by Katz, Avery
I exited the hall of mirrors and walked down yet another corridor. Greg should have left me a trail of breadcrumbs or flower petals leading up to the ballroom. I was lost and embarrassed to admit it out loud. The soft, classical music continued to echo down the high ceilings and hidden alcoves of the palace. The acoustics here were remarkable.
The sound of my footsteps echoed down the marble stairs as I made my way to the ground floor. I opened the first door to my right, thinking it led to the ballroom. I was close enough to hear the loud chatter and laughter coming from the Swan Ballroom. According to the guide, master painters from Italy were hired to paint the dome-shaped ceiling of the aforementioned ballroom. It was said to have dazzled emperors, kings, and noblemen.
I pushed the door open and found myself in a study of sorts. “Oops.”
Tommy was busy making out with a handsome man up against the bookshelves. They were all over each other, kissing and touching like two reunited lovers. I hastily apologized and retreated from the room. Something told me that those two were hooking up on the down low. I straightened my tie and followed the well-dressed waiters to the ballroom. It turned out to be right at the end of the hall. I tucked the map into my pocket and joined the others at the dinner party. The Swan Ballroom took my breath away. It was a Renaissance masterpiece in every sense of the word. The frescoes on the walls were vibrant and three dimensional. I tilted my head backward and stared at the life-size swans decorating the dome.
“Quin! Come meet cousin Lizzie.”
Greg introduced me to the rest of his cousins. They were eloquent and carried themselves with grace. Lizzie reminded me of Grace Kelley. She was married to a fellow American too. Mom and Hannah were already there, enjoying a glass of wine in the predining area. The Queen was dressed to the nines in a surprisingly trendy dress. It matched the color of her hazel eyes. A loud belly laugh startled the hell out of me. I turned to face the source of such unrestrained laughter and saw a man in an ill-fitted suit. He looked like an opera singer.
“This is Uncle Timothy. He used to be a sex symbol back in the day. As you can see, he turned into your stereotypical drunk uncle slash sugar daddy.”
Uncle Tim had a young woman on his arm. She was young enough to be his daughter. I made a gagging noise and helped myself to a champagne flute thanks to our lovely, attentive waitress. Hannah sidled up to me with a wide grin on her face. She had the same style as Lana Del Rey. A flowing dress and winged eyeliner were her trademark look. “I think I’m going to land me a prince tonight,” she said in a sing-song voice.
“Please be specific. There are plenty of princes in this ballroom. Mind you, none of them are straight.” I chuckled.
“What about Prince Asher over there. He’s total eye candy.” She pouted.
“Sorry to burst your bubble, sis, but he’s gay too.”
“Dang it!”
“I could lend you my fishing pole and you could go fishing for men down by the lake,” I teased. “Or you could simply check out Tinder and hope for the best.”
“Shut up.” She playfully smacked me on the shoulder. “How come you always get the best-looking guys? Look at Greg for example. He’s so unbelievably stunning.”
I looked over to where Greg stood chatting with Prince Asher. He tossed his head back and laughed at something the Cardovian prince said. How typical of him. I looked away and took a long sip of champagne. Old habits die hard. Greg will always be Greg. A wedding ring from Vegas won’t change a thing about him. That was why I could never take him seriously. The sooner we filed for divorce, the better.
Queen Emmeline invited us all to sit at the royal dining table. I heard from Lizzie that it took them around two weeks to arrange the dinner table. The waiters handed us all menu cards and filled our Bohemian crystal glasses with champagne. Her Royal Majesty raised her glass in the air and we followed suit. “Gregory, you have surprised us all by tying the knot with not just any man but with your childhood best friend and wonderful companion. I would like to congratulate you both on your marriage. You and Quin are suitably matched. I saw it the moment you walked through the drawing room doors. From now on, I will be introducing you as Mr. Husband and Mr. Husband.”
I plastered a fake smile on my lips and scanned the menu card. Hannah gasped from beside me.
“Holy guacamole. This is a twelve-course meal.”
“This is my grandmother’s way of welcoming new members into the family. She stuffs them with food, wine, and scrumptious dessert. My guess is that she’ll be serving pineapple semolina fritters with Dutch ice cream for dessert.”
Our first course was chicken breast stuffed with fine lamb mousse. By the time we were done with our twelve courses, Hannah and I were ready to drift into a food coma. Mom embarrassingly asked the waiters for a second helping of the smoked salmon pie and the potato croquettes. Greg chatted briefly with prince Asher. They were definitely talking about Danny. The handsome prince got up from his seat and tapped his champagne glass.
“I would like to make an announcement,” Danny said. Nathan reached out and squeezed his hand. “Nathan and I are having a baby. Our surrogate is officially pregnant.”
Everyone clapped and congratulated him on the good news.
“If you’d done the thing properly in the first place, you wouldn’t need a surrogate, Dan!” Freddy jokingly said. He was Lizzie’s cocky, sharp-tongued brother.
After dinner, a live band took over the ballroom and played lively modern music. Prince Theodore and Princess Margaret waved me over and asked me to sit with them for a few minutes. They asked me random questions about my life and my career. It was more of a casual conversation than an interrogation. I told them about my tech business and my years of working as an intern at Microsoft. I hated talking about myself, but they seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say.
“Your daughter is an angel without wings. I just saw her on my way to the ballroom. She looks just like you,” Princess Margaret said. “Being her grandmother is going to be so much fun.”
Greg showed up to the rescue and swept me away to the dance floor. I waved goodbye to his parents and wrapped my arms around him. “Just on time. Your mother was asking me questions straight from her phone. I think she has a long list of questions prepared. She even asked about my horoscope and favorite dish.”
“She probably just wants to get a sense of who you are as a person. The last time she saw you, you were this gangly kid from boarding school who had a crush on me.”
“Wow. Has it really been that long?”
“Yep. We’ve known each other for more than thirteen years now.”
“Sounds about right.”
26
Greg
The weekend was over faster than the blink of an eye. I took advantage of Quin being in Raplen to show him the sights and introduce Hannah to a couple of hot, single guys. Louisa opted to stay in the castle and hang out with mother. They bonded over gardening and other boring, botanical stuff. I loved playing tour guide, so this was the perfect opportunity for me to shine and show off my booming tour guide-y voice. I drove Hannah and Quin to the old, historical part of Raplen City and showed them where my great-, great-grandparents once lived. Castle Columba, which was Latin for Dove, was as big as a football stadium. It was built during the Middle Ages, but King Gabriel the Second restructured the whole thing during his reign. Some kooky historians allegedly said that it was haunted by the ghosts of those who were wrongfully murdered during those dark ages.
I scared Hannah shitless by telling her a bunch of fake stories while we were touring the castle. Quin, on the other hand, was more interested in the architecture. His nose was buried in the guidebook. He’d been acting a bit weird ever since our dinner party. I chalked it up to jet lag. It was hard for everyone. In an effort to cheer him up and lighten the mood, I took them to our very own chocolate museum where we drank hot cocoa and ate organic ice cream. Quin bought souvenirs from the popular museum and cocoa tea for himself. We also visi
ted a couple of other ruins and museums in addition to the famous Gargoyle Cathedral. It was built during the Gothic era so it was freaky as hell. The images depicted on its walls were straight out of a horror movie. The stained glass windows and dark marble floors added another layer of creepy. It was a famous tourist destination though.
Later that night, I drove them to the airport and said goodbye to little miss sunshine. We were all surprised when she hugged me and called me daddy for the first time ever. I was so touched. She was so freaking adorable and smart and always smelled like baby powder. Adley turned my heart into one soft marshmallow. Mother was right to call her an angel without wings.
Unfortunately, I had to stay behind and deal with some shit regarding our hotel chain. We were getting a lot of housekeeping complaints from the R Hotel in New Orleans. Apparently, some guests were unhappy about the bed mattresses. There was also an incident concerning bed bugs and an alligator that somehow crept into the swimming pool. It was one big PR headache.
I was secretly glad for the time apart from Quin. I needed time to think about our relationship. He had this fucking habit of blowing hot and cold. It drove me crazy.
Maybe spending time apart would make him miss me just as much as I missed him. Our bedroom felt empty without him in it. I spotted the map of Lockridge Palace on his bedside table and smiled. Silly Quin. Nobody knew how to use that map. Not even the guy who made it.
The palace needed arrows and signs like IKEA. A couple of years ago, I got lost on the second floor and ended up in this dusty, unfurnished part of the palace. It was freaky as hell. The hallways, stairwells, and alcoves of the castle gave off this weird, mystical vibe at night. An old nanny of mine once told me that my great-grandmother was a witch. She used to practice spells and make potions in the dungeons. Yeah. Right. As if I would ever believe that Harry Potter shit.
I sat down in our family study and responded to a couple of emails. I quickly nipped that alligator shitstorm in the bud and joined my family for lunch. The menu for today was filet mignon with vegetables and mashed potatoes, and spinach ravioli with goat cheese salad. Danny and I took advantage of the fantastic weather and ate dessert in the garden. He had this guilty look on his face the whole time. I waited for him to spill the beans and shoved more chocolate fudge cake into my mouth. Our royal pastry chef was a godsend.
“What’s troubling your mind? Is it Nathan?”
“Nope.”
“Your horses?” I prodded.
“No. My horses are doing more than fine, thank you very much. Thunder is headed to the Dubai World Cup this year. If we win those ten million dollars, I’m taking the whole family to Saint Bart's. They have the best beaches and hotels there.”
Danny moved his cake crumbs around his plate and sighed. “There is something I’ve been meaning to tell you. Something that has to do with Quin.”
“Go ahead. I’m all ears.”
“Two years ago, I gave you the most horrible advice. It was horrible with a capital H,” he said. “When you texted me and told me about Quin and Wendy, I made the mistake of telling you to let him go. I was wrong.” Danny said.
“Jeez. Thanks for the memories.” I balanced the plate on my lap with a frown.
Quin’s wedding was probably the worst day of my life. I remembered calling Danny in a panic and asking him whether I should try to put a stop to the wedding. I felt like I was running out of time. Danny told me to behave and avoid ruining things for Quin. He said no one was forcing him to get married. I listened to him like a fucking idiot and held my tongue.
I deserved a fucking Academy Award for faking happiness during the ceremony, but the moment I was alone after his wedding, I cried so hard like I’d never cried before. It was so damn hard to stand there and watch him say ”I do” to someone else. The whole thing was a wake-up call for me. The worst part was that I woke up long after the ship had sailed.
“Seriously, Danny. You chose today of all days to tell me this?”
“I’m sorry, I just had to get it off my chest,” he admitted.
“Alright. What else is on your mind? Other than your unborn baby of course.”
“Oh, we’re so thrilled about becoming dads for the first time.” He smiled. “Nathan and I have been thinking about it for some time now.”
“Babies are actually kind of cool. At least Adley is.”
My brother raised his teacup to his lips and took a small sip. “See? This is the reason why I want you to hold onto Quin with all your might. Tell me, do you love him?”
“Yes. I love that man and his baby more than I’ve ever loved anyone.”
“Good. Then you know what to do.”
Danny finished his cake and said goodbye. His horses were waiting for him at the stables. He spoiled those animals more than he spoiled Nathan. I went for a stroll inside the butterfly sanctuary and contemplated my brother’s words. He was right. I needed to show Quin that I cared about him. He was the reason I stopped fucking around and took responsibility for my actions. I spent most of my early twenties hooking up with random men and breaking up with guys who were too emotionally invested or too needy. The mere concept of settling down and getting serious with someone always rubbed me the wrong way. Not anymore.
I headed back to the palace and did a quick round of conference calls. Once the issue with Hotel R was resolved, I signed out of my email account and booked a flight to San Francisco. With the threat of our divorce papers looming on the horizon, I had to act fast, and I had to act smart. Quin was so fucking stubborn. I wanted to surprise him and convince him not to file for divorce. We barely had the chance to be a married couple. I seriously considered moving my business from Sacramento to San Francisco to avoid the whole long-distance thing.
I packed up my stuff and said goodbye to everyone. It was time for me to make a bold statement.
“Where are you going? You just got here?” Ruppy called out after me.
“ET is going home, Ruppy.”
27
Quin
I missed Raplen. It was a very picturesque country. Its hills and valleys were postcard pretty. On our last day, Greg took us on a tour around the city. We visited a number of interesting places, including a Gothic Cathedral that was commissioned by the Vatican. It reminded me of the Sansevero Chapel in Naples. The spooky chapel put the Gothic Cathedral in Raplen to shame. The basement of Sansevero had two actual human remains and astounding statues that puzzled me to the extreme. The history of the chapel was all cloak and daggers with secret societies and black magic thrown into the mix. Hannah had a blast exploring the city and its wealth of touristic attractions. It was an unforgettable experience for sure. Greg and his family were the perfect hosts. They made us feel at home. I was grateful for their hospitality with the exception of Lady Edith. She was unbelievably rude and incredibly intrusive, like a persistent virus that just wouldn’t go away.
The past two days gave me time to reflect on my relationship with Greg. Hearing my baby call him daddy at the airport moved something inside me. I felt so many emotions all at once. I was thrilled, scared, and a tiny bit amused. My child is getting attached to him at an exponential rate. She asked about him this morning and almost threw a tantrum when I tried to feed her. I pretended the spoon was an airplane, and thankfully, it did the trick. I couldn’t just stand by and watch my daughter get more and more attached to him if he was going to leave one day. Leaving was part of who he was. It was pure, unadulterated Greg.
I decided to work from home today since Adley was spending the day with Mom and Hannah. They took her to the Children’s Creativity Museum in Yerba Buena Gardens. I used to love going there as a kid. They had an animation studio where you could mold clay characters and make your own stop-motion animation. Working from home also gave me the opportunity to sit down and go through my divorce petition. The ocean glittered like golden confetti under the warm afternoon sun as I signed the papers and boiled a mug of cocoa tea. Visiting the chocolate museum in Raplen was so enter
taining. I left the souvenir shop armed with bags of organic chocolate bars, candy, and other chocolatey treats.
I was just about to carry my hot drink and go to the terrace when the doorbell rang. I wasn’t expecting any guests. Hannah had a copy of the master key, so why would she ring the doorbell? The last thing I expected was to find Greg standing there in my hallway. I was under the impression that he had a truckload of problems to deal with at work.
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to the Americas in search of burgers and adventure,” he jokingly replied. “Why do you look so surprised? I got bored of Raplen to be honest. All that culture and history is boring without having someone to share it with.” He walked past me and scanned the living room. “Now where is little miss sunshine? I got her a baby unicorn from the duty free. They have a shitload of kid stuff at Pottery Barn.”
“Adley is with Mom and Hannah. They took her to Yerba Buena Gardens.”
He grinned and dropped the plastic bag on the coffee table. “The old biddy does come in handy at times. I’m referring to Louisa of course, not your sister. Hannah is wonderful. She took Raplen by storm. A friend of mine asked me for her contact number. She did major damage with her long hair and sixties Hollywood starlet aura.”
“Good to know.” I frowned, glancing at my watch. “Speaking of Adley, it’s time for me to pick her up. Hannah’s attempts at reducing her carbon footprint involved selling her old, shabby beetle. She’s carless and loving it somehow.”
“How typical of Hannah banana.” Greg chuckled. “You, my baby, are not going anywhere.” He grabbed the keys from my hand and pushed me into the wall. His minty breath tickled my nose. His Gucci Oud perfume invaded my nostrils when he tilted his head sideways and kissed me. I froze for a second as his tongue swept across my bottom lip, begging for entrance. Greg lowered my defenses with his hands in my hair, and his scent wrapped around me like a seductive curtain. I gave into him and kissed him back. God. I could never say no to him. Our tongues reunited after two days of being apart. My brain went into sleep mode and my body took over, touching and squeezing his sinewy muscles and gliding along his firm butt. My heart jumped like a kid playing hopscotch inside my ribcage. I wrapped my arms around his broad shoulders and flirted with his tongue. He moaned into my mouth and deepened the kiss. My head fell backward against the wall when he pulled away to kiss my chin, neck, and collarbone. His mouth was hot and eager to taste my skin. I was a sucker for him, and he knew it. I could never resist his touch, not when those fingers of his were unbuttoning my shirt.
