Contessa (65 page)

“
She
’
s not a sitter,
”
my mom says.
“
You
’
re friends. She wanted somewhere to celebrate, too. It works out well this way. It
’
s not that we don
’
t trust you.
”
I glare at her, though, knowing that they don
’
t.

“
Right. Wait, Granna
’
s coming, too?
”

“
No, I told her my plans. She was going to stay in with James tonight.
”

“
Was she upset?
”
I feel like we
’
re abandoning her. She spends most of these anniversaries with us.

“
No,
”
my mom says.
“
She was very encouraging of it. She
’
s meeting us for dinner on the second, so we
’
ll still have some time together.
”

I nod in her general direction, taking in the new plans for the evening. My dad once again follows Finn and my best friend into the kitchen. They both have small, colorful drinks in hand. This time, neither of them looks guilty of anything my dad wouldn
’
t approve of.

“
I guess I need to get ready,
”
Dad says as he takes a final swig of his scotch.

I knew this year would be different, having Jon here, but I expected to spend some of the evening memorializing Nate. I looked forward to this night every year, and this one was especially important since I
’
d received the sketch book and was able to have a better idea of who this man was.

“
I
’
ll be right back,
”
I tell Jon, releasing his hand and going downstairs to the basement. I grab the leather book and bring it upstairs with me, setting it in plain sight on the coffee table. I intend to keep his spirit alive tonight, in some way. I sit down in the living room, alone. My boyfriend eventually brings me my drink and sits down next to me. Camille and Finn are tasting one another
’
s drinks when they join us. Camille cringes when she takes a sip of Finn
’
s.

“
What
’
d you put in there?
”
she asks. He simply nudges her in the side to keep her quiet.

“
Finn, you
’
re gonna get us all in trouble,
”
I tell him angrily.
“
They
’
ll never leave me here alone.
”

“
It was just a splash,
”
he hisses at me.

“
We should start a fire,
”
Jon says.

“
Hey, Chris?
”
I call to my uncle. He comes into the room, anxious to go out.
“
Can you build a fire for us?
”

“
I could do it, Olivia. I
’
m fully capable.
”

“
I
’
ve got it,
”
Chris says as he heads out onto the patio to get some wood. Jon follows him and helps him carry some kindling in. He watches my uncle
’
s process closely as Chris gives him some tips to keep the fire going.

“
I was a boy scout. I can keep fires going in the middle of the wilderness with pouring rain. I think I can manage this.
”
I hear a little frustration in his voice.

“
Nevertheless,
”
my dad says as he comes back into the room,
“
there is an extinguisher in that cabinet in the corner with all of the pictures. You know, in case you can
’
t figure out how to put it out.
”

“
Thanks,
”
Jon says with a polite–but forced–smile.
“
I promise we won
’
t burn your house down.
”

“
Good,
”
is all my dad says. Mom and Anna meet their husbands in the foyer just as Lexi comes in the door. I
’
m a little ticked off at her, realizing she was in on this chaperone plan all along.

My parents and aunt and uncle seem to be in a hurry to leave, so they just wave on their way out.

“
Lexi, they can each have a little champagne at midnight,
”
my dad says, making a measurement with his thumb and forefinger.
“
Finn, if you two stay for a toast, I want you to be here when we get home around twelve-thirty. I want to make sure you
’
re okay to drive. Got it?
”

“
Yes sir
,
”
Finn says with a salute as the adults go out the front door.

“
You okay, Liv?
”
my cousin asks me as she takes her fiancé
’
s coat and drapes it over the back of the sofa. She does the same to hers.

“
I hate that they don
’
t trust me at all.
”

“
Oh, they do,
”
she says, blowing off my complaint.
“
They just don
’
t trust the two of you together.
”
She winks at me playfully, but I simply roll my eyes at her.
“
Oh, stop, Livvy. We
’
re going to have fun. I
’
ve only got one rule: you need to be prepared for someone to walk into any room you
’
re in. So no locked doors. What you decide to do with your time, though, I don
’
t care. Oh, but just know your parents could come home early, so don
’
t you dare get me in trouble.
”
She smiles sweetly and takes Kyle
’
s hand as they go into the kitchen. Finn and Camille immediately head downstairs.

“
Seriously, guys?
”

“
We
’
re gonna watch a movie, that
’
s all,
”
my best friend says.

“
Right.
”
I turn to ask Jon if he wants to go, too, but he stands up quickly and goes back into the kitchen with his glass. I place my feet carefully on the coffee table and settle into the couch with the
sketchbook
in my lap. I open up to a random page, and see a picture taped on it. It
’
s a picture of Nate and my mother, talking over a few cupcakes. There
’
s icing on my mom
’
s nose. Nate looks completely smitten, and I can
’
t help but smile and melt a little at his expression.

Jon comes back, his glass topped off, and sits down next to me. He pulls a magazine into this lap and starts thumbing through it.

“
Look,
”
I say, showing him the picture. He glances quickly and nods, looking back at an advertisement.
“
What
’
s wrong?
”
I ask him, closing the book.

“
Olivia,
”
he says with a heavy sigh.
“
Will you please stop giving your parents reasons to look at me as if I
’
m a child?
”

“
What do you mean?
”

“
Asking your uncle to build a fire? What are we, nine?
”

“
Well, I don
’
t know how to do it!
”
I argue with him.
“
I didn
’
t know you could.
”

“
Ask me, then,
”
he says, clearly frustrated.
“
And from now on, just know that I am the man of the household in my own home, so aside from birthing a child or decorating a room, I can do most of what needs to be done around one.
”

“
Ooookay. I didn
’
t mean to question your
manhood
.
”

“
We have one goal right now, right? Get your parents to see us as adults. So far, they
’
ve left us in the capable hands of your cousin who
’
s, what, five years older than I am?
”

“
Six,
”
I correct him.

He sighs once more and shakes his head.
“
Yeah, sorry, I
’
m a little frustrated.
”

“
Well, the only reason they let you come over here in the first place was because they were planning on staying in. It
’
s not like they were going to leave us alone, anyway.
”

“
Still. There are about a million other things I
’
d rather do and places I
’
d rather be than being babysat on New Year
’
s Eve.
”

“
Well, then go,
”
I tell him.
“
Don
’
t let me hold you back.
”

“
That
’
s not what I mean, Liv. I want to be with you. I just wonder what it will take to get them to trust us, just a little.
”

“
Well, I
’
ll blame this on you. You
’
re the one who brought up sex.
”

“
No, I don
’
t think that was me. You told them I wasn
’
t a virgin. You planted the seed.
”

“
Technically, you sort of did.
”
I try to keep a straight face but when he starts laughing, I can
’
t keep my composure.

“
Well, look who
’
s got a sense of humor about it now...
”
he suggests.

“
I
’
m sorry.
”
I continue giggling.
“
That was inappropriate. I really am sorry.
”
I smile warmly.

He once again shakes his head and smiles.
“
Me, too. So what were you looking at?
”

“
It
’
s Nate
’
s sketch book.
”
I open it back up to the picture.

“
Your mom looks so young.
”

“
Yeah. Look how in love he was with her.
”

“
You know,
”
Jon says,
“
your dad has that look all the time with her.
”

“
No, he doesn
’
t.
”

“
Yeah, he does,
”
he argues.
“
Did you see him tonight? He was on cloud nine.
”

“
He was drunk,
”
I tell him, shrugging off his assessment of my dad.

“
A little tipsy, maybe, but blissfully happy. I can
’
t imagine having parents like that. It
’
s literally beyond my comprehension.
”

“
Did your parents never get along?
”

“
Never. They fought constantly. Same thing with Max and Will
’
s dad. And if you want to see drunk, come see my mom any night after she gets off work. You don
’
t know drunk.
”
He looks sad.