Sex, Money, and the Price of Truth (The Price Series Book 2)

by PE Kavanagh

  “What, Claire? You think you have a monopoly on snarky responses?”

  Monique spoke up. “Girls, please…”

  “No, Mom. Claire thinks she can say anything she pleases, no matter how rude. I’m not going to sit here and take her shit.”

  “Who do you think you are? You come sweeping in here like the queen of the world, with your fabulous New York life, and your fabulous New York boyfriend. Well nobody’s buying it Lola. We all know it’s all going to come crashing down and you’ll be back here crying for help.”

  Lewis, who was still standing behind his chair, unsure what to do about the war that had broken out around his departure, turned to Claire. “What are you talking about Claire? Lola has never asked you for help. No one has. You’re the last person on this planet anyone would go to.”

  The shame and anger were thickening and deepening. “Really, Lewis?! You’re going to take her side?” Claire was shrieking.

  “There are no sides here Claire. There is no fight, other than the one you’re so desperate to start. Why don’t you stop lashing out at your sister, who as far as I can see hasn’t done a damn thing wrong and actually looks happy, and start telling the truth? Yes, someone at this table is pretending their shit-storm of a life is actually a fairy tale. But it sure isn’t Lola.”

  He turned on his heel and walked out.

  Claire got up from the table and ran to the bathroom. Everyone else sat, stunned.

  “Goddammit!” Nora pounded her fist on the table.

  Lola's eyes burned. “I’m sorry Aunt Nora. I didn’t mean to… I wasn’t trying to ruin your beautiful dinner. I’m so sorry.”

  “You did nothing wrong, Lola.” That surprising statement came from her mother, well known for her devout protection of her youngest daughter. Monique excused herself from the table and walked toward the bathroom.

  They ate desert with focus, over-exuberant in their compliments and trying very hard not to swallow all the bitterness that had filled the room.

  * * *

  After dinner, Aidan and Lola rode back to Monique's house with Timothy and Diego, who’d been holding his tongue the entire night but couldn’t help exploding as soon as the car doors were closed.

  “What the hell happened in there??”

  Timothy turned to his husband. “Don’t be dramatic Diego, please. Lola probably doesn't want to talk about it.”

  “It’s okay, guys. I wish I knew what was going on with my dear sister. She’s been acting batshit crazy since I got here.”

  “It’s all falling apart for her, Lo. You know, she was always the one who had it all together. And now that it’s taken a bad turn, she has no resources to deal with it.” Diego clearly knew more than anyone else in the car. “Lewis is leaving her. You knew that, right?”

  “Mom just told me, right before dinner. I had no idea.”

  “And she’s probably getting the boot from her job. Her whole self identity is being challenged. In her mind, she is the sister that gets things right - excellent at her job, been with the same guy forever, devoted daughter… You see what I mean? And now, she can’t actually stand on any of those titles. It’s all gone.”

  Unexpectedly, Aidan spoke. “I know the feeling.” Lola took his hand.

  Diego was still panicked. “But what are we going to do? We all have to sit at another table tomorrow. What’s going to keep the same thing from happening?”

  “I’ll control myself better,” Lola said. “I won’t antagonize her.”

  “It’s not about you antagonizing her, Lola.” Aidan spoke to her firmly. “Just like your mother said, you didn’t do anything wrong. You are not responsible for the problems in her life, nor her inability to deal with them.”

  Timothy turned from the passenger seat to look at her. “He’s right, girl. Don’t take on her shit."

  Diego glanced back from the driver's side. “Do you think you should talk to her? Just the two of you? Maybe get this cleaned up in private?”

  “I’d rather be attacked by a rabid dog.”

  “I think you just were, darlin',” said Timothy, without irony.

  “This is the best part of the day, right here,” Lola said as she slipped under the covers. Aidan was already there, waiting for her. “I’d like to wipe tonight from my memory. What a mess… again!”

  “I have an idea. But it might be crossing the line… for you.”

  Her breath caught. “What do you mean?”

  “Let me touch you.” Simple enough, the phrase still took a moment to register. He ran his hand down her belly and paused at the top of her pajama bottoms.

  Lola placed her hand on top of his and whispered, “Yes.” Her body had been screaming for him.

  He gently pulled her pants off then moved himself to the side of her. He stroked, using only the tips of his fingers, easing her open. He slid the lengths of his fingers along her wetness until her breath became moans.

  He pulled his hand away and slid under the cool sheet, leaving a trail of hot breath. Then it was all wet lips, warm tongue, and slight stubble working their magic.

  It didn’t matter that she had requested they slow down. It didn’t matter that her parents were just down the hall. All that mattered were the waves of pleasure from him kissing and licking her. With a flick of his tongue, she cried out, arching her back and gripping his arm.

  When she stilled, he moved his kisses up the inside of her thighs, around her hip bones, to the slope of her belly, around her breasts, all the way up to her neck. He floated on top of her, holding himself up on his arms.

  “Aidan… Amazing…” She ran her hands down his back and slid his pants down.

  “Lola… I don’t think…”

  “I’m not a virgin. Don’t worry.”

  He did not share her laugh, instead scrutinizing her face. “Are we ready?”

  “I am. Nothing else makes sense. You make sense.” She pulled him down just over her. "Do you want me, Aidan?"

  "I don't want you, Lola. I need you. I adore you. And I'm willing to wait for you." His voice shook.

  "I'm yours. Now." She opened her legs and guided his hips.

  He entered her and stopped - concentrating, controlling his breath, trying not to give in to the excitement. It reminded her of their first night.

  “My love, my love, my love,” she repeated as he moved in long, slow strokes in and out of her. She met his rhythm, curling her hips in and up. He wrapped his arm underneath her bottom, squeezing out any space between them.

  A passing memory brought a grimace to her face. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to banish the images from her mind.

  He slowed even further. "Baby, what's wrong?"

  She summoned her strength and opened her eyes. "I need you to help me forget. Please, Aidan."

  "Don't close your eyes, love. Stay fixed on me. No matter what." He plunged into her hard enough to force a groan out of her mouth, but did not break eye contact.

  "Yes, Aidan. Yes…"

  His entire body energized around her and he thrust again and again deepening with every stroke. Her body was on the verge of splitting in two.

  "Look at me, Lola. I'm here."

  Her orgasm began at the spot where his palm pressed into her low back and radiated in all directions. She struggled not to close around the sensation, keeping her eyes pinned open in an unremitting connection with him and letting him watch her. She had never let herself be seen in that way. It was the most intimate moment she’d ever experienced.

  Only as it subsided, a tremor began around his shoulders, eventually filling his whole body. He called out her name in a muted groan.

  She watched his face as he exploded into her. He blinked several times but never broke his focus directly into her eyes. Into her soul. When his body relaxed on top of her, his heart beat through his whole body. She finally closed her eyes, swimming in the sound of his breath, the weight of his body, the dampness on his back beneath her arms.

  He moved himself to the sid
e and covered her face with kisses. "Tell me you're okay, baby."

  Lola burrowed her fingers into his thick hair. “Better than I've ever been."

  He took one of her breasts into his mouth, sucking to just shy of pain. Her nipples throbbed with desire. "We might have to do that again. Really soon.”

  “As you wish.”

  Thanksgiving morning ranked as one of the busiest days of the year at her mother's house.

  Monique resumed her role as executive chef, guiding and overseeing all the kitchen helpers in the dauntingly hectic kitchen. Lola wondered how she would even get to the coffeemaker.

  “How about we go get bagels for everybody?” Lola offered.

  “That would be great, sweetie.”

  “Need anything else, Mom?”

  “Not a thing. Come back soon. Love you!”

  Apparently, the entire Bay Area had had the same thought about bagels on Thanksgiving morning. The line at the bagel place was out the door, giving Lola and Aidan plenty of time to talk.

  “Have you thought about what you’re going to do about your sister?”

  “Ughh. I was trying not to think about that.”

  “Sorry, baby. Would you like me to go beat her up?”

  “Yes. I mean no. I mean yes.”

  “I don’t want to stick myself in the middle here, but I agree with what Diego said. She’s got something to say to you and it’s coming out in these really twisted ways. Why not just have a conversation, let her get it all out, and be done so you can enjoy tonight’s dinner?”

  “I wish it was that simple. It never is with my sister. She has made herself better than me my whole life. It won’t be about getting something off her chest. It will be about making me feel bad.”

  “But you have nothing to feel bad about. You can make yourself immune to her, and anything she might say.”

  “Except for my Achilles Heel.”

  “What?”

  “You, my love. You.”

  “Oh, Lola. My heart just exploded into a million pieces. Being your Achilles Heel is exactly my worst nightmare.”

  “But that’s what love is. It’s the ability to feel the deepest pain for another person.”

  He considered her statement. “It doesn’t have to be. You are not the bearer of my sins.”

  They had finally reached the front of the line.

  * * *

  Claire opened the front door, which nearly made Lola drop her car keys. She was glad Aidan was holding the enormous bags of bagels.

  “Need help?” Claire offered.

  “No thanks. We got it.”

  Lola scanned the kitchen as she dropped the bag on the only open surface, trying to figure out what was going on. Everyone pretended to be very busy with their tasks. She sorted through the bag for her bagel, calling out to the room, “Anybody want anything?”

  “I’ll take care of it, love.” Aidan's look reflected Lola’s confusion about the surprise visitor.

  Claire stepped next to Aidan and asked, “Hey, can I borrow her for a minute?” She didn’t wait for an answer before whisking her sister towards the back office.

  All of a sudden, Lola had no appetite for the buttered bagel she held in her hand. “What’s up, Claire?”

  “You have every right to be mad at me. I went after you. I just couldn’t take how happy you look, when my entire life is falling apart.”

  “Mom told me. I’m really sorry about Lewis. And the job.”

  “I don’t know who I am anymore, Lo.” Diego had gotten it exactly right. “I’m trying to hold it all together, but I just keep getting it wrong.” She looked square at her sister. “What I’m trying to say is I’m sorry. And I’m happy for you. I’m happy that your life is going perfectly well.”

  “It’s not going perfectly well, Claire!!” Lola could not suppress the fire in her stomach. “Relationships are hard, as you know. We have gone through hell, Aidan and I, only just recovering from my finding out about his past. And that perfect job that I never wanted is not getting me any closer to that book I claim to be writing.

  “It’s as far from perfect as a life can get. But that’s life. I wish you would stop acting like it’s so much harder for you than for everyone else. It’s hard - for every single one of us. When shit goes down for me, you don’t see me crawling back here, claiming poor me, demanding everyone’s help! Despite what you claimed yesterday.”

  Claire put her hands on her hips and tilted forward, like a scolding schoolteacher. “Maybe that’s the problem.”

  “How could that possibly be a problem??”

  Claire crossed her arms tightly around her. “Because I need help, Lola! But we don’t ask for help in our family. We just suck it up, like you’ve always done. Well, you know what? It’s not working for me this time. I’m flat on my face and I have no idea how to get up again.”

  Lola watched her sister's eyes fill with tears as her body stayed rigid and sharp. It was not clear whether to move toward her, comfort her, or protect herself. Lola had been burned too many times.

  When Claire had calmed down sufficiently, Lola spoke. “Everyone is waiting for you to ask for help. But you just keep kicking us all in the head. Stop trying to bring down everyone trying to help you.”

  “Leave me alone,” Claire said through racking sobs.

  “Gladly.”

  Lola walked back to a kitchen full of people anxiously waiting to hear what happened. They weren’t even pretending to be busy with other things. Aidan came over first to hug her.

  “Are you okay, love?”

  “Yeah, I’m okay. Went as expected.”

  “I’m so sorry,” he whispered into her hair.

  She looked over at her mother, whose eyes were cloudy, and Marco, rubbing his wife’s shoulders.

  “Sorry to ruin Thanksgiving, everyone.”

  “Stop saying that!” Her mother was done holding back. “Both of you are just so stubborn. When will you realize that you don’t have to make each other wrong!”

  All Lola could do was shake her head, as her mother, and then Marco walked out of the kitchen.

  * * *

  It was the most subdued Thanksgiving they had ever had. Everyone was especially cautious about their words, afraid to incite another outbreak. Monique and her two daughters stayed mostly silent and teary-eyed. Lewis did not attend.

  Aidan wanted desperately to relieve some of the tension. He whispered into Lola’s ear, “I could take you upstairs right now and ravage you, if you like.”

  “You could, could you?”

  “Only if you really really wanted me to.”

  “You’re so selfless.”

  “I try.”

  “Aidan?” It was Aunt Lizzy’s voice. She never dealt well with unhappiness or strain. “Why don’t you tell us all about the mysterious world of high finance?”

  “Oh, gosh, that’ll be even more depressing!” Even though he wasn’t trying to be funny, Aidan had found a perfect way to break the tension.

  Lizzy waited for the laughing to subside. “Well, now you HAVE to tell us!”

  He looked over at Lola, who could only shrug. “Give the people what they want, honey.”

  “For me, there were three distinct periods, each completely different. Before 2008 when things were exciting and fun, and after the recession, when it was all about fear. I think that’s where a lot of the problems started. People’s worlds were shaken and it resulted in extreme behavior - amassing money at any cost, or fleeing the system.”

  His audience was rapt. “The next blow, and maybe even the biggest one, was the recent election. We were all given front row seats to the destruction that greed and ignorance can wreak. It became all about the split between the haves who knew how to game the system and squeezed everything they could out of it, and the have-nots who were abused, manipulated, and destroyed."

  Lizzy put both of her hands over her mouth.

  From the other side of the table, came the question, “What did you do?” Clair
e’s voice was quiet, lacking any hint of the venom she had previously carried.

  Lola’s face froze. What would he say?

  “I had to see that I’d been one of the bad guys. I manipulated the system, I made some exceedingly poor choices, then I walked away. I’m still disgusted with what happened and have been doing everything I can to redeem my actions. I have to trust that there’s always a possibility to start over, Claire. No matter what.”

  She studied his face and started to slowly nod. “I’m hoping the same thing, Aidan. That there’s a way for me to start over.”

  All eyes moved from Aidan to Claire and back again. It was like watching the climax of a suspense film.

  “Why not?” Aidan's words held pure tenderness.

  “Not all of us get more chances.”

  “Redemption is always available, Claire. I have to believe that.”

  * * *

  Claire took Lola to the side after dinner. “I like your boyfriend. He seems like a genuinely good guy. I’m super happy for you, Lo. You deserve someone great.”

  “Thanks, Claire. What do you think you’re going to do?”

  “I’m not sure. It’s too late with Lewis, I know that. Maybe it’s a good time for me to be alone, for the first time in my life. Who knows, after I’m unemployed, maybe I’ll even come out to New York.”

  “You’re always welcome.”

  “I appreciate you saying that.”

  “I mean it.”

  “I hope you can forget all those things I said to you. I’m not being a very good sister.”

  “Maybe you can just be a friend.”

  “I love you, Lo.”

  “I love you, Claire.”

  For the first time in weeks, Lola looked forward to resuming her normal life. She had enjoyed the time with her family, but she missed New York, Maddie, and even her job. It was exciting to come back home with Aidan.

  Since Lola had to go to work in the morning, they decided to stay at her place. She noticed the envelope, pushed into the room, when she opened the door. “Hey, did I miss one?” she asked, referring to Aidan’s daily letters.