landed on Christian.
“And is this little Christian? So tall! They grow up so fast! My Michaela just darted off, who knows where that girl went?”
As her pink sparkly talons clasped around Christian’s bony shoulders, his face went slack. Over her shoulder, his eyes darted pleadingly from me to Seth.
“And who is this?”
Releasing Christian, Fanny’s big blue eyes settled on Seth, and I swallowed. Already Fanny had found the most interesting part of this family trip.
“This is, uh, Seth is, my boss,” I said.
“Huh, your boss,” Fanny said.
She rubbed her glossed lips together thoughtfully before stretching them into a smile and throwing out her thin hand.
“So nice to meet you, I’m Alisha’s friend from way back. We grew up together. I knew her all the way back when she met Todd and,” tittering, she moved on. “Well, no need to go into the past now.”
As Seth shook her hand, I resisted the urge to ask which husband she was on.
“We were about to go on the Drop Zone,” Seth said coldly, releasing her hand immediately, “It was nice meeting you.”
“Yes! Alisha, I’ll call you, we do have to catch up. And Seth, where was it you worked again?”
“Jackson Finance. I’m the CEO,” he answered.
“Oookaaay,” Fanny said, momentarily stunned, her eyes lighting up with dollar signs.
“Mom!” a girl clad in a pink and purple dress a few feet away called, “Come on!”
Fanny gave us another one of those stretched-out grins.
“That’s my baby—bye then!”
And then, with one sway of her pink sweatpants, she was gone. I let out an exhale of relief.
“You were really close, weren’t you?” Seth asked lightly with a smirk.
“Yes, I’m just about crushed that we haven’t spoken for the past ten years,” I said in a deadpan voice.
We laughed, and, as Christian took off, setting a brisk pace, we walked a ways behind.
“Although in all seriousness,” I said, “of course you’re welcome to, well, you know.” I fell silent as Seth was casting me a dubious sidelong look with his eyebrows raised.
“No, I don’t know.”
“Just—she will probably call you—and, since you are just my boss, you are welcome to—”
“I know that,” Seth snapped, and I was surprised to see his cheeks flush an angry red.
“Like the way you are welcome to see Jim Chambers outside of work hours, no matter how little I’d like it,” he shot back.
Now the scowl had taken over his whole face, and he almost looked unrecognizable.
“What?” I asked.
“Are you really so eager to get rid of me?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Pawning me off on your friend, who may or may not have a husband already, really?”
“I wasn’t saying that, and anyway—”
“Because I’ve done that, Alisha. I’ve married the vapid bitch, and it’s gotten me nowhere, okay? You don’t know what’s best for me either.”
“I never said I did.”
We glared at each other for a minute before his face softened.
“Sorry, I—I don’t know what gotten into me. Maybe it’s my dad; when you said that, it just reminded me of how he’d use any excuse to get me out of the house—so he could have his visitors over. Stupid and nothing to do with you, but hey.”
I couldn’t resist touching his hand lightly.
“Hey, it’s fine.”
Worry registered in his eyes.
“Hang on, where’s Nana?”
I did a three-sixty, to see tired-faced parents, running around kids—and no Nana.
“Damn, I completely forgot. Was she with us when Fanny came?”
Seth shook his head.
“I don’t think so. I don’t even remember her getting off the merry-go-round with us.”
“Damn it,” I cursed, my gaze going to Christian. He’d set out for the Drop Zone and was now so far ahead he was out of shouting range.
“Here,” Seth said, “You go find Nana, and I’ll go get Christian, okay? We can meet back here.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
My mind buzzed with worry as I retraced our steps back to the merry-go-round. Nana had seemed even more tired than usual today. Maybe having her come along had been pushing it.
When I got back on the merry-go-round, it didn’t take long to find her. She was in the same pink and white sleigh she’d chosen at the start, sound asleep. I shook her gently.
“Nana?”
She awoke with a little laugh.
“My, oh my. I guess it was the music because this cold hard thing sure isn’t comfy.”
She gave the side of the sleigh a
knock and then accepted my outstretched hand to help her up.
When we reached the boys, Christian was raring to go.
“C’mon, Mom, if we don’t hurry, we won’t have time to do the rest of the rides; there are only three hours left!”
Nana’s face visibly drooped at the very suggestion. I took her hand in one of mine and Christian’s in the other.
“Christian, baby, I think your grandma’s too tired for any more rides today.”
“Okay,” he said slowly, not comprehending.
I sighed, “We need to go—now.”
“Wait—no!” he protested, his face falling, “Please, I have so many more I want to go on. Mom, please.”
“It’s alright, Alisha,” Nana said, in a weary voice, “I can just wait on the bench, same as before. Or you could get that wheelchair from the SUV.”
I shook my head and turned to Christian with a determined look.
“Nana fell asleep on the merry-go-round, and it’s a long drive home, too. It’s time to leave, honey.”
Christian wrenched his hand free of mine.
“Aww, Mom, c’mon! I don’t want to go. Seth doesn’t either.”
My gaze shifted to Seth. “Is that so?”
Chapter 23
Seth
Alisha’s gaze on me was expectant, threatening. And yet her son was right; the last thing I wanted to do now that I was here with her was leave.
“He’s right,” I said, “But I may have a solution.”
“Oh?”
“They have hotels just across the street. How about we book one for tonight, get some much-needed rest, then come back first thing tomorrow morning?”
“Yeah!” Christian cried at the same time that Alisha said, “No way.”
“Why not?” Christian and I chorused.
Alisha crossed her arms over her chest.
“Where do I start? First of all, we didn’t plan for this, so we don’t have any extra clothes or toiletries. Second of all, I’ve seen the hotels across the street, and they are expensive.”
But, even as her voice spoke confidently, I saw the wavering in her eyes.
“So what?” I countered, “Does everything on this trip have to be planned? This could be a whole birthday weekend for Christian.”
Before she could respond, I continued, “And as for clothes and toiletries, what do you think all these stores are crammed with?”
Downright beaming now, Christian took his mom’s hand.
“Please? I bet they even have a nice spa for Nana, too.”
My nod to the affirmative did it. With a defeated sigh, Alisha threw up her hands.
“Let’s see if these stores have anything usable.”
The closest shop was a literal warehouse of brightly-colored cartoon character memorabilia.
“Grab whatever you want,” I said, as Nana and Christian headed for opposite ends of the store.
I turned to Alisha, whose lips were set in a firm frown.
“That goes for you, too,” I said with a soft smile that went unreturned.
As Christian raced back and forth through the store, showing us one dino-covered pair of pajama pants after the next, I rifled through some overstocked clothing racks.
“I bet this would look great on you.”
I lifted a colorful sundress to show to Alisha, whose eyes paused admiringly on it. Her frown wavered, then broke into a smile. Off the same rack, she grabbed a green shirt with pink flamingos on it and tossed it at me.
“I’ll wear the dress if you’ll wear the shirt.”
I responded by pulling the massive thing over my head. Alisha did the same with the dress. We eyed each other, clad in our ridiculous bright top layers, and burst out laughing. This was how we set off to find Nana and Christian, who already had their own collection of favorite items. After we’d bought several items of clothes, the next thing to do was grab some snacks. We stocked up on some chips and chocolate bars, then headed to the hotel area. Toiletries, I reminded Alisha as we made our way to the hotel area, would be available at the fancy hotel I was going to book for us across the street.
At this, Alisha dug in her heels. Stopping at the crosswalk before the hotel area, she directed a severe look at me.
“I want to go with the most affordable one, and I want to pay you back afterward.”
“And if I say no?”
She sighed. Beside her, Nana and Christian looked exhausted and irritable, ready to hop on the first comfy bed they came across.
“Mom,” Christian said in a petulant tone.
Alisha looked from him to Nana, who was looking at her intently.
“Fine,” Alisha finally said, with a listless waving of her hand.
As Christian and Nana cheered, I poked Alisha in the side. “Don’t pretend you’re not excited.”
She shot me back an evil grin of her own. “Just make sure you’re wearing that prize shirt when you book with the fancy hotel.”
“Don’t worry; I will.”
True to my word, I strode into the Marriot hotel with my bright flamingo shirt and equally-bright smile. As the others waited in the marble entranceway, admiring the beauty of the magenta irises twining around the pillars, I booked with the attractive receptionist.
“What kind of rooms do you have available?” I asked.
The woman’s honey-colored gaze rested on my shirt for an extra second before she scanned the computer in front of her.
“We’ve got our Bachelor Suites, our Premium Boarder Suites, our…”
“What’s the nicest room you have?”
Her gaze flicked to my shirt again.
“Sir, I don’t know if—”
“I’ll take the three nicest rooms you have, that are connected. I can pay now.”
Handing her my platinum credit card, she quickly passed me several room keys. I thanked her and then returned to Alisha and the others.
“What room did you get?” she asked, as we headed to the elevators.
“The three nicest,” I replied, as I handed her the keys, “It’s a suite actually, so it’s three rooms joined by a living room. And they have a spa, by the way.”
At the ‘three rooms,’ Alisha visibly relaxed, while the mention of a spa had Nana closing her eyes with salvation. Christian was grinning from ear to ear.
“This is the best birthday ever!”
Glancing over my shoulder, Alisha’s beaming smile contorted into a horrified grimace. She grabbed my hand and wrenched me towards the elevators.
“Come on guys, let’s check out these rooms!”
I turned and followed her horror-stricken gaze. It was fixed on a brown-haired man in the lobby. He had clearly been handsome in the past, but now he looked tired and balding.
“Is that?” Nana said, in a low voice.
“Dad!” Christian cried, bee-lining for the man.
Alisha took a deep breath before she hurried after him, Nana and I following close behind.
“Hey, kid,” the balding man said with a strained smile. A woman with a red-lipped scowl had her red-clawed hand around the man’s wrist as if it were a handcuff. Clasped in her other hand was a blond little angel of boy. He had rosy cheeks, baby blue eyes, shiny golden hair—the whole bit. Judging by the tense scene, this had to be Alisha’s ex, along with his new family to boot.
“What are you doing here?” the red-lipped woman asked, her narrowed eyes scrutinizing Alisha.
Alisha, for her part, was white-faced, and speechless.
“Who is that, Daddy?”
The little boy used his free hand to tug at his father’s. His eager blue eyes were fixed on Christian.
“No one,” the woman snapped. “Why don’t you go and get a candy from the vending machine we saw back down the hallway?”
She shoved out a handful of coins at him and, taking them, the little boy ran off toward the hallway. Now, the woman directed her steely glare at Alisha.
“I don’t know how you found out we were coming here, but I sug
gest you keep to yourselves. We certainly will.”
At her words, Christian looked to the man pointedly, who only gave his head a small sad shake. Alisha was red-faced and shaking, while Nana looked like she was ready to start throwing punches.
I took Alisha’s hand, not liking this woman’s tone or her sneering red-lipped face.
“That won’t be necessary. I was the one who suggested we stay at this hotel, so we could celebrate Christian’s birthday better. We’d been enjoying the rides and didn’t want to end the fun. So, I wouldn’t flatter yourself. This trip was for us and had nothing to do with you.”
Dark eyes flashing, the woman’s cherry lips opened to reply, but now it was the man who spoke.
“Alisha, you have—”
His gaze went to me, back to Alisha again, irritation—and what looked like jealousy—flashing in her eyes.
I took her hand in mine.
“Excuse us, we were just headed to our top suite rooms.”
The woman’s jaw dropped, just as the man’s eyebrows raised. Christian was still standing in front of him awkwardly. As if remembering the poor boy was there, the man glanced over and gave him a half-hearted pat on the head.
“I’ll call you tonight, kid. Like always—it’s your birthday after all.”
“Okay,” Christian said in a disheartened voice. Alisha took his hand.
“C’mon, Christian; we can order some pizza if you want.”
That got him going. “Yeah, cool!”
As we made our way to the elevator, we passed the little blond boy coming back. His eyes locked with Christian’s, just as Nana jammed the elevator button, and thankfully, it arrived within seconds.
It was only once we were safely tucked away in the mirror-lined elevator that Alisha let herself take a breath. She exchanged a look with Nana.
“Of all the places for him to go,” she muttered in a dark voice.
Nana nodded angrily. Luckily, Christian was too busy making faces at himself in the gold-tinged mirror to notice. Alisha took my hand, squeezed it, and raised herself on tiptoe to whisper in my ear.
“Thank you for that.”
I nodded, smiling with the satisfied pride I felt swelling in my chest. Anyone who messed with Alisha was going to find they had me to deal with, too.
