by Helen Cooper
“Just on the inside,” Sally said under her breath and caught my eye. I smiled weakly at her joke, but it was hard to rejoice in her humor when Barbie was enjoying TJ’s attention in the front of the car, while I sat in the back feeling like a loser.
***
“I’m stuffed.” Sally leaned back into the car seat as we made our way home from dinner. “I literally couldn’t eat another thing.”
“Not even another bite of that cheesecake?” I laughed as I stifled a yawn.
“Not even another bite.” She groaned and then laughed. “Well, maybe another bite, since it would be a shame to waste cheesecake.”
“You girls are brave,” Barbie said in her teeny-weeny voice.
“Brave?” I asked loudly, the wine from dinner making me lose any inhibitions to talk to her.
“You know that saying, a second on the lips, a year on the hips,” she said poignantly as she looked me up and down. “But I suppose you don’t care.”
“Excuse me?” I said, my voice rising as TJ got into the car.
“Excuse you what, Mila?” he said as he looked at me. I ignored his gaze and shook my head. I was pissed at TJ. He’d basically ignored me all through dinner so that he could whisper sweet nothing’s to Barbie. He was so rude.
“I just tell the truth as I see it,” Barbie said and turned back to the front with a confident smile.
“What truth?” TJ asked, confused.
“Barbie’s just talking about my hips,” I said in a huff, still feeling pissed, especially as my jeans were feeling tight after the meal.
“Oh?” he said and looked back at me, his eyes glittering. “What about your hips?”
“That the cheesecake went straight to my hips,” I said, feeling embarrassed.
“Well, then you need to eat more cheesecake.” TJ winked at me. “Personally, I like a woman with hips—more to hold on to when I’m working my magic.”
“TJ,” I said, my voice shocked as my face burned red and my stomach flipped in excitement.
“Yes, Mila?” he said, his voice silky smooth. His eyes burned into mine for a few seconds before he looked down my body and stared at my breasts for a few seconds. “I’m just telling you what I like,” he said and looked back into my eyes, a huge grin on his face.
“Whatever,” I said and looked away from him, though I couldn’t stop myself from smiling as I looked out the window. Take that, Barbie! Score 1 to me.
“So, Mila, is that why you have a big ass?” Barbie turned around again and looked at me.
“Is what why I have a big ass?” I repeated after her, glaring at her for making me repeat her offensive words.
“So you can get a man for the night?”
“Excuse me?” I said and my voice rose. I looked at TJ to see if he was going to say anything, but instead he just started his engine and put his car into drive. I shook my head and looked over at Sally, whose jaw was also practically on the ground. “Did you hear what she just said to me?” I said loudly, not caring if I was being rude or making Barbie uncomfortable.
“Yes,” TJ answered. “I didn’t hear your answer though.”
“I wasn’t talking to you, Travis James Walker,” I said, almost having a hissy fit.
“Oh, okay,” he said, his voice clearly amused as he drove. Sally’s eyes met mine and we both shook our heads in shock.
“You are not a gentleman, Travis James Walker,” I said, saying his full name again, which made him laugh.
“Did I ever say I was?” he answered quickly and I glared at the back of his muscular shoulders. Sometimes I just wanted to hit him. He was so obnoxious. Ugh!
“I didn’t mean to offend you, Mila,” Barbie said in her fake sweet voice again. “I’m actually jealous of you.”
“Jealous of me?” I said in a tone that clearly showed I wasn’t buying it.
“I wish I could find a guy to have a one-night stand with me,” Barbie said in a pitiful voice, her full pink lips pouting as she gazed back at me with a sad face. “You’re really lucky.”
“You’re telling us you can’t find a guy who will have a one-night stand with you?” Sally said in disbelief. I looked at Sally and made a face. I had no idea what game Barbie was playing, but I had a feeling that I was going to end up being the loser.
“That’s what I’m saying,” Barbie said and I saw her hand on TJ’s thigh. “Every guy who meets me wants me for longer than a night. I can’t just have a one-night stand because they never want to leave once they’ve had me once.” She looked at me and her blue eyes were like ice as she smirked at me. “That’s why you’re so lucky, Mila. You can have a man for a night, give them the ride of their life with your big hips and then they walk away and you’re both happy. Me, I give them the ride of their life and they want to make me their wife.”
“Are you frigging kidding me?” Sally’s voice was pissed. “I think you are one of the biggest—”
“Barbie, that was uncalled for,” TJ said, interrupting Sally, and I watched as he moved Barbie’s hand off of his thigh.
“What?” Barbie sounded breathless. “You know it’s true. I’m too pretty for one night. Guys want to make me their trophy. For once I wish I could be average.”
“I bet,” I said snarkily. “If I had your brain, I’d be wishing for average as well. I wouldn’t even aim or hope for genius status. Just average.”
“Now, now, girls.” TJ’s voice was sharp. “Let’s play nice or this weekend will not be fun.”
“Yeah, I think we already got that phone call,” Sally said, sitting back and closing her eyes. “I can’t wait for Cody to get here.”
“Who’s Cody?” Barbie asked and looked back at me with a questioning look, as if she hadn’t just dissed me. I couldn’t believe that she thought I would answer her.
“Cody is Mila’s brother and my best friend, remember?” TJ answered her and it sounded like he was a little bit annoyed. He deserved to be annoyed. There could be nothing that Barbie was providing to him other than sex and I bet it wasn’t even good sex. I wanted to scream or tell Sally how annoyed I was, but I knew that I would just sound like a broken record if I kept complaining about Barbie.
“Eh,” Barbie said. “So is your dad coming?”
“No,” TJ said in an abrupt voice.
“TJ comes up to hang out with my family. His dad has never come,” I said, wanting Barbie to know that TJ and I had a long past and would continue to have a long future. “His dad is usually too busy with work.”
“You know him?”
“Duh,” I said and grinned at Sally. “I’ve been friends with TJ for years. Of course I know him.” I wanted to say more. I wanted to add that Hudson Walker and I were like old pals and that I had him on speed dial, but that was a lie. And I didn’t tell lies, at least not in front of the one person who could discredit me in seconds. I wanted to make Barbie jealous of me, but I knew TJ wouldn’t appreciate me pretending to be good friends with his dad when I’d barely held five conversations with him in all the years I’d known him.
“Yeah, hmph.” She made a weird noise and turned back to the front of the car. “So, what’s it like having to follow in the great Hudson Walker’s footsteps?” she asked TJ, and my jaw dropped. Barbie really had no filter. I wondered if she was deliberately trying to rile up everyone in the car or if she really had no clue? It wasn’t possible for someone to just not understand how rude they were being, was it? I mean, maybe if she was autistic or had Asperger’s or was on that spectrum. I knew that people who had Asperger’s didn’t have the same social cues, but I was pretty confident she didn’t fit in that category. Barbie was just a nosey bitch.
“I’m currently driving, so I wouldn’t know,” TJ said, his tone still slightly off. I poked Sally in the arm gently. I was hoping that Barbie would keep prodding and that TJ would go off on her. That would be epic. That would make the whole torturous evening worth it.
“I mean what’s it like working for the man who is—”
&nbs
p; “That’s his dad,” I said, cutting her off, annoyed for TJ. Even though I wanted to see Barbie crash and burn, I didn’t want TJ to feel bad. I knew how much he hated questions about his dad, and I wanted to protect him more than I wanted to see her go down in flames. I guess that really was proof that I had deep feelings for him. “Not some random man that you think he should be impressed by because he’s famous and rich.”
“It’s okay, Mila.” TJ’s eyes glanced at mine for a few seconds in the rear-view mirror before he made a right-hand turn back up the main road to the lake house. “I don’t mind answering questions; it comes with the territory.”
“Okay,” I said and just shrugged.
“Barbie, I don’t know what you expect me to say. He’s my dad. He’s a businessman. I work for his company. I prove myself just like every other employee. Just like Mila has to prove herself as she now works for her family business as well.” He pulled up in the driveway and switched the engine off and looked back at me. “Sometimes I wish that I worked somewhere else, that I could do something else. Sometimes I wish that certain expectations weren’t set of me, you know?” His eyes bored into mine and it was as if he were talking directly to me and me alone.
“I know what you mean.” I nodded and sighed. “Sometimes I feel that way too.”
“It can be hard.” He nodded. “The path to success isn’t an easy one, even if your dad owns the company. Sometimes you just have to show what you’re capable of.” He ran his hands through his silky hair and his eyes narrowed. “And that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I’m going to show what I’m made of and I’m not taking any prisoners.”
“Whoa, enough serious talk, baby.” Barbie laughed lightly and ran her hand across his face. “Let’s go to bed. I want you to show me exactly what you’re capable of right now.”
“Ugh,” Sally said loudly and opened the car door. “Mila and I are going to our room. Thanks for driving, TJ,” she said sounding anything but thankful as she jumped out of the car, and I followed suit, slamming the car door behind me as I got out. “I swear I’m going to slap that girl,” Sally said as we made our way into the cabin. She’s absolutely awful.”
“I know,” I said softly as we walked to our room. “She really is.” We closed the door behind us and I walked over to my bed and sat down and lay back. “This is going to be a long weekend.” I sighed.
“Yes, it is, but don’t worry. I have a plan.” Sally winked at me.
“What plan?” I asked suspiciously.
“I’ll tell you in a few minutes.” She pulled her top off. “I’m headed to the shower now. I need to wash off this sweat from my body, and I want to deep condition my hair for tomorrow.”
“Right now?” I rolled my eyes at her and she grinned.
“No time like the present.” She laughed.
“Fine, I’ll go in the shower after you and then we can talk. I want to know what you have up your sleeve.”
“You’ll love it. Trust me.” She grinned and I groaned as she made her way to the adjoining bathroom. I had a bad feeling that putting my trust in Sally wasn’t going to work out for the best.
***
I walked out of the shower and dried my hair with my big fluffy towel. I was eager to hear what Sally was going to tell me, but as I watched her sleeping, with her mouth slightly ajar, I knew I wasn’t going to find out tonight. So instead I grabbed my phone and put on my boots and walked into the living room. I couldn’t sleep yet and I felt the urge to speak to my grandfather.
“Hi, Nonno,” I said as he picked up. “I hope it’s not too late.”
“It’s never too late for my Mila,” he said, his voice gruff. “How is the lake house?”
“Fine,” I said, my voice sad.
“What’s wrong?”
“Just wish that sometimes I didn’t feel so lonely.”
“You’re there with your friends, no, Mila?” His tone was questioning and I knew he was worried.
“Yea, Sally is here. So is TJ and his girlfriend or whatever. And Cody will be here tomorrow.”
“So why do you feel lonely?”
“I don’t know.” I bit my lower lip and grabbed my coat so that I could head outside.
“Did you and Sally fall out?”
“No, Nonno,” I said and quickly zipped up my coat as it was freezing cold outside. I walked down the driveway and headed towards the path that would take me to the lake.
“Some days I just feel like I’m so alone, no matter how many people are around me. I feel like I’m the only one who really knows what’s going on inside of me,” I said as I headed towards the lake, the one place I knew would bring me some solace.
“You’re not alone, Mila. You know you always have me. What’s really wrong? Is it TJ?” His voice was astute and I tried not to cry.
“He’s never going to want me, is he?”
“If he’s the one for you, he will already know. If he’s not, it doesn’t even matter.”
“How did you know that Nonna was the one?” I asked softly as I headed to one of the wooden chaises and sat down.
“You know this story.” My nonno’s voice became sentimental. “I’ve been telling you the story since you were a little girl.”
“Tell me again,” I said and I leaned back and hugged myself as the cool wind hit my face. I looked out at the big, dark lake and then looked up at the night sky and the thousands of shining stars.
“I was working for my uncle who owned a bakery,” he said, his voice still sentimental. “I used to deliver the bread to all the people in my village. It was a lot of people.”
“I know, Nonno.” I laughed. “You were a very hardworking young man.”
“And there was one lady—she was the most beautiful girl in the village.”
“Aunty Maria.”
“Yes.” He nodded. “Every boy in the village wanted a kiss from Maria. Every boy, but me.”
“Because you were so focused on your job delivering bread.”
“I was focused,” he said seriously. “And I was saving up for a new bike. Even little boys in Italy wanted fancy, shiny bikes.”
“But then you saw Nonna.”
“Yes, then I saw your Nonna,” he said, his voice full of love. “She was throwing a rock down the street.” He laughed. “And it hit my bag and a loaf of bread fell into the street.”
“And you were so mad.”
“I was so mad until I saw her face and then she put her hands on her hips and she told me that I should be more careful where I was riding.”
“And you told her she should be more careful with her girl throws.”
“Yes,” he laughed. “Who told me to say that? She then threw another rock and it hit my bike. I jumped off of my bike and walked over to her.”
“And she asked you if you were going to give her a free loaf of bread to say sorry.”
“And I did.” He laughed. “I was only fourteen and she was only thirteen, but I knew, I knew as sure as I knew I had two arms and two legs, that your darling Nonna was going to be my wife.”
“And she knew right away as well.” I sighed as I looked up at the sky. “I miss her.”
“So do I,” he said, his voice gruff. “Every single day.”
“You know what my favorite memory is?” I said softly. “Do you remember that Christmas when TJ came to stay with us and you and Nonna took us out for hot chocolate and Cody was being a spoilt brat and didn’t go because he wanted ice cream?”
“Of course.”
“Nonna told me she saw you and her in me and TJ,” I said softly. “I thought that was a sign that we were meant to be. Nonna knew from the beginning that I had a thing for him and it wasn’t awkward talking about it because you two fell in love at such a young age.”
“It was a different time, Mila.”
“Yeah, I know. Sometimes I wish it wasn’t.” I sighed. “I hate that he brought that girl, Barbie. I don’t even know what he sees in her.”
“He’s still young,
Mila. Men these days don’t settle down young. Look at Cody.”
“I don’t know what Cody’s problem is.” I sighed. “You know Sally has the hots for him. I don’t know how to tell her that he’s nothing but a player.”
“It’s not up to you to get into your brother’s business.”
“But Sally’s my best friend.”
“Even more reason why you shouldn’t get involved.”
“I feel like a bad person.”
“Love isn’t easy, Mila. It’s not all flowers and candy.”
“I know that, Nonno.”
“Sometimes I wonder if you do.” His voice was gentle. “Just because you’re feeling jealous doesn’t mean you get all depressed and lonely.”
“I’m not depressed and lonely,” I said and sighed. “I mean, I’m not lonely because I’m jealous,” I lied. “Okay, maybe a bit, but I can’t help it. I had so many plans for this weekend.”
“Life doesn’t go according to plans.”
“I thought we were fated for each other. Now I wonder if I should give Milo a second chance.”
“He’s a good boy.”
“He’s not the boy, though.”
“Mi cara,” he said with a sigh. “You haven’t even given him a chance.”
“Do you think Nonna is looking over us?” I said softly. “Do you think she’ll give me a sign if I should just give up on TJ?”
“She’s always with you. Just as I will always be.”
“Don’t say that, Nonno. You’re not going anywhere.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Better,” I said and then froze as I heard footsteps. “Hold on, Nonno,” I whispered. “I think someone is coming.”
“Mila, where are you? You’re not in your room?” Nonno’s voice sounded alarmed and I bit my lower lip to stop from screaming as I heard a branch snapping. My heart was racing and I sat there in fear, waiting to see who was coming. “Mila?” Nonno’s voice rose.
“Nonno, I’m here,” I whispered into the phone, covering the mouthpiece with my hand as I looked back and forth in the night sky. It was so dark that I couldn’t really see anything and that made it even worse.
