The Gamble (D'Arth Series Book 3)

by Camille Oster

  "Hello, darling," Marco's mother said, holding a drink in her hand, finally relaxing. "So these are our in-laws," she said looking around the hall. Unlike Marco, she'd been here previously. "At least they're on the other side of the world.”

  "I'm sure they're fine when you get to know them.”

  Judith smiled. "You're such an optimist, sweetie. How is London? I hope you're getting on fine. If you don't like it, there’s no shame coming home. It's so quiet with both of you gone. Dean's there, of course, but I still miss you.”

  "Where is Dean?"

  "He's still at the hotel. Said he had to check some emails. He should be here soon. I better go find Joanna; she's here somewhere.”

  Marco had seen Joanna, Damon's mother, at the church, but hadn't had a chance to speak to her. As with Marco and Dean, Joanna was much older than Judith and there was definitely some generational tension between his mother and her sister. Joanna had married well, straight out of school, while Judith had gone to university and taken on a more left-wing perspective. They didn't hate each other, but they didn't really get on either.

  Looking around, Marco spotted Charlotte, laughing loudly at some horsy-looking man's joke.

  "Hey, Marco.” He knew Melissa's voice before seeing her. Sam's best friend had had a crush on him for a long time, and in the past, Marco had made an effort to scarper out of the house prior to any school ball, lest she pin him down and regale him with not very subtle hints. She was alright, but for the fact that she was Sam's best friend, which made it a bad idea all round. "This is Carli and Crystal.” Marco greeted the girls, having no idea who they were.

  "You look nothing like your sister," one of them said with an Australian accent, meaning this must be someone Sam met after she'd left New Zealand.

  "No," he conceded.

  "Sam mentioned she had a brother. She didn't mention you were cute," the girl said with a broad smile. "It seems she's been hiding things from us. I'm Carli.” They shook hands and Carli hung onto his for a moment too long.

  "I'm surprised she mentioned me at all. She spent years pretending I didn't exist.”

  "And single, too, from what I hear," Carli said with amusement glittering in her eyes. Marco suspected this girl was trying to embarrass him, or was hitting on him. Maybe both.

  "Alas, I have a date.” Like he said, he didn't mess with Sam's friends. "Excuse me, ladies, I better see what's happened to her.”

  Moving through the crowd, he spotted Dean. "I'm famished," Dean said. "I hope we're going to eat soon and I hope it's nothing weird. They're coming down shortly, I'm told.” Marco assumed he was referring to Sam and Sebastian, and by shortly, he meant now.

  Applause sounded through the hall as they appeared at the door. Sam was carrying Esme on her hip, who seemed startled and confused by all the commotion. Everyone spoke and congratulated them as they moved through the hall. Sam looked good, smiling broadly and being kissed on the cheek by everyone.

  Everyone was asked to take their seats and there was a great shuffle in the room as people moved to their assigned places. Two of the round tables were for Sam's guests and Marco ended up sitting with his family, which was nice as they hadn't really been together in a group for a very long time. Dean and Damon were talking together and Marco watched them.

  "I'm looking forward to coming to London," Marco's mum said. "I haven't been in years. There is so much to see.”

  "It should be good.” Marco had planned to take a couple of days off to show his mum around, which would mean two days of museums, galleries and whatever else she was interested in—ie, stuff he really wasn't, but it was his mum and if she wanted to look at paintings, they would. "You haven't introduced me to your date," she said and leaned over. "Hi, I'm Judith.”

  "Charlotte. I see where Marco gets his good looks," Charlotte smiled and Judith was won.

  The food was carried out on plates by waiters dressed in black pants and white shirts. The china was expensive, as was the champagne—a local type with handwritten labels.

  The meal was duck, covered in a rich sauce. Dean eyed the dish suspiciously, but approved as soon as he took a bite. Dean was not the most adventurous of types, but the meal was exquisite. The meat melted in Marco's mouth, with a rich gamy flavour. Charlotte made audible groans of approval.

  Looking over at the head table, he spotted Sam and Sebastian talking quietly. They seemed lost in their own world. Sam was laughing at something Sebastian said and he leaned in and whispered something in her ear—something that made her blush. He didn't think he'd ever seen his sister so happy. The idea of being that happy with someone was strange. She had found the person that she was going to spend the rest of her life with, and they were a proper family, with a child, and another on the way. Watching them, her choices made sense.

  Marco turned his attention to the rest of the room, where people were eating, laughing and chatting. The champagne flowed and everyone celebrated the union between two people. Suddenly, Marco wondered if this was what it was all about—family. He'd been so intent on getting away from his and becoming independent; he had lost sight of it. He'd run from it when Alex had wanted their relationship to solidify and grow closer. He'd felt that he wasn't ready, and now she had moved on and he was alone.

  Taking a sip of his champagne, he shook off the morose thoughts that had overtaken him, but they wouldn't entirely leave. He missed Alex—wished he could share this mad experience with her.

  The afternoon wore on to evening and Sam went upstairs to put a very tired little girl to bed. Sebastian had taken his jacket off and was making his way around the room, chatting with everyone. The celebration skipped some of the normal wedding traditions. There was no dancing, nor tossing of the bouquet—not that Marco minded.

  Weariness was starting to set in and Marco was getting sluggish and tipsy. Charlotte had worked the room for all it had and Marco had lost count of the names and faces of all the people he'd spoken to. He'd also spent an hour talking about middle-eastern politics with Damon and some English man. The older members of the party were starting to retire, leaving the younger to the dancing that was finally permitted. Over-dressed people tried to dance, looking nothing but awkward. Charlotte tried to get Marco up, but he flatly refused.

  Before long, Damon and Jane retired as well. Jane was a little drunk, looking happy and a little sleepy. "I'm so happy for Sam,” Jane said as Damon went to retrieve his jacket from the table. "Esme is so gorgeous, and Sebastian is lovely—just a perfect family. Things have really worked out well for her. There was a time when she didn't think it would. I'm so glad.”

  Marco could only agree.

  "She's got guts, though," Jane continued. "Taking on Sebastian and his family.”

  Damon returned. "Time to get you to bed, I think," he said with a smile.

  "I think I've drunk too much," Jane confessed.

  "I promise I won't take advantage of you," Damon said sly wink. "I'll see you tomorrow, Marco. What time are you flying out?"

  "Lunchtime.”

  "Breakfast?"

  "Yeah," Marco confirmed, still at the point where he was proud and amazed that Damon wanted to spend time with him. "Good night, Jane," he called and she waved to him without looking back. He'd never seen Jane remotely drunk before.

  "You ready to go yourself?" Charlotte asked. "I can't describe to you how much my feet are killing me. These heels look awesome, but do you suffer for it.”

  "Let's go.”

  Charlotte took her shoes off in the car as they were driven back to the hotel. Groaning, she massaged her feet. "That was the most interesting evening. Thanks for bringing me.”

  "You're welcome.”

  It didn't take them long to reach the hotel and Charlotte walked in barefoot, holding her shoes by their straps. Marco walked her back to her room, until they reached that awkward moment where they both seemed uncertain what to do. "Do you want to have sex?" Charlotte asked and Marco's eyebrows rose. He hadn't even thought in that direction
and the idea raced through his head, along with the likely awkwardness after.

  "Nah," he said after a while. "It would just make things weird.”

  Charlotte almost seemed relieved. "Can you imagine us being weird at work after? Want to watch a movie then?" She seemed a little hopeful, as if she wasn't quite ready to be alone.

  "Sure.”

  She smiled and opened the door. "Pick something," she said, chucking the remote at him. "I'm going to have a quick shower.”

  Marco threw his jacket on one of the side tables and undid his tie. He could hear the water running in the bathroom as he flicked through the movies on offer. The thought of doing it with Charlotte returned, but again, it was just an invitation to awkwardness and he just wasn’t sure he wanted to think of Charlotte that way—which was odd as he wasn't normally one to turn down sex. Maybe he was becoming more responsible, he considered.

  Charlotte returned wearing the big, fluffy dressing gown and grabbed a chocolate bar out of the small fridge. Her face was completely devoid of makeup, making her look much younger. "Oh, that one," she said, pointing at the romantic comedy. Marco rolled his eyes, but clicked on her selection as she jumped into bed beside him where he sat against the headboard.

  "How did you enjoy the evening?" she asked.

  "It was good. I still can't believe my sister is married. It seems too far-fetched.”

  "Does it? Isn't that what you want?"

  "Do you?"

  Charlotte shrugged. "I suppose.”

  "And what kind of guy would you marry?"

  "Someone rich.”

  "At least you know what you want.”

  "Don't you?"

  Marco shrugged. A sadness washed over him as his thought wandered to Alex. She had been the only one who'd ever made him wonder, and tonight, there had been a point where he'd felt completely alone in that great big hall filled with people. He'd wanted Alex and she wasn't there.

  "That's a mighty sigh," Charlotte pointed out. Marco hadn't been aware he'd done so. Leaning over and digging through her bag, she brought out a packet of potato chips and handed it to him. He pulled it open and crunched down on one.

  "You know that girl from Grossman Altitude,” he said after a while.

  "You broke up with her.”

  "I kind of miss her.”

  'Really?" Charlotte said, tilting her head to consider him.

  Marco didn't know what to say. His feelings were a jumble of confusion, but maybe that was the point; he felt guilt, maybe even remorse, and sad that she'd given up on them. "She doesn't want to know,” he said after a while. "She just wants to put it behind her and move on.”

  "And you don't?"

  Marco chewed on some more chips. "I think I'm kind of in love with her.”

  "I didn't know you had been.”

  "Neither had I, I think. And now she's gone and I'm still there.”

  "Oh, bunny," Charlotte said and gave him a hug. "It’s her loss. You'll find someone else—someone awesome. Just give it a bit of time.”

  The problem was that Marco wasn't sure he wanted anyone else; he still wanted Alex. "How do you get someone back?"

  Charlotte didn't know what to say. "I don't know,” she admitted. "Like, is she adamant that she wants nothing to do with you?"

  "She said so, but I don't know. How can you go from being into someone, to not? She just turned it off.” It actually felt good to talk about it; he had no one he could mention his thoughts to. It also felt good to acknowledge his feelings. He'd been hiding them from himself along with everyone else, firmly protesting that he was fine with Alex moving on. He wasn't fine with her moving on.

  * * *

  Chapter 22:

  * * *

  Alex was done with moping. She’d done it for a while and weekend mornings were the worst as they punctuated the loss, but now she was finished with it. It was time to reclaim her weekends.

  Stretching in bed and wishing for a hot chocolate, her thoughts turning to the day ahead. She'd been planning her weekends like a military campaign of late, just to ensure she had a plan and a distraction, but no more. It was time to get back to normal.

  Getting up, she looked out the window and saw a bright spring day. The kind of day where you could do anything. She really should see if any of the girls were up for a hot chocolate down in one of the cafés in Angel. Grabbing her laptop, she sat down on her bed and let it boot. She sent out a message on Facebook and waited to see if anyone took her up on her offer, scrolling through the news-feed while she waited, scanning through photos from an acquaintance who was currently at Copa Cabana beach. How awesome would that be? Alex wondered yet again if it was time for her to do something, plan a big trip. Scanning further there were photos of Marco, dressed up and smiling, standing next to a girl Alex vaguely remembered. Unable to help herself, she enlarged the photo which both Dion and Sarah had commented on, saying how awesome he looked and hoping that Sam's wedding had gone well. Looking through the album, there were more photos from the wedding, of Marco with the girl again, and others with his family. There was also a photo of his sister in her wedding-dress, looking elegant and happy. Alex felt a rush of emotion wash over her. It seemed like Marco had just moved on while she had been so miserable. It wasn't fair.

  Returning her gaze to Marco, he looked good, dressed smartly in a sharp suit. As much as she tried not to, she couldn't help studying the girl too, wondering what she had that Alex lacked.

  Closing the laptop, she refused to let her thoughts go in that direction. Marco had moved on—good for him; she wasn't going to be the one wallowing in a failed relationships, particularly one that failed because he was immature. The doubts still crept in, though, making her question what it was about her that was so untenable that her relationship flat-out failed. There was nothing, she told herself; she had done nothing wrong and sometimes things just don't work out.

  A ping on her phone told her someone had responded to her request for chocolate. Smiling, she made her way over to her wardrobe and dressed for the day—jeans, a loose sweater and a chic version motorcycle boots. Her hair was a bit messy, but she quite liked it that way—it worked with the look she was aiming for.

  Jenny was already sitting at one of the outside tables engrossed in her phone when Alex got there. "There you are," Jenny said. "Did you see those photos of Marco?"

  "I saw them. Didn't really look at them," Alex lied.

  The waitress came out to take their orders, a Kiwi just like them. An undercurrent of recognition passed between all of them without a word being said. They ordered and the waitress left again. "How have you been?"

  "Good. Better. I feel like I'm finally emerging from this break up.”

  "Good," Jenny said, accepting the coffee that the waitress returned with. "How are you about seeing him again? You're bound to run into him a lot.”

  Alex shrugged. She didn't really know. It was just something she had to face. It would be unpleasant, but the more she did it, hopefully it would be less and less stressful.

  "He seems to be with someone. Do you know who she is?" Jenny asked.

  "I think it's a girl he works with. English.”

  "She's a total dog," Jenny said in a show of loyalty, making Alex smile. It was far from true, but she appreciated the loyalty. Alex didn't want to talk about Marco anymore, which was another good sign that she was moving on. "And how are things with you?"

  Jenny went on to complain about her boyfriend and Alex listened, feeling bolstered in her single status. "Life is easier without boyfriends. Maybe even happier. Why do we go out of our ways to deal with them?" Jenny stated.

  "Well, I am trying to embrace being a single girl.”

  "Let's go out tonight," Jenny said. "I could use a night off.”

  "The others seem to be going to Coast Azure.”

  "Sounds awesome. Maybe we can meet there and then go to dinner somewhere. He's on a health kick at the moment," Jenny said. "Inspired by all the buff bods on TV, so we are going
cycling. Why do I have to be there for his fitness routine?"

  "Because he wants you to see him getting all sweaty and dirty.”

  Jenny flicked her eyebrows and smiled. "Well, I suppose there is always an upside.”

  Coast Azure was a bar designed with Spanish influences. It was crowded by the time Alex made it there, finding her friends at a table. Ordering a drink, she sat down next to Jenny. She'd dressed in a short fitted dress that she'd bought for an occasion like this. The evenings were now warm enough that she could get away with wearing dresses.

  It was nice—everyone was there, except Marco, who must still be off in Europe somewhere, or else shacked up with his new girlfriends. Alex didn't care—it was none of her business.

  "Are you going to come?" Jenny asked.

  "What?" Alex responded, having been caught distracted by her thoughts.

  "Dion says he wants to stay in Britain.”

  Alex looked confused.

  "For his birthday," Jenny considered. "Where are you right now?"

  "I have no idea.”

  "He is going to spin his phone and whatever direction it stops at, we'll go.”

  "Ok," Alex said with a shrug as Dion spun his phone with probably more enthusiasm than necessary and it spun and spun, finally stopping.

  "South," he said. "Brighton it is.”

  Alex turned to Jenny. "Not perhaps the most exotic location, but a nice weekend away.”

  "Weekend by the seaside. Very British.” Alex wondered if there was surfing anywhere near, but dismissed the thoughts as soon as they'd appeared. She didn't think of stuff like that anymore; stuff that would be important to Marco. She really needed to get over those reflexes. "I'm going to the bathroom," she said, wanting a breather for a moment. When she got back, she would suggest that they go to dinner. She was hungry and eager to get moving.