"I'm happy to have you. Dominique has never dared bring a woman to dinner before," Lydia said.
"Mom, we're just friends," Domino said quickly, not meeting Sabrina's eye.
"Of course, dear, and your father and I are just roommates," Lydia said, patting Domino's shoulder condescendingly.
Sabrina held out the wine. "I –– we –– brought you this to thank you for having me for dinner," she said.
Lydia smiled, taking the bottle without even glancing at it. "Thank you," she said as she set it on the counter.
Maybe not a Malbec fan, then?
Sabrina tried to swallow the uncomfortable lump that had begun to form in her throat.
"Anyway, the point is, Sabrina, dear, what do I do with this pantry?" Lydia asked.
Sabrina took a step forward, peering behind the door to the walk-in pantry. It was absolutely crammed with canned goods, bags of chips, random condiments, and the odd bag of candy.
"You know what I'd recommend?" Domino said, grinning. "Bins."
"The student becomes the teacher," Sabrina teased, looking over her shoulder at Domino. "I agree, though, Lydia. You need to separate your items into sections, so it's easier to see what you have when you want it. It's your choice how to organize it, either by meal type or by item, but whatever you choose, stick with it. You might want to start by going through everything and seeing what's expired. I don't know about you, but Domino had canned green beans that expired four years ago."
Domino laughed. "Hey, you never know what you may need in the apocalypse," she said.
"Botulism? Is that what you're planning for the apocalypse?" Billie interrupted, grinning.
"Maybe you could trade botox injections for other's goods," Lydia said, shrugging as though it was a pretty good suggestion.
Billie and Domino started laughing, and Sabrina was in awe of their quick-witted repertoire. She had never had that type of relationship with her parents, even before they had kicked her out. For Domino to think that Lydia and William were formal was like saying there was too much icing on a cake: Not everyone's preference, but certainly not a terrible bad situation.
"If you'd like me to come over sometime and help you with it, I'd be delighted," Sabrina offered.
Lydia smiled. "I knew I liked you," she said. She turned back to the wine. "Would you be a dear and open this? I’ve got to meet the pop star dating my daughter.” She rolled her eyes.
"How do you take your coffee?" Billie asked Sabrina, staring down at her. Sabrina was sitting on the immaculate sofa in the sitting room next to Matt and Holly.
"Nearly white with cream, but no sugar," Domino said without glancing up from her conversation with her father.
Billie's eyebrows raised and Sabrina side-eyed Domino for remembering how she took her coffee.
Vero sat on a nearby chair, looking between Sabrina and Domino. When she realized that Sabrina was watching her, she winked.
“So, Vero,” Matt began. “How long have you and Billie been dating?”
Sabrina watched as Vero expertly navigated the interview with composure and class, like she was on 60 Minutes. They’d been together for nearly a month, but had known each other for longer. Vero explained how they had written a song together.
“I love that song,” William said, nodding with a convivial smile.
"So, then, Sabrina,” Matt said in the same tone. "How long have you and Dominique been dating?"
Sabrina laughed. "Oh, we're not... we're just friends."
"Holly and I were just friends," he said with a grin.
Sabrina smiled politely. "And what a personal choice it was to take it further," she said.
He blinked, clearly not expecting that reaction from her.
"Ah, I see," he said. "Well, our Dom has never been one for commitment."
Domino yawned exaggeratedly. "Look at the time," she began.
"I don't think she's ever had a girlfriend," Matt added.
Billie returned with the coffee, looking around the tense room in confusion.
"Don't pick on Dominique," Holly began. "She just hasn't found the right woman."
Sabrina clenched her jaw to keep from saying something about not worrying about Domino finding women –– she was an expert in that subject area.
“Okay, let’s all calm down,” Billie said, handing Sabrina a mug of coffee and setting down another for Holly.
"No need to get sensitive, Billie. Dominique just marches to her own beat," Lydia said, trying to keep the peace with years of practice.
"Ah, right, the rock star life. How's that going for you guys? Is it a one-and-done situation? Are you going to get real jobs now?" Matt asked.
Holly squirmed in her seat. "Honey," she said, laying a hand on his arm.
"Well, we can't all find sick kids riveting, Matt," Domino said, looking bored but calm.
Sabrina cleared her throat, turning to Holly. "I heard you work with wolves," she said, pointedly trying to change the subject.
Holly smiled. "I do––" She began.
"––But not for much longer, right, gorgeous?" Matt interrupted.
Sabrina sipped her coffee, trying to avoid glaring at him for interrupting her.
"What? Why?" Billie asked, her brow furrowed.
"We're going to have a baby," Matt said, smiling as he put his hand on Holly's stomach.
"Really?" Lydia gasped.
"That's wonderful news!" William said.
"We ? You're carrying it, too, Matt? Like a seahorse?" Domino interjected.
Vero snorted, trying to hold back a laugh with her hand over her mouth.
Sabrina really wished there was whiskey in the coffee.
"You can't just be happy for us?" Matt said.
“I am happy for you," Domino said, not even smiling.
Lydia looked at Domino and narrowed her eyes. "Dom," she said as a warning.
"Oh, so now this is suddenly my fault?" Domino said, incredulous.
Just then, Martha, the dog from hell, came running into the room. Sabrina quickly picked her feet up off the floor, but Holly wasn't so lucky. She yelped dramatically as Martha ran past her, then ran out of the room again.
Sabrina took back her metaphor. This place wasn't like too much icing on a cake. It was the Twilight Zone. Just when she thought everything was fine, there were sibling fights and killer dogs...
Domino stood, walking out of the room silently.
"Ah, off she goes to pout," Matt said.
"Way to go, Matthew," Billie said. "Hey, Sabrina, want to see the back patio?" She stood up, gesturing with her head toward the back door.
"I've never wanted to see a back patio more than right at this moment," Sabrina said, standing with her coffee. Vero stood, too, and the three of them walked out onto the back deck.
The night air shocked her as she stepped outside. She held her mug in both hands, trying to warm herself up.
Billie closed the door behind her.
"Oof, is he always like this?” Vero asked, her heels clicking on the deck as she crossed to lean against the railing. She sipped from a La Croix.
"I don't care how he treats me," Sabrina said, sighing. "I do care how he treats Domino. I know she's tough, but that was brutal."
Billie shrugged. "Domino puts on a good devil-may-care act, but she's not so tough," she said.
Sabrina bit her lower lip. "What makes you say that?"
"Domino is the most empathetic person I know. She feels things stronger than other people. It's what makes her such a good songwriter, and why we've depended on her for that. But it also means that she hurts easily," Billie said.
Sabrina nodded, unable to fully support the armchair analysis of her friend without her there to defend herself, but she was also finding herself in total agreement, from what she had seen so far.
"She's taking your falling out pretty hard," Sabrina dared to add.
Vero rolled her eyes. "I wish they'd get over it," she said.
"She betrayed my trust," Bi
llie said, shrugging. "I still love her. She's still my best friend. But it's going to take a little while to get that back."
Sabrina nodded, sniffling in the cold air.
"For what it's worth, even if you are just friends, I think you're a good egg, and I like you for Domino," Billie said quietly. "She needs someone like you. She has Meg, who is so kind and sweet and shy she'll go along with whatever you say, and Zoey, who is off in Zoeyland most of the time. But she doesn't really have any close friends outside of the band, and I'm glad she found you."
Guilt, that sneaky little feeling, stabbed Sabrina right in the chest. Was she actually a good friend? Was she leading Domino on because she couldn't decide what she wanted? She wanted to stick to the plan, but she also didn't want someone like Domino to slip through their fingers. But then, if she did act on it, would she really want to risk losing her new friendship if things didn't work out?
"Her bedroom is down the opposite hall of Martha's, if you want to go check on her," Billie said, interrupting her reverie.
Sabrina nodded, unable to move. "I don't know what I want," she said quietly, the confession slipping from her lips in a strange moment of revelation.
"Well, start with what you don't want," Vero said, tilting her head to the side. “That’s what I did to figure this one out.” She gestured to Billie, who grinned.
Figuring out what she didn’t want –– that was much easier.
She didn’t want to lose her future, and at the same time, she didn’t want that to mean that she’d lose Domino.
And for the first time, she considered that those weren’t mutually exclusive desires.
She watched Billie and Vero's easy way around each other, as though they simply fit together.
They were both successful, busy, career-driven people who wanted ambitious things in life, and they were navigating it together.
Was there a way forward like that for her and Domino?
She had panicked when they had first kissed, thinking that Domino might just be trying to sleep with her, but after hearing from Billie that Domino must truly care for her…
She wanted Domino –– that was a fairly straight-forward desire in her mind.
There were limitless reasons why it wouldn’t work.
Domino was wild; Sabrina liked labels and boxes.
Domino could date any girl she wanted; Sabrina hadn’t been on a date in months.
And yet, something about them did work. Sabrina enjoyed Domino and the sparks were undeniable. Why should she keep fighting everything in her heart that told her to just leap?
Chapter Nine
Domino
Domino sat on her childhood bed, staring around her bedroom. Her parents had changed it slightly to make it into a guest bedroom, but the walls were still the same vibrant yellow she had insisted on in middle school, and her first broken guitar still sat in the corner.
It wasn't a large room –– her parents were accountants with five children, after all –– but it had always been her sanctuary.
She had always been an oddball growing up. She had been bullied and teased relentlessly, until she had simply adopted her weirdness as cool, instead. She was different, and she was a bit wild, and the more she could confidently portray that, the more people started to think she was doing it on purpose.
There was a different bedspread on the bed now, and the mattress had been changed into a fancier memory foam version of her cheap springy twin, but the boring, classic wooden bed frame was the same.
There was still a framed surfing poster on the wall, which was hysterical given that she hadn't ever surfed when she hung that poster up.
A light knock drew her attention towards the door.
"Domino?"
It was Sabrina.
She raked a hand through her hair. God, Sabrina. Seeing her in that dress was much harder than she ever could have predicted –– it just amplified the feeling of having what she wanted so close, and yet miles away.
And at the same time, she respected Sabrina's choice. Sabrina wanted to be friends. Domino wasn't the kind of asshole who couldn't be friends with someone just because she was attracted to them.
Sabrina knocked again.
"Come on in," Domino said, standing up. She straightened her posture and took a deep breath, trying to look much more carefree than she felt.
Sabrina opened the door and slipped inside, then shut it behind her. "Hiding out?"
"Something like that," Domino said with a grin.
"Wow, this is so not what I expected," Sabrina said, looking around. "Check out how organized this room is."
Domino laughed, looking around with new eyes. "Yeah, Mom changed it a lot. I promise it was classic Domino while I was here."
"I'm picturing like fifty pairs of jeans on the floor, hair products falling off the dresser, at least three guitars," Sabrina said, gesturing to the places she was talking about. She smiled, but there was something tentative in her expression.
"It was more like one pair of jeans on the ground, one jar of hair wax on my bedside table, and that lovely ol' thing in my hand, always," Domino said, pointing to the broken guitar.
"What made you play bass, then?" Sabrina asked, walking over to the guitar.
"I went through a huge Paul McCartney phase. He's left handed, I'm left handed, we're basically twins," Domino said, shaking her head with embarrassment.
"Paul? Paul is your favorite Beatle?" Sabrina said, cringing.
"Uh, sorry, have you ever heard 'Eleanor Rigby'?" Domino said defensively, holding up a hand with raised eyebrows. "The man's a genius."
Sabrina shook her head. "You can thank Jane Asher for Eleanor Rigby," she said, crossing her arms. "It was Jane's family that actually gave Paul his love of classical music and encouraged him to think outside of the box when it came to songwriting."
Domino paused, waiting for the punchline. "Really? His girlfriend?"
"Hey, girlfriends are sometimes wonderful influencers," Sabrina said, shrugging. "Do I even have to mention Yoko and Pattie?"
"Oh, don't tell me you're a Yoko apologist," Domino teased.
"Guilty as charged," Sabrina said, grinning.
"Do not tell me your favorite Beatle is Ringo," Domino said, grimacing.
"George. Clearly the most talented of the bunch," Sabrina said confidently.
Domino stared wide-eyed at the woman before her. "Is that why you said that Zoey or Meg could be the George of the band? You think Billie and I are overrated?"
Sabrina laughed. "Yowzers, you really took that to heart," she said. "I was just trying my best to persuade you to step outside of your comfort zone."
Domino nodded, biting her lip. "Well, I did. And Meg really is an awesome songwriting companion," she confessed.
Sabrina smiled. "I'm proud of you," she said. She cleared her throat, as if setting her determination to something. "Speaking of stepping out of comfort zones, though..."
Domino felt as though time momentarily stopped. Should she dare hope she knew what Sabrina might say?
"I... have been thinking," Sabrina said slowly. She audibly gulped, as though she was nervous.
"Oh yeah? About what?" Domino forced herself to sound more casual than she felt. If Sabrina said something like, We should go with blue for the closet organizer drawers , she didn't want to look stupid.
"I would like to request a re-do," Sabrina said.
Domino tilted her head to the side, not understanding.
"From the moment we met, it's been one colossal mistake after another. You hit me on your bike, I got really drunk before we even knew one another. Things like that. I haven't been on my A-game, and it's freaked me out," she said, fidgeting with her hands.
Domino stayed as still as she could, afraid to ruin the moment or make Sabrina change her mind.
Sabrina held out her hand to shake Domino’s. “I’m Sabrina. Want to be friends?”
Domino laughed, unable to figure the women out. “Nice to meet you, Sabrina. I�
�m Domino. Want to go hang out with my entire family?”
Sabrina grinned, arching a brow. “I do. In fact, I have a really fun idea for that.”
They all sat in the living room once again. Domino was grateful that the conversation had shifted more towards Vero and the new album that she and Billie had been hard at work on.
“Colorado is so beautiful,” Billie said.
Sabrina sat on the sofa next to her. Domino caught her eye as they both simultaneously took a drink of their wine.
“And Vero’s dad has been teaching me how to produce,” Billie continued.
“Are you going to produce The Shrikes next album?” Holly asked, her eyes wide in actual interest.
Drink for mention of The Shrikes next album.
Sabrina sipped from her glass.
“If there’s a next album,” Matt said.
Small drink for Matt being an asshole about the band. It had to be small, or else they’d be blackout drunk in twenty minutes.
She watched Sabrina try to suppress a laugh.
Mom sighed. “I knew from the very first moment I heard you two play that you’d be famous one day. You inherited my talent, you know? I raised you kids to all be musical, but only the girls seemed to listen.” She swirled wine in her own glass, tipping it to drain it in one gulp.
One large sip for Mom saying something strange about raising them or their childhood…
Domino watched as Sabrina finished off her glass.
“You know, I blame the Carebear,” Lydia said.
Domino finished her own glass, feeling much more tipsy than she had anticipated. In just an hour, the game had led to them finishing off two bottles of wine.
“So, Holly, tell us more about your research,” Billie interrupted, side-eyeing Domino.
Holly’s face lit up. “So many interesting things are happening in the wolf world right now. You may be interested to know they just found a wolf for the first time in years in Colorado, actually,” she started.
Sabrina leaned over to whisper in her ear. ”You’d better take me home," she said quietly.
Bewilder (The Kaleidoscope Album Book 2) Page 9
