My eyes remained on Alec's sweatshirt as Olivia rattled on. A steady ache had spread across my chest. Two and a half months was practically a quarter of a year.
Olivia was still talking, but I tuned her out. Only when she mentioned Alec's name did I snap back to attention. "I know you'll miss your eye candy, but maybe Alec can fly in for a couple of the events."
"I doubt it. Not with school and work," I said with a heavy heart.
"Absence makes the heart grow fonder?"
I didn't laugh. "When do they want me to leave exactly?"
"The first of January. Sorry, Nicole. I know that'll put a damper on your New Year's Eve plans, but they want you in New York City for Good Morning America the following morning. You'll be in the city for two weeks where you'll have meetings with the publishing house and your editor. Jillian will be flying in that week also."
"Good Morning America? No fucking way."
"What? I said TV interviews," Olivia said, trying not to laugh at my expense through the phone.
"Yeah, but I thought you meant, like, local station stuff like I did here. Why would they want me? It doesn't make any sense." My head suddenly felt like an overinflated balloon on the verge of popping. I would rather jump off the Brooklyn Bridge when I got to New York than embarrass myself on national TV.
"We're not going through this again. Face it, Nic. People like your books. Give yourself some credit. Besides, you'll have Jillian there to take care of everything." I reluctantly nodded my head even though Olivia couldn't see me. It made sense that Jillian would want to be there for the meeting with my publishing house. I just hope she'll be prepared to drug me to get me in studio for the interview. "Okay," I said simply. This was part of my job. Meeting and interacting with readers was perhaps the most important part of being an author.
"You're cool then?" She sounded surprised that I had conceded without more of a fight.
I exhaled deeply, moving my gaze away from Alec's sweatshirt. "No, but I'll make it work. Are you still coming Thursday?" I changed the subject, not wanting to dwell on the bomb Olivia had dropped.
"I've been thinking about that, and I think maybe I should bow out this year."
"Bow out? Not on your life, slick. Besides, Tony's been looking forward to it," I teased.
She snorted. "Your brother has a Teflon ego. I'll give him that. You'd think he'd get sick of me shooting him down."
"You know you can throw him a bone and actually go out with him once. Except for his wet willies, he's really not all that bad."
"No way. It's too much fun toying with him. Besides, I told you I'd never risk our friendship by going out with any of your brothers."
"Liv, our friendship will never be at risk. I personally feel you secretly have the hots for Tony. You're just too afraid to admit it."
"You wish," she muttered. "I'll see you Thursday and we can go over the schedule in more detail."
She hung up before I could tease her any more, but something in her voice made me think I might be onto something between Tony and Liv. Tony had been making a play for her for years. Olivia continually shot him down before he could even get his flirt plane in the air, and man, did we give him shit for it. Still, he hasn't given up. The idea that she might actually say yes was both intriguing and a bit unsettling. I loved Olivia like a sister, but even I couldn't deny her praying mantis reputation. If she ever went out with Tony, there would be a chance she'd leave him chewed up in pieces. I wasn't sure how I felt about that.
***
Two days later, Alec and I were making our way up the sidewalk to my parents' front door as I balanced an apple pie and a pumpkin pie in each hand. We could hear yelling coming from inside the house before we even reached the porch.
Alec looked at me with an eyebrow raised. "Do we even want to go in there?" His concern was cute, but I wasn't worried. I could handle whatever lay behind that slab of wood.
"That's normal. Can you get the door for me?"
Alec draped a protective arm around me as he opened the front door. His need to shield me was flattering, but even he couldn't save me from this kind of madness. Hell, even he wasn't safe. Alec might be a strapping six-foot-something specimen with abs of steel, but that meant nothing once we stepped through the door.
The octave level intensified the instant we opened the door. The loud ruckus was nothing new to me. After all, it was the holiday season. It wouldn't be Thanksgiving in my childhood home without a bunch of rowdy guys, and girls for that matter, yelling at the television. I could understand what it must have looked like to an outside observer, but when you grew up in it like I did, you tended to become immune. Alec's concern changed to bewilderment when a pillow sailed across the room, smacking Zachary square in the face.
Zachary cackled with laughter. "I told you the Cowboys were going to choke. Why you continue to bet against the master is beyond me."
His taunts were met with collective boos and hisses from the rest of the room.
"My family gets into their football," I explained to Alec as we stood waiting to be acknowledged. My family was a loud bunch during normal occasions. Add a little pigskin into the mix and we were like a pack of wild animals.
Alec's face eased into a grin."I gathered that," he said, fist-bumping Tony, who had just noticed our arrival.
Tony deftly caught the pillow that Zachary chucked back at him. "Dude, please tell me you're a Cowboys fan. I need the support."
Alec shook Dad's hand and accepted a hug from Mom before answering. "Sorry, bro, me and the Cowboys don't mix."
Zachary crowed with delight. "Spoken like a true football fan. Stay away from the dark side. Losers get the beanbag chair," he said, pushing Tony toward the isolated spot in the corner no one else wanted. In a family of five, favorite spots were coveted and fought over. Usually a bet was involved, which would explain Tony's sour expression as he tried to put Zachary in a headlock.
"Hey, mind the table or you'll be watching the game from outside," Dad chastised them, rescuing his beer and Mom's glass of wine before they could be knocked over.
I handed the pies to Mom and walked over to my grandma to give her a kiss. She sat in the rocking chair, watching my brothers acting like a pack of wild dogs with a mixture of amusement and dismay. Grandpa was settled at the end of the couch next to her. "Grams and Pops, this is my friend, Alec," I said, waving Alec over.
"It's nice to meet you," Alec said, walking toward my grandparents with his hand outstretched. He greeted Grams before turning his attention to Pops. "I've heard a lot about you, sir."
"Eh?" My grandpa looked at Alec with a sour, confused expression on his face.
"I said, I've heard a lot about you," Alec repeated loudly.
"What? I have something on my shoe?" Pops answered. Alec looked to me for help, but it was my grandma who rescued him.
"Henry, stop it. You're embarrassing the young man," she said from her chair.
"Yeah, Pops. Take it easy on him," I added, kissing him on the cheek.
Alec smiled, realizing he was the butt of the joke. Pops had always been a practical joker and never missed an opportunity to razz anyone. "He's harmless. I promise," I said, comforting Alec.
"Just a little initiation. It's a pleasure to meet you, son," Pops said, shaking Alec's hand. "So Alec, are you a betting man?" Pops asked, adding a five-dollar bill to the stack Dad and my brother Riley had dropped on the table.
Alec, who didn't even pause, pulled a five out of his wallet and added it to the pile. "I've been known to dabble a bit. My money's on Zachary."
I raised my eyebrow. "I'd pay close attention to your wallet in this crowd. You might find it empty by the end of the evening and you won't know what hit you." It was common knowledge in our house that among all my brothers, Tony was the scrapper. Zachary always had to work hard to get the best of him and those times were rare.
Alec shot me a grin. "His girl is watching. Guys are different when their ladies are present." He nodded toward Ashley, who ha
d just placed her own five on the table in favor of Tony. "Ouch, that's harsh," he added.
We all laughed as Tony made quick work of pinning Zachary, as usual.
"I've been around them longer, Alec. I know a sucker bet when I see one," Ashley answered, winking at us.
Tony may have gotten the better of Zachary, but both my brothers lay on their backs, breathing heavily. "I let him win," Zachary wheezed.
Ashley stood up, laughing, and reached a hand down to help her knight in shining armor to his feet. "Sure you did, babe." She pecked him on the lips. "And at least you have a girl," she whispered loudly so we could all hear.
Olivia chose that moment to walk through the front door."Yeah, but Tony has two good hands," Riley said as Tony climbed to his feet.
"Riley Donovan Blake," Mom screeched, rapping Riley on the head with a wooden spoon.
Ashley and I exchanged looks of amusement as Tony flushed several shades of red while trying to smooth down his hair.
"Did I miss all the fun?" Olivia asked, taking in the disheveled room.
"Just some one-on-one rolling around—if you're interested in playing," Tony answered, turning on the flirting like a light switch.
"From what I heard, you prefer to play with yourself," Olivia said.
Riley clapped loudly and hollered his appreciation while Zachary attempted to add his two cents, but Ashley clamped a hand over his mouth.
Tony placed a hand over his heart, not wanting to back down in front of my brothers, who continued egging him on. "That doesn't mean I don't like playing with others."
What Tony had never learned in all the years he had been chasing Olivia was that she wasn't the type to back down, nor did she embarrass easily. She took a step forward, closing the gap between them. "You mean skip out on dinner?" She trailed her finger down his chest. From my vantage point, it was clear she was playing Tony like a fiddle. "Sure," he gulped.
"You don't think your mom or grandma would mind?" She breathed heavily into his neck. "After all, your grams probably slaved away all day making that famous pecan pie you're so fond of." She patted his cheek. "Not this time, slick."
Tony finally pulled his attention away from Olivia to see everyone in the room watching him with open amusement. "What's everybody looking at? I was just kidding around."
Zachary and Riley snickered, earning Riley a flick in the ear from Dad. "Hey, damn, Dad. Come on. How are we supposed to not laugh at that? He's got no game," he defended himself.
"Reminds me of your father when he used to come around trying to get your mother to notice him. He didn't have any game either," Pops piped in, earning a round of laughter throughout the room for his juicy revelation.
"Like father like son, hey, Dad?" Zachary laughed, socking Dad in the arm.
"Mom, I didn't know you were a tease," I laughed.
"Not a tease. He just had to work for it," she answered.
"Hey, let me remind everyone that none of you would be standing here if I didn't have any game," he said, defending himself as he strutted off toward the kitchen.
I could see Alec trying to remain polite, unsure whether or not to laugh. He'd been exposed to my family a couple times in the past few months, but we were in rare form during the holidays, and a far cry from his own parents, who we had spent the previous day with for a pre-Thanksgiving dinner with his daughter, Lily. It was only the second time I had met Alec's mother and father. They were very welcoming, but much more reserved than my family.
"See what you started. You're positively evil," I said to Olivia when she joined us. She lifted her hand and blew on her nails as she wiggled her fingers. "I have no earthly idea what you're talking about," she answered, blowing a kiss at Tony, who still only had eyes for her.
We linked arms and headed toward the dining room when Mom announced it was time to eat. "Evil, evil, evil."
"He likes it. Besides, your mother had it right. You got to work to get with this."
"Ew. The way you said that conjures up an image of my parents that is just all wrong. You are bad indeed."
"Oh please. Like you and Alec don't enjoy playing doctor," she added, winking at Alec, who trailed behind us.
The noise level remained the same throughout dinner. Olivia and Tony continued their twisted flirting war while Mom, Grandma, Ashley, and I discussed my upcoming tour. Alec sat quietly beside me, but he didn't contribute much to the conversation. He and I had already discussed the trip in great detail. We both understood that the tour was a once-in-a-lifetime type of opportunity that I couldn't pass on. He was happy for me, but he remained as unenthusiastic as I was about our impending separation. Still, he would never tell me not to go. Nor did he put any pressure on me or try to guilt me in any way. The situation was going to suck, but we'd already agreed we would make it work.
Zachary eventually interrupted the table conversation when he insisted it was time for dessert. None of us would have given a second thought to his demand, considering he had always had a bottomless pit for a stomach, but when he insisted that Ashley have the special cupcake he'd bought her, it became clear something was up.
Tears filled Ashley's eyes when she slowly opened the lid of the box to reveal the sparkle of a diamond ring nestled atop a cloud of frosting.
Mom and I gasped together as Zachary sank down to his knee at Ashley's side.
"Ashley Renee Grant, will you do me the honor of agreeing to become my wife in the presence of my loud, obnoxious family and friends? I promise if you agree to be my wife, I'll be the best husband, to the best of my abilities, with no Dutch ovens," he proposed, grinning mischievously.
Mom groaned and looked like she wanted to sink through the floor, but Ashley laughed through the tears streaming down her face as she nodded. "Yes," she said, throwing her arms around his neck. "Definitely yes," she added.
Her answer brought a roar of approval from all of us. We watched happily as Zachary slid the frosting-covered ring on her finger. It fit perfectly.
Chapter 4
Alec was uncharacteristically quiet during the drive home that evening. I figured maybe his first Thanksgiving experience with my family had driven him to some much-needed chill time. In hindsight, I probably could have given him more fair warning going in, but in my defense, there really was no way to prepare someone for a situation where anything could and usually did happen.
His silence continued even after we got home and prepared for bed. I gave him his space, figuring he would talk when he was ready, but I also noticed he kept shooting me hooded looks when he thought I wasn't paying attention. Obviously he had something to say and expected me to ask.
"Christmas works for me," I said after we turned off the lights and snuggled under my thick down comforter.
"What?"
"A Christmas proposal. That works for me. I think that's the only way we can top Zachary's proposal. Maybe you can do something with mistletoe. Oh, or better yet, Christmas lights."
The way Alec had been silent in the car was nothing compared to the way he laid next to me at that moment. I couldn't even hear him breathing. He was too easy. I had to cover my mouth to keep from laughing, imagining the look of panic on his face as he searched his brain for some kind of response.
Alec cleared his throat loudly and I ruined the moment by giggling. "What?" he choked out.
My giggles turned into a flat-out belly laugh.
"What's so funny?"
"You're what's so funny," I said, catching my breath. "I bet you're lying there trying to decide if you can bolt without me noticing. Wishing you would have never given up your apartment." A fresh wave of giggles cascaded out of me, shaking the bed. "I was teasing, you fool."
"Whatever," he chuckled. "I was just messing with you too."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He became quiet again, probably unsure of what the right answer should be. "Alec? What do you mean you were messing with me? Are you saying you wouldn't marry me?"
The dark stillness of the r
oom felt like a heavy weight from my sudden sternness. Once again, Alec could have been a corpse the way he laid like a statue next to me. "Are you serious?" he finally asked.
"Nope." I burst out laughing again. "Oh my god, I could do this all night."
Alec rolled over, smothering me with his pillow. "You're evil. I think you're channeling Olivia. Time for your punishment." He tickled every sensitive spot on my body, taking my breath away from laughter. "Hey, what was it Zachary mentioned earlier, a Dutch oven?" he asked, trapping me under the comforter.
"Don't you do it!" I screamed.
"Oh man. I shouldn't have eaten all that green bean casserole."
I squirmed under the comforter, but he held me in place. "I'll kill you, I swear."
He released his hold on me, nearly falling out of bed from laughing so hard. "Jerk," I complained, slapping at any part of his body I could get my hands on. "You're so lucky you didn't actually do that. We're talking burning bed kind of punishment."
"Aw, I'm sorry, sweets. Don't be mad." I couldn't see him, but I could tell by the way he talked that he was smiling.
I shifted my body toward him, finding the side of his face with my hand. "Fine, I'm sorry too. I couldn't resist," I said, gently stroking him.
"What if it wasn't a joke though?" he asked.
"What?"
"You tease, but one of these days I'm going to want to make you my wife, and I want to know you'll be on board with that."
The last of my giggling became a large lump in my throat. Even lying in bed, my stomach nearly dropped to my knees. Alec, who barely six months ago had commitment issues to the point where we almost didn't happen, couldn't possibly be hinting at something as permanent as marriage.
"I mean, I'd like to be further along in medical school, but one day the moment will come, and I want to make sure laughter will be the last response that comes to your mind."
It took me a moment to gather my thoughts, which were running away in several different directions. "I thought you said marriage wasn't in the cards for you," I said, recalling a conversation we'd had months ago.