by Kelly Oram
“Are you suggesting I broke that poor man’s foot, putting that sweet couple under such stress simply to make sure you accompanied Nathan for the weekend?”
“I—well, no, of course not, but…but…”
“I wouldn’t put it past you,” Colin muttered.
I didn’t think Pearl would go so far as to hurt anyone, but still, the timing of it all was…crazy.
Pearl laughed. “You young kids.” She sighed and took my hand, placing it in Jordan’s. “Fate simply has a way of working things out. When it hands you a gift, don’t question it; just take it.”
I gulped as I looked down at Jordan’s hand in mine, surprised at how I reacted physically to the connection. “Um…” I had to clear my throat, and let go of Jordan’s hand to rub the back of my flaming neck. “Yeah, I still don’t know about fate, but you do have the weekend off now. Will you come to Syracuse with me?”
Jordan chewed on her lower lip, frowning as she considered my offer.
“Go, Jordan,” Colin insisted. “If you don’t, I will.” When we both looked at him, he sighed dreamily. “An entire weekend in the same house as all three of those gorgeous Anderson triplets? That would be heaven.”
I laughed. So did Pearl. Jordan smirked, but didn’t quite lose her frown. “But it’s Thanksgiving. It’s, like, a family thing. I wouldn’t want to intrude.”
I shook my head. “My dad won’t care. Promise. He’s totally easygoing. More than me, even. Please come.”
Now that I’d gotten the idea in my head, I couldn’t stand the thought of going home without her. And she wanted to come with me. I could tell. “Please?” I said again.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m begging.”
She hesitated a second longer, then slowly nodded. “Okay.”
The uncertainty confused me. I’d never seen her shy about anything before. “You okay?”
The question startled her. “Yeah, of course.” She tried to cover her surprise with a bright smile. “It’s just really nice of you to invite me.”
Where was the sudden vulnerability and self-consciousness coming from? This wasn’t normal for her. Well, it was, but she usually only got that way with guys she was dating. She’d never been this way with me before. Had I done something to make her uncomfortable? “You sure you’re okay? You’re acting weird. If you don’t want to come, then you don’t have to.”
“Oh, yes, she does.” Colin chucked his arm around Jordan’s shoulders. “She’s going.”
I waited for Jordan’s response. “I do want to come. I promise. I’m actually really excited to see what a normal family is like during the holidays. It’ll be a completely new experience.”
Maybe that was it. Maybe she was just intimidated by the thought of meeting the whole family. She’d often commented on my relationship with my brothers. Oddly enough, as much as Sophie had despised my brothers and hated that I was so close with them, Jordan loved it. She was a lot like me. She appreciated them in small doses and still valued her alone time. Though, since I broke up with Sophie, Jordan’s alone time was spent with me more often than not.
“Well, as long as you’re sure, then let’s get home and pack your bag. You’ll need warm clothes—it’s colder in Syracuse—and you need at least one party outfit.” She made a face. “Hey. If I have to go to this party Friday night, then so do you.”
“Fine. But if anyone tall, dark, and hot hits on me, I’m totally fake-dumping you for him.”
“Deal.” I laughed. “Go clock out. We have a train to catch.”
Jordan grinned. “Or…we could drive.”
My eyes bulged. “The Ferrari?” When she nodded, I smiled so wide it hurt. “This weekend just keeps getting better and better.”
Jordan hurried off to clock out and was glowing by the time she returned. I understood the feeling. I’d been dreading this weekend, and now I couldn’t wait to get it started. Once again, I owed Pearl a huge thank-you.
I turned to her and she winked, seeming to know what I was thinking. “You kids have a lovely holiday.”
“We will,” I promised.
. . . . .
As I’d suspected, Chris and Tyler were thrilled to have Jordan come home with us, and Dad was cool with it. He wasn’t even surprised. My brothers did hate me, though, when they learned I ditched the train ride with them to drive home in Jordan’s Ferrari. All was forgiven once she took them both for rides.
There was a little of that nervous shyness I’d seen earlier when she first met my dad, but by the next morning she was back to her old self and right at home. She was even the first one awake and had managed to sniff out the coffee beans all on her own—not that that was a shocker.
I’d given Jordan my bedroom and taken the couch, so I woke to the smell of fresh coffee. “I see you had no trouble finding the caffeine,” I teased, joining her in the kitchen.
“I have a sixth sense for it.”
I wasn’t going to argue with that.
Jordan watched me raid the cupboards as if she found it fascinating. “Sorry. There’s no ice cream in the freezer.”
“I know. I already checked.”
I laughed. “But it looks like we have eggs, frozen waffles, and Count Chocula.”
I was already pouring a bowl of cereal for her before she said, “Hit me with the chocolate.”
“You’re in luck. There’s enough for one last bowl.”
After I set the bowl in front of her and went to grab the milk, a half-asleep Chris swooped into the room and stole the cereal from her with a big, fat smirk on his face. “Thanks. Count Chocula is my favorite.”
Jordan watched him take the milk out of my hand, pour some on the cereal, and sit down in the chair directly across from her. He was still smirking as if he’d won, but I knew better. I’d spent too much time with Jordan and Colin. She waited until he stuck a spoon in the cereal and then kicked him hard in the shin, swiping the bowl back before he could take a bite.
“OW!”
Jordan smirked at the idiot. “Thanks for pouring the milk for me,” she said, digging into her breakfast as smugly as she possibly could.
Both my dad and Tyler had come into the kitchen in time to see the entire exchange and joined me in laughter. The grin Dad shot Jordan was a proud one. “Glad to see you’ve settled right in.”
Jordan grinned back. “No offense, Mr. Anderson, but with your boys it’s kind of survival of the fittest.”
“Tell me about it.” Dad laughed and pulled a coffee mug from the cupboard. “I almost didn’t survive them. And, please, call me Doug.”
“You got it, Doug. So what’s the plan today? Nate mentioned some kind of crazy family gathering?” She laughed when we all groaned at the reminder. “It can’t be that bad.”
“In-laws are always that bad,” Dad muttered.
“In-laws?” Jordan asked, startled. Her cheeks immediately turned pink and she cringed. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to—I thought—”
I came to her rescue. “My mom had five sisters. After she died, they decided Dad had no clue how to raise us himself and decided it was their job to take care of us. Dad’s been fighting them off for years.”
“Crazy, meddling, pushy, psycho, bossy, opinionated women. My Maddie was the only sane one of the bunch.”
“That’s true,” Tyler offered. “They’re all nuts.”
Chris shuddered. “Especially Aunt Carol.”
I flashed Jordan an I told you so smile.
Dad dumped a shot of rum in his coffee. After taking a sip, he said, “It’s not fair. If you lose the wife, you should get to lose the in-laws, too.” He grinned at Jordan to let her know he was teasing. A little. “We lost their mom a long time ago,” he explained after seeing her shocked expression. “It’s okay to talk about her now. Joking helps. Especially if it’s at her sisters’ expense.”
Chris threw his arm around Dad’s shoulder and said, “You know, if you’d just find yourself another good woman, they’d get off your
case.”
Dad choked on his spiked coffee. When he started hacking, Chris took the mug from him and finished it off. Once Dad was over his coughing fit, he took the cup back and smacked Chris in the back of the head. Then he got all tense and cleared his throat. “Yeah…about that…”
We all realized what he was saying at the same time. “Shut up!” Tyler shouted. “Dad, you dog. You’re seeing someone?”
“Uh, yeah.” His face heated up and he rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s, um, Patricia Klonski, actually.”
The name was lost on Jordan, but Tyler, Chris, and I all freaked. “MRS. KLONSKI?” we shouted simultaneously.
I plopped down hard into the chair next to Jordan. “Who’s Mrs. Klonski?” she whispered.
“Our sixth grade teacher.”
We all looked to Dad for more explanation. He was fire engine red. “She’s Patricia Newman now. She got divorced a couple years ago. I ran into her in the grocery store about a month ago, and she asked how you boys were doing. We got to talking and, I don’t know…” He shrugged helplessly.
“I know,” Tyler said. “She’s smokin’ hot, that’s what. Go, Dad.”
“Dude, that’s sick,” Chris said. “She was your teacher.”
“She was my hot teacher. Even back then I could recognize it. Why do you think I got detention so much that year?”
I snorted and Jordan giggled behind her coffee mug.
Tyler’s face lit up. “Is she coming to Thanksgiving today?”
Dad’s sigh made Tyler fist pump the air with excitement. “Sweet.”
Chris was disgusted. “You perve. What if they get married? You could be perving on your future stepmom right now.”
Dad choked again, and this time he wasn’t even drinking anything.
Tyler shrugged. “Still hot.”
Chris rolled his eyes. “You’ve got problems. You can’t perve on Dad’s girlfriend. It’s bad enough you’re totally hot for Runt’s woman.”
This time it was Jordan who choked, and Tyler who turned red. He glared at Chris and punched him as hard as he could in the arm. “Jerk,” he muttered, stomping out of the room.
I shouldn’t have laughed. I tried not to. But a chuckle escaped me, and once I lost it, we all broke. Our roar of laughter was followed by the slamming of the front door. “Poor guy,” Jordan said.
Ha. That was hardly the worst thing we brothers had done to each other over the years. “He’ll get over it. It’s Dad I feel sorry for. All hell’s going to break loose when he shows up with a date to Thanksgiving dinner.”
“I don’t think so. I already warned them about Patricia.” Smirking, Dad shook his head and pointed at Jordan. “It’s you two who are going to be the center of attention once they all realize she isn’t Sophie.”
My stomach dropped. He was right. This was going to be a nightmare. I glanced at Jordan. “It’s not too late for us to run away.”
Jordan laughed and patted my leg. “No way. I came home with you for the holidays. I want to be Home for the Holidays.”
She looked so excited. It was sick. But she just didn’t understand. She’d learn soon enough. “Fine.” I leaned forward and laid my head on the cool table. It was starting to hurt at just the thought of the day ahead. “Just remember, you asked for it.”
Thanksgiving had been as Home for the Holidays as it was every year. Jordan ate it all up as if she enjoyed the chaos and insanity more than Aunt Rachel’s award-winning pecan pie—which she’d had two pieces of. It was fascinating to watch. Jordan glowed the entire day. She helped in the kitchen, taught some of the younger kids how to play soccer, chatted stock portfolios with Uncle Richard, and watched an old Cary Grant movie with Gramps. She even fawned over Aunt Carol’s dog and showed her some website that sold designer dog clothes at discount prices. Aunt Carol cried tears of joy.
Overall, the day had been exhausting as always, but for the first time since I could remember, it had been fun. Jordan had turned it into an adventure. My family holiday was the plot of an entertaining movie. It was a comedy with heart, not the horror flick I’d always imagined it to be.
Thanks to Jordan, I was able to stand back and see it all with a new perspective. It seemed that’s what she always did. My life was changing because of her. I was changing. Viewing life the way Jordan did, as a movie-in-progress, had me eagerly anticipating what came next. When I woke up Friday morning, I couldn’t help thinking What movie would it be today? The answer didn’t come until that night, once we were at Bret’s big party.
Jordan wisely decided to leave the Ferrari at home—not because she planned to drink, but to avoid parking near the scores of partiers who did plan to drink and might accidentally swipe her parked car when they stupidly tried to drive home. She happily piled in Dad’s Explorer with my brothers and me.
When we got to Bret’s house and walked up the long driveway, the party had already started. Loud bass and laughter poured out of the house while college kids entered in droves. My first thoughts were Animal House and Old School, but Jordan had a different pick. Once we made it inside, she let out a low whistle and said, “Congratulations, boys, we’ve officially arrived at Bogie Lowenstein’s.”
“What’s Bogie Lowenstein’s?” Tyler asked.
“10 Things I Hate About You. Epic party scene. Bogie was this nerd whose house was invaded by every teenager in the city. He had a big estate-looking place like this, and the party got out of control.”
“Oh, hey, yeah, we saw that movie.” Chris nudged me, as if I should know. “It was the one with Heath Ledger and that super hot chick who played the school psycho.”
Tyler laughed. “Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. That was when we started calling Sophie the shrew…oh.” He winced in my direction. “Sorry, dude.”
“Smooth,” Chris muttered, then stopped walking and pointed. “Speaking of the dreaded ex…”
I followed the direction of his finger, and there on the stairs, surrounded by her old high school friends, was Sophie. I hadn’t talked to her since I ended things, and was surprised at the pang of sadness I felt at seeing her now. I didn’t regret breaking up, but she’d been such an intricate part of my life for so long. I’d loved her. I’d let her go, but it still hurt in a way. And I hated that I’d caused her so much heartache.
Jordan’s hand slipped into mine. “It sucks, doesn’t it?” She flashed me a sympathetic smile and nodded in Sophie’s direction. “I was the one who broke it off with the ex-ex, and I thought that would make it easier to see him after, but it never did.”
I didn’t know if that made me feel better or worse, but I was relieved to have Jordan’s hand in mine. I squeezed it tightly, glad she understood how I felt. “I didn’t expect to see her here. She hates parties.”
Chris threw his arm over my shoulder, shaking his head as if I’d disappointed him. I knew the look on his face. He was now going to impart some of his ever-so-wise-five-minutes-older brotherly advice. “She’s here for you, dude. She knew you’d be here. Judging from the hotness of the dress she’s wearing, she’s either here to try and win you back, or show you what you let go.”
I rolled my eyes. “How do you know—?”
“Win him back,” Jordan said, earning curious glances from all three of us. She’d sounded just as confident as Chris had. As if she just knew. “She’s with her girlfriends. If she wanted to make him jealous, she’d have come with a guy or she’d be flirting with a group of them. Secondly, look at her. Sure, she looks determined, but it’s out of desperation. There’s no fire of a woman scorned in her eyes. She’s hopeful, not bitter.”
“Not yet,” Tyler said. “She doesn’t know about you guys. Once she realizes you two are together, she’s going to make the 10 Things I Hate About You chick look tame.”
As if Sophie could feel us talking about her, her eyes drifted our direction. When our gazes met, a series of emotions crossed her face, each so easy to read it was as if she were telling a story with them—joy, hope, sadness, longing
, and determination. Then her eyes flicked to my side, and shock and heartbreak were added to the list. Then, finally, there was the bitterness Jordan had mentioned.
She started heading our direction and Chris hit me. “Don’t worry. We’ve got your back, brother.”
“Totally,” Tyler agreed.
Again, I wasn’t sure if that made me feel better or worse. Before I had time to sort out my thoughts, Sophie was there, staring at me with glossy eyes. One of us had to say something, because the silence was suffocating. “Hey, Soph. How’ve you been?”
“How am I supposed to be?” Her voice shook as she answered. “Two years, Nate. I gave you two years of my life. I gave you my heart. I offered you my future. I gave you all of me, and you threw me out like it meant nothing.”
“That’s not true.”
Sniffling, she ignored me and glared at Jordan. “All for some flighty flip-flop wearing boyfriend-stealer.”
I sighed. “Sophie, she didn’t steal me from you.”
I took her hand and tried to pull her to a corner of the room; not that I could escape the whole crowd, but even a semblance of privacy at the moment would be nice. When Sophie looked at me again, the moisture in her eyes spilled onto her cheeks. “I don’t understand what you see in her. She’s not prettier than me. Not smarter. She wants to be a movie director, for heaven’s sake. She has no future. And neither do you if you stay with her.”
I burned with the need to defend Jordan, but I clamped back the urge because it wouldn’t do any good. Sophie was lashing out because she was hurting, and she needed someone to blame. Jordan was an easy target.
“You said it wasn’t about her!” she cried, bursting into sobs.
Guilt pressed in on my chest, making it hard to breathe, but at least I could be honest about this. “It wasn’t about her.”
“Sure, it wasn’t.” She scoffed bitterly. “You only hooked up with her like five seconds after dumping me. Be honest. Were you cheating on me?”
“No, Sophie. I swear. I was never unfaithful to you. Never. Our breakup was only about us growing apart. Nothing else.”
