Family Business

by Vanessa Acton

  “Wouldn’t dream of being vulgar,” said Mel, popping another exploding candy into her mouth.

  Jasper saw it and made a comical grimace. “Don’t tell me you’ve gotten addicted to those too.”

  “Guess it runs in the family.”

  At that, Jasper smiled, reached into his pocket, and pulled out an éclat of his own. “You may be right.”

  9

  The car ride to Sir Reginald’s summer house was actually very pleasant. Joss played snippets of Evonian pop songs on her phone and made Mel try to guess the rest of the lyrics. Jasper even joined in, making terrible guesses. All five of them were laughing by the time they reached the estate.

  But as soon as LaRue dropped them off at the front door, things got weird.

  The house was even bigger and grander than Darnley Place. The butler who met them in the front hall was a lot more elaborately dressed than Baines. “Sir Reginald and Lady Cecily have not come down yet, sir,” he informed Jasper. “But the guests have gathered in the library, the parlor, and the ballroom.”

  “I feel like someone’s gonna get murdered any second,” Mel muttered to the Js as they entered what must be the ballroom. When they gave her blank looks, she said, “You know, Colonel So-and-So in the ballroom with the wrench? Don’t you have that game in Evonia?”

  “No,” said Jess. “You’ll have to teach us how it works.”

  Mel smiled. “Deal.”

  People in formal attire were milling around while equally formally dressed staff offered them refreshments on silver trays. Mel didn’t recognize most of the appetizers, but they looked very elaborate and seafoody. She remembered what Jasper had said about his parents being on a tighter budget than they liked to admit. From the looks of those appetizers, their credit card debt had probably spiked recently.

  The people at the party all seemed to know Jasper and Ro and the Js. A lot of them said “And who’s this?” in a tone of fake enthusiasm and curiosity—which made it clear they knew exactly who Mel was. Jasper kept introducing her as Melissa Novak-Valmont, which was way too many syllables for her liking.

  A few people actually seemed friendly and even interesting. Mel was in the middle of a surprisingly enjoyable exchange with Jasper’s cousin Louisa when everyone turned toward the French doors that bordered one side of the ballroom. Sir Reginald and a woman who must be Lady Cecily had just entered through those doors.

  “Good evening,” said the woman crisply, speaking to the room at large. “I hope you’ll forgive my late entrance. Sir Reginald and I have just been taking a stroll in the garden. Thank you all for coming.”

  The whole crowd replied with vague, respectful-sounding murmurs, and people raised their wine glasses in Lady Cecily’s general direction. Cousin Louisa smiled at Mel and her family. “I’d better let you say hello.”

  “Right,” said Jasper, squaring his shoulders. He led Ro, Mel, and the Js over to his parents.

  “Hello, Mother.” Jasper gave her a quick, awkward peck on the cheek. “Happy birthday.”

  “Hard to be happy about turning sixty-five,” said Lady Cecily. “But I suppose we have to make the best of things. Speaking of making the best of things, Rosalie, did you wear that same dress to my niece’s charity fundraiser?”

  “I’m sure you’re thinking of another dress, my lady,” said Ro with an innocent smile. “I do tend to stick to the same color palette. Happy birthday.”

  “Happy birthday, Grandmother,” chimed the Js in eerie unison. Mel had to stifle a laugh at how well they pulled it off.

  “I’m glad to see you girls have made yourselves presentable for once,” was Lady Cecily’s response.

  Jasper cleared his throat. “Mother, this is Melissa. Melissa, Lady Cecily Valmont.”

  Deploying the charming smile. “Pleasure to finally meet you, my lady. And happy birthday.”

  “Have you got anything original to say, Miss Nomak?” said Lady Cecily dryly.

  Mel kept smiling through gritted teeth. “It’s Novak,” she corrected her grandmother. “Is that original enough for you, my lady?”

  Lady Cecily blinked once, very slowly, as if blinking a second time would be beneath her. “I understand that you’re the person who’s currently in possession of my father’s personal correspondence.”

  “Yep,” Mel chirped.

  “And do you really think you’re the best person to keep those letters?”

  “Probably not. I’m actually thinking of donating them to the National Museum.”

  Lady Cecily’s whole face froze, except for her eyes, which were horrified and angry. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I would never lie about something so important,” said Mel sweetly.

  “Anyway,” Jasper cut in, shooting a nervous glance in Mel’s direction, “Melissa will be here for another few weeks, Mother, so you’ll have plenty of time to see more of her. Right now we won’t keep you from the rest of your guests . . .”

  He put a hand on Mel’s elbow and started steering her off to the side. Ro and the girls were already heading toward the nearest appetizer tray.

  Not a bad performance, Mel thought. I was polite, I kept my cool, I didn’t let her get under my skin, and now I’m walking away calmly . . .

  “I don’t know what I expected,” Lady Cecily muttered to her husband. “Considering who her mother is.”

  Scratch that.

  Mel spun around. “Excuse me?”

  Lady Cecily stared back at her coldly. “I wasn’t speaking to you, Miss Nolak.”

  “Novak. It’s Novak. It’s not that hard to remember. You have a gigantic family tree and everyone on it has fourteen different titles, and you’re telling me you can’t remember N-o-v-a-k?”

  Mel didn’t think she’d been talking that loudly, but the whole room had suddenly gone silent. Her voice echoed ten times more powerfully than it had at the auction.

  And she didn’t care.

  “Young lady,” said Lady Cecily, “you are out of line.”

  “No, you are out of line,” Mel snapped. “What did you just say about my mother?”

  “Only that it’s not surprising that someone like her would raise such a disrespectful daughter.”

  “Someone like her? You mean caring and fun and down to earth?”

  “I mean irresponsible and self-centered and vulgar,” Lady Cecily snapped back. Wow, the word vulgar really gets used a lot in this country.

  “It’s interesting that you think you know so much about my mother, Lady Cecily. Considering that you’ve never met her.”

  “I know what kind of life she led and what kind of choices she made.”

  “Well, you don’t get to judge her. You can think whatever you want about her, but you don’t get to talk about her like that. Her choices are none of your business. I know that’s a hard concept to grasp—that not everything revolves around you—but just trust me on this, okay? My mom has stayed out of your lives, just like you wanted. So you need to stay out of hers.”

  At this point, Jasper tried to take hold of Mel’s elbow again. “Mel, if you could just—”

  Mel jerked her arm away. “You know what, Jasper? I’m not the only one who feels this way. I’m not the only one you’ve thrown under the bus because you can’t stand up to these people. It’s one thing that you haven’t been there for me—and that you ditched my mom the way you did. But you also let your wife and legitimate daughters get treated like crap. They’re the people who are supposed to matter to you, and you can’t even stand up for them. Is that a family tradition too?”

  One look at Jasper’s stunned expression made it clear that Mel wasn’t going to get an answer. Ordinarily, she’d be proud of herself for delivering a zinger that had struck someone speechless. But right now, Jasper’s silence was the last thing Mel wanted.

  Of course he isn’t going to say anything, she thought miserably. Of course he isn’t going to prove me wrong.

  So she played the last card she had, which was to storm dramatically
out of the house through the French doors.

  10

  She only got as far as the garden. Then it hit her that she didn’t know how to find the main entrance from here. And there was no way she could go back into the house now. Still fuming, Mel marched over to an elegant gazebo with white pillars and a little marble bench.

  She sat down, pulled her phone out of her tiny handbag, and fired off a message to Elise and Savannah: Just did some major bridge-burning with Jasper. I think I finally get why my mom reacted to the breakup the way she did. This dude is ridiculous. All he really cares about is not rocking the boat.

  Figuring she wouldn’t get an immediate response, she put the phone away again. Maybe she could wait here until, say, four in the morning, and then sneak out once the other guests had left, while her grandparents and the staff were asleep. There were certainly less pleasant places to hide out. Not that this hard marble bench was all that comfortable, but still . . .

  “Mel?” Mel thought about running for cover behind one of the hedges, but then she realized it was just Joss calling her name.

  Joss came up the garden path to the gazebo with Jess trailing behind her. They grinned when they saw Mel.

  “Hey, Js. How was that for a dramatic exit?” Mel asked them as they ran over to join her.

  “It was amazing!” crowed Joss. “You left them completely speechless! I’ve never seen anyone have that effect on Grandmother and Grandfather.”

  “I kind of unloaded on your dad too,” Mel pointed out.

  “Dad deserved it,” said Jess firmly. “He knows they’re bullies and he never does anything about it.”

  “Yeah, but now I’m stuck at their house and I don’t really know what to do,” Mel sighed. “I can’t exactly go back in there.”

  “I think I know where the car is parked,” said Joss. “What if we just take Mum and Dad’s car home?”

  “Uh, how will they get home then?”

  “LaRue can come back for them after he drops us off.”

  “This doesn’t seem like a great strategy for making anyone less angry at me.”

  “No, but it’d be fun, wouldn’t it?” said Jess.

  Mel realized she was grinning. “You know what? Sure. Let’s do it.”

  ***

  When Mel and the Js tapped on the front window of Jasper’s car and asked LaRue to take them back to Darnley Place, the driver didn’t question them. He just silently drove them home, with his weird Evonian pop station playing softly in the background.

  Back at the house in Alaborn, the girls all went to their bedrooms. Mel flopped down on her bed and looked at her phone. Her friends had messaged her back, saying supportively insulting things about Jasper. Her mom had emailed her too: Sorry we didn’t get to talk for very long earlier. Hope you have a wonderful time at the party . . .

  Tears suddenly stung Mel’s eyes, and she regretted how distant she had been to her mom. She still didn’t think her mom had made the right decisions to keep the truth from her, but she’d done what she thought was best. She’d tried to support Mel even when it wasn’t easy.

  And, in Mel’s mom’s defense, what had Jasper done since he’d known about her? Paid for a plane ticket and a shopping spree. Called her Melissa Novak-Valmont as if a hyphenated name somehow made up for what he wasn’t saying.

  He had every right to be angry with her for ruining the party, but she was going to be angry right back.

  Before she fell asleep she answered her mom’s email: Thanks for talking earlier. And by the way, it would be great to meet Todd when I get home. As long as we don’t have to go to a superhero movie, I’m in.

  ***

  Baines knocked on Mel’s door earlier than usual. As Mel sat up in bed and peered at him through bleary eyes, she realized he wasn’t carrying a breakfast tray. “Miss, your presence is requested downstairs in the breakfast room.”

  “Uh, right now?”

  “Ideally, yes, miss.”

  “Okay. Where’s the breakfast room?”

  “Just off the main dining room, miss.”

  “Ah, right. Obviously. Thanks, Baines.”

  Mel threw on some jeans and a tank top and made her way downstairs. In the “breakfast room”—a small room with curved walls and a lot of windows—Jasper, Ro, and the Js were all sitting at a small round table eating flaky pastries.

  Jasper looked up when she came in. “Ah. Mel. Good morning.”

  “Hey, everybody.” Mel slid into the empty chair at the table, between Jess and her stepmother.

  “Morning!” chirped Jess and Joss. Ro gave Mel a small smile. Mel hoped that was a sign that she wasn’t about to get kicked out of Darnley Place.

  Jasper cleared his throat. “About the party last night—”

  At that moment, Baines walked in. “Sir, Lady Cecily Valmont and Sir Reginald Strathney are here.”

  Mel bit back a groan. Couldn’t they have waited to show up until she’d at least had a chance to eat breakfast?

  “Thank you, Baines, send them in,” said Jasper. Mel might’ve been imagining it, but she thought he looked distinctly less terrified than he usually did when his parents were around.

  Sir Reginald and Lady Cecily almost knocked Baines over as they stormed into the room. “Hello, Dad, Mother,” said Jasper calmly. “I’m glad you’re here. I’m sure Mel will be very happy to accept your apology for what happened last night.”

  Mel turned to look at Jasper in amazement. Was he actually standing up to his parents? For her? She turned to look at Sir Reginald and Lady Cecily. They also seemed shaken by this turn of events, but their silent shock only lasted a few seconds.

  “Our apology?” snapped lady Cecily. “If anyone should be apologizing—”

  “But that’s not why we’re here,” Sir Reginald cut her off. “We’re here about the letters, Jasper. We would appreciate it if you returned them to your mother immediately.”

  Jasper set down the knife he’d been using to spread jam on his breakfast pastry. “Well, that’s not up to me. It’s up to Mel.”

  Lady Cecily bristled. “Those letters belong to our family.”

  “And they’re staying in our family. Or are you telling me that my daughter doesn’t count as family?”

  There it was, finally. He’d said it—my daughter.

  Lady Cecily sniffed and gave a dismissive little shrug. “Well, after all, Jasper, you haven’t had a paternity test. For all we know, she’s not your daughter at all!”

  Mel saw Jasper’s jaw clench. “Don’t be ridiculous, Mother,” he said in a very slow, deliberate voice. “Everyone can see that Mel’s the spitting image of me. And I’m going to have to insist that you never question that again.”

  Lady Cecily’s eyes widened ever so slightly. Mel had a feeling that Jasper had never used that tone with her before. Still, she clearly wasn’t ready to let go of her main goal. “Your relationship with this girl is your own business, Jasper. I certainly have no interest in getting involved. But I must have those letters back.”

  “Fine,” said Jasper, and Mel’s heart dropped. But then he added, “Feel free to buy them from her. She paid three thousand euro for them. If you can top that, perhaps she’ll consider selling them to you.”

  Sir Reginald gaped at his son. “This is outrageous! You know very well that our resources aren’t what they used to be. You can’t expect us to shell out money we can’t spare, just to pay off our own—”

  He broke off, but Jasper finished the sentence for him. “What? Your own family?”

  Sir Reginald’s expression turned to a glare. Lady Cecily was now visibly shaking with anger.

  “Well,” Jasper said calmly, “I suggest you give that some careful thought. In any case, it’s up to Mel whether she decides to sell those letters. She has every right to refuse any offer you make and keep them for herself. Now should I have Baines show you out, or can you find the door on your own?”

  “This is a disgraceful way to treat your parents, Jasper,” Sir Reginald fu
med.

  “Probably,” said Jasper. “I’ll let you know if I’m struck with remorse at some point. Meanwhile, enjoy your day.”

  11

  “That was pretty epic,” Mel admitted after her grandparents had left in a huff. “Thanks so much, Jasper.”

  Jasper opened his mouth to say something, but Mel cut him off. “And now I think I’ll go have another look at those famous letters. See you later, everyone.”

  She grabbed a roll from the table and booked it out of the room before anyone could protest. Jasper had done an excellent job of defending her just now, but that didn’t change what had happened last night. Mel knew they still had an awkward conversation in their future. She just wasn’t quite ready to deal with it yet.

  She hunkered down in Ro’s study, paging through Max and Beatrice’s letters again.

  After about an hour, Ro came in. “Still thinking about what to do with those?”

  “Oh, I’m definitely giving them to the museum,” said Mel. “If that sends Lady Cecily into a fainting fit, that’s her problem, not mine.”

  Ro half laughed, half sighed. “I’m sure you’re not in the mood to feel sorry for your grandmother, but . . . I do have some sympathy for her. I think I understand why the thought of those letters getting out is so painful to her.”

  “Because she hates true love?” Mel guessed.

  Ro sighed. “Well, imagine how hard it must be for her to find out that her father loved a woman other than her mother his whole life. That her mother was his second choice. And that she was simply the living proof that he had done his duty and given up the life he really wanted.”

  “That would kind of suck,” Mel admitted, feeling a little sorry for Lady Cecily in spite of herself. “But that’s no excuse for her to treat other people so badly.”

  “I agree,” said Ro. “And I wish there was a chance she might change her ways. But . . .”

  “Don’t worry,” said Mel, “I won’t hold my breath.”

  Looking down at the letters, she sighed. “I don’t know. I’ll give it some more thought. I still don’t think I owe Lady Cecily anything—”