Gabriel's Promise (A Romantic Comedy) (8 page)

GABE

My family pulled up and came towards us, I thought I saw a worried
frown pass over the chief's face for a brief second before it was gone, I
wonder what that was about?
My little sister Jennifer made a bee line for Sam and the dog, I started to
intervene but was interrupted by my parents.
I made the introductions to the chief and turned to Sam just in time to see her
giving Jennifer a very weird look. Oh Lord, what now?
"Are you on something?" Sam was looking Jenny over like there was
something wrong with her, my sister can be a bit exuberant, a little high
strung if you will and I’m not sure that that’s a good mix right now not with
Samantha sloshed as she was.
"Excuse me?"
"I asked if you're on something."
"No why do you say that silly?"
"Because you can't stay still and you're talking a mile a minute."
Dad started to laugh I don't know what the hell he found funny about this. I
glared at chief when he started humming the theme song from twilight zone. If
my mom wouldn't have a fit I would've kicked his chair. So I just leaned over
and whispered in his ear.
"I'll lock you in the attic I swear."
" Good luck with that, who's going to help you with the happy drunk then
huh?"
"You'll probably be more of a hindrance than a help."
I tuned back in to hear Jennifer laughing off Sam's insult, that's my sister
for you, jovial to the bone.
"Come on Samantha we have so much to talk about. "

"Excuse me do I know you?"
"I'm Gabriel's sister Jennifer silly, I just told you."
"If you call me silly again I'll pop you one."
"Okay dirty Harry calm down we
have
company."
The chief rolled himself over to the girls while I held my face in my hand.
"Son what did you give that poor girl to drink?"
"She was too nervous to fly mom so I gave her some champagne."
"I'm thinking you might not want to be doing that again anytime soon
son."
" Thanks for the heads up dad, though you seem to find it funny."
"She's adorable, what do you think
Summer
, should
we go meet our new daughter?"
Well hell.

I followed behind them as they approached the trio who seemed to
be having some sort of debate.
"I'm telling you chief Holder, with just the right shade of lipstick she'd
be stunning."
"And I'm telling you Jenny, that you can't put lipstick on this particular
pig because it will bite your head off."
What the hell were they talking about?
I guess chief forgot he was sitting within reach of Sam when he called her a
pig because she set Prince Charles on his head.
"Get that damn rat off my head before I skin him while you're
asleep." Of course she didn't take too kindly to that.
"You even think about it and I'll fix your chair so it doesn't lock.
"
"Mr. and Mrs. Sweeney I give you my delightful daughter Jane Hudson, aka
‘Whatever happened to baby Jane’?"
You've got to be kidding me.

Chief

I'm worried for my girl , none of these yahoos better not say a
bad word to her or I'll be the one looking for the nearest gun cabinet, my baby
might have her quirks but she's a good kid.
I don't think the boy would let anybody hurt her though, he's worst than a
clucking hen with her chicks.
Ever since we got here he's been hovering around her like he was afraid she
would disappear, more like he was afraid she would get into the liquor supply.
I hate to admit it but my daughter's a lush, I've never seen such a spectacle
in all my days.
Jenny seemed to be a nice enough girl but I was afraid if she didn't dial it
down a notch Miss. Priss might deck her one.

The boy's parents were nice enough, father seemed taken with my
girl, wait until the first time she lit into him, then we'll see.
"Oh lord what now?" I heard the commotion before I reached the room
where Miss. Priss and Jenny were hobnobbing.
"I don't want to go shopping, I hate shopping; shopping is for air headed
cumquats who have nothing better to do."
"What's a cumquat?"
"It's a fruit nitwit, maybe if you stopped sniffing paint you might learn
something."
"I don't sniff paint Sam, you're so silly."
Oh shit.

"Don't you do it Mary Flora Bell."
"
Who's that? I thought Gabriel said your name was
Sam?"
"She was a young serial killer in England, well she killed two boys
supposedly so I don't know why that makes her a serial killer, again, if you
lay off whatever drug of the week you're on you might know these things."
"Uhhh, Sam, I don't think anybody knows these things."
"Well I do."
"And I swear she's not on wacky weed, she just acts like it."
"Shut it."
Where's that son in law of mine anyway, he knows better than to leave Attila
the Hun alone with his little sister, the girl can't weigh but eighty pounds
wet, if she pisses off Miss. Priss she's liable to knock her clear into next
week.

GABE

I heard the chief mumbling to himself as soon as I reached
downstairs, I'd been up in my study playing catch up on some of my work that
I'd neglected while away.
Things looked like I expected them to so I could once again concentrate on the
craziness that has become my life.
"What seems to be the problem now chief?"
" Are you insane boy, didn't I tell you yesterday not to leave those two
alone together?"
Not this again, he was convinced that Sam was going to do Jenny in, which in an
aside is another worry I have, the chief and my little sister has somehow
become cohorts, that in my book can't be too good. Jenny is a minx when she
wants to be and the last thing my flower needs is for her pop to bring in
reinforcements.
"They'll be fine as long as you don't play the meddling old woman."
He glared at me and rolled his eyes.
"Listen clueless wonder, Jenny is hell bent on taking our girl shopping
for this soiree you're planning to have tonight, Miss. Priss is not in the
least interested, to hear her tell it, Jenny's leading her off to the
guillotine, I should be so lucky."
"You're a mean old man, she doesn't have to go shopping if she doesn't
want to mom already has it covered."

I walked into the room just in time to see a hard cover book go
flying at my sister's head, and though I've wanted to throttle her a time or
two myself in the past I couldn't let my prickly pear bean her.
"Samantha what are you doing?"
The chief of course is now sitting in the doorway shaking his head at me as if
the whole thing is my fault.
"Tell her to leave me alone before I drop her out a window, what is it
with her anyway? I don't want to go to no stinking salon."
"Gabriel I just thought it would be nice for her to be pampered a little
before the party, you know nails, hair, the works."
"You want to cut my hair..."
"Nobody's cutting her damn hair, and she doesn't have to go anywhere,
mom's bringing someone over which you would know Jenny if you'd gone home.

My sister has been camped out in my house for the last two days,
which would not have been a problem in itself, except she seemed to spend a lot
of time plotting with the chief and flower spent all her time hiding from her.
With all the traffic around here I'd hardly had a chance to kiss her the way I
like. Time to put a stop to that mess.
"Boy we don't have time for that now we have things to discuss."
Damn, chief must've caught me leering again. I gave a deep sigh, told Sam to
behave herself and gave her a smooch before following him out of the room, Lord
knows what was on his mind now, he's been acting a little strange since we got
here, even for chief.
I led him to my downstairs library and closed the door, he got right to it.
"Who all is coming to this party son?"
"Friends of the family, why?"
"I don't know about Miss. Priss around all these strange people nothing
good can come of it, you have seen her in action right?"
"What are you so worried about? You act as if she doesn't know how to act
in public, I happen to think my girl has excellent manners."
"Are we talking about the same person or are you sniffing Jenny's paint?
If we're talking about my kid, there's no way this shindig is going off without
a hitch, and please in the name of all that's holy don't give her any of that
champagne again."
He had a point about the champagne, but as for the rest he was wrong, I know my
flower can be a bit...acerbic, but from our talks I also knew she has the
etiquette of a seventeenth century schoolmarm.
"I think she'll be fine as long as no one bothers her." I gave him a
pointed look.
"Now what's really bothering you?" He fidgeted in his chair for a bit
with a look on his face that I hadn’t seen before.
"What if your hoity
toity
friends don't like
her?" The words were barely above a whisper.

And there you have it, I don't think I've ever seen the chief look
so soft, he was really worried about his daughter.
"They'll love her, what's not to like, she's beautiful, smart and
sweet."
Now he's looking at me like I'm the crazy one.
"Have you met my daughter, you know Shotgun Sue, the one who likes to
pepper people with buckshot?"
"Well, there's none of that around here so we should be fine, now if
you're done worrying like an old woman I have to go get her ready for mom and
the stylist."
"This ought to be good, let the games begin."

I took Sam from the parlor room where she was once again questioning
my sister's drug intake and led her to my office, this was a delicate situation
and needed to be handled with care, I remember only too well the debacle that
transpired the last time someone tried to groom her.
I'd barely closed the door before she had me trapped against it in a lip lock.
"Baby!"
"Hmm."
"I have to talk to you about something." I was still returning her
kisses though damn I’d missed her mouth.

“Sammy, wait a minute baby.” I tried to stem the flow before
things got out if hand and I forgot what I’d brought her in here to say.
"Uh huh." she was still trying to recapture my mouth, oh what the
hell I'd missed this. I kissed her until her lips were puffy and her eyes were
glazed, good, she should be in a more amenable mood now. This might work.
"
Mom's
on her way over here with a stylist,
they're going to bring you some dresses and you can choose whatever you want
okay? They're also going to be doing your hair and nails."
"Doing what to my hair and nails?"
Uh oh she looked ready for battle again, more kisses coming up, it was a crap
thing to do but a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do.
When she'd finally gone all soft and pliant I got her to agree to the
afternoon's beauty fest, her only stipulation and I quote 'as long as the dress
doesn't make me look like a trollop I'll wear it."
Can't ask for more than that.

Chief

Well it's been an hour since Summer and that Petra woman went off
somewhere with Miss. Priss, I haven't heard any screaming, no gunshots fired, I
guess everything was okay, but with my harridan that could change any minute.
I hovered around downstairs too nervous to do anything else, that fool boy had
gone and got me a monkey suit, what was wrong with my flannels and jeans was
beyond me, but apparently these people didn't have much sense, they rather
button themselves up to kingdom come and be uncomfortable. I'm only doing it
because he said it was for my Sam.
"Chief come on it's time for your trim."
That Jenny is a doll, why my menace couldn't be more like her was beyond me.
"Okay Jenny." I gave one last look to the stairs and followed her to
my
room,
boy had way too much house for one person if
you ask me.
She soaped up my face for my shave, such a sweet girl, and set out what she was
going to need to fix me up as she called it.
"Jenny what are these people like that would be here tonight?"
"They're fine I guess, it's not going to be too many, only twenty or so,
mom said she didn't want to overwhelm you and Sam."
"Only...Lord love a duck, get your brother in here."
"I can't I have to get thus stuff off your face, besides I think he left
for a while."
Lord help us all Miss. Priss would kill one of these high society yahoos if
they looked at her wrong, what was that boy thinking? Twenty or so people? I
thought it would be five at the most.
Oh well nothing I could do about it now.

GABE

Well it's show time, the guests will be arriving in half an hour,
the caterers were set up and ready to go, music was piping through the surround
sound speakers and everything was going as planned. All we needed now was for
the girls to come downstairs.
My brother Jonathan and his wife Darlene had just arrived, they'll only be in
town for the night since Jon had an away game in a couple days.
"Hey lil bro where's my new sister? I hear she's a firecracker, dad seems
impressed."
"Hey Jon." I gave him a hug before kissing Darlene’s cheek. They were
like the perfect football couple, him big and beefy while she was blonde and
svelte.
"The ladies haven't come down yet, this is Charlie, Sam's dad."
"Hey man, how's it going?"
That's Jon he never met a stranger. They were soon arguing football while
Darlene tried pumping me for information.
I heard movement on the stairs and turned in time to see a vision descending.

"Holy..." I caught myself before I said anything else
out loud.
She looked fucking amazing, they'd done something to her hair, straightened it
I guess, it was just this waterfall of sleek shiny mass tumbling down her back
behind her shoulders. The dress was a white one shoulder that hugged her body
to below the hips, then flowed to her ankles. The redness of her hair was more
pronounced against the whiteness of her dress and just made her stand out even
more; as if she wasn’t gorgeous enough already.
She was wearing heels, not too high but heels nonetheless I had to remember to
ask mom how she pulled that one off.
I met her at the bottom of the stairs too dumbstruck to speak at first, I was
almost tongue tied.
"You look extremely beautiful baby." I whispered it in her ear.
I'd half expected her to be nervous but I didn't sense anything when I took her
hand. The chief was looking all kinds of proud and I hoped he kept on his best
behavior and kept his trap shut.
Before I could stop him Jon had her up in his arms swinging her around. Oh Lord,
I hadn't had time to warn him.
"Hey lil sis, you look smashing."
"Jonathan put her down." I rescued her, or him I wasn't sure which.
"Is that pigskin?"
She'd taken to calling him that after I told her what he did for a living,
Darlene of course started laughing her ass off, since she too tended to agree
with Sam, she said she had no interest in the game and she'd married him for
his looks not what he could do on a football field.
"Hello Sam, I'm Darlene, pigskin's wife."
Flower blushed beet red but shook her hand.
In all the commotion I had missed mom and Jenny’s entrance, Jon was looking put
out that Sam wasn't impressed with him but the chief was making up for that.

The whole family had gathered by the time guests started to
arrive, mom had worked on the guest list so I had no clue really who would be
here but I had no worries, mom knew what she was doing.
The party was going great, people were talking, dad, Jon and the chief were
arguing football, Sam was off in the corner with Jenny and Darlene while mom
flitted around making sure everything was just right.
I'd given flower a glass of sparkling cider and told the servers to keep her
supplied, so far so good, the chief had been worried for nothing.
About an hour into the party I noticed my girl was giggling a lot more than
usual but thought nothing of it, I figured the girls were regaling her with
some of my less stellar exploits, or maybe they were laughing at Jon, I’d
hardly had anytime with her as people kept pulling us in six different
directions but at least she seemed to be having fun. In other words I'd been
milling around catching up with old friends when I really just wanted to be
with my girl, I thought maybe I could sneak her outside to the garden and steal
a few kisses.
The first warning bell came from prince Charles's barking growl. Yes I'd
allowed her to bring her puppy, what could it hurt? Besides she said if I
didn't let her she wouldn't come downstairs. I figured she could control her
dog.
I looked over to see what was going on and was in time to see Sam deck Brenda
Winston and knock her on her ass. Oh shit.