Page 29 of The Heiress
“We should hit,” I said, an exuberance building in me already. Because of the tennis, of course. But something about her eyes always threw me, dark and haunted like they held a secret.
“I might have been coached, but I can’t play.” She reverted back to an abrupt tone, killing that suggestion with a razor sharp tongue. Scuttling away, she retrieved the few remaining balls. I pushed the cart across to the sideline, grateful to be able to rest my weight against it.
“How did that go?” Mom asked as I came in after washing up. I was surprised to see she’d set the dining table and we were eating in a formal setting and not at the breakfast bar.
“Yeah, good,” I said, unable to contain my excitement any longer. “I actually ran to a ball. Like,ranto it.”
Mom’s eyes popped. “And how do you feel?”
“Good.”
“I don’t want you overdoing it,” Mom said tempering my enthusiasm. “Patience, remember.”
I nodded, noticing that I was going to have to sit opposite Elisha. Mom had set her place at the head of the table; I knew, because her favorite turquoise bird cup was steaming with hot tea.
“Help yourself,” Mom waved at Elisha who seemed to be waiting for us, then directed to me, “You’re not using your crutches?”
“I’m going to try not to,” I said, “see how I feel.” She didn’t know my true motivation, but I needed to step up my game.
“Make sure you still do your exercises,” Mom said.
“Yep,” I said, heaping some bacon onto my plate. In addition to renovating my bedroom, Mom had installed a gym into what had been her office. “I’m doing it after this.”
“This is my special recipe maple bacon,” Mom said, offering the plate to Elisha, making me feel bad because, despite being Elisha, my manners should have been better than that.
“Thank you,” Elisha said, taking a single slice.
As did Mom. I watched Mom spread some avocado onto her toast and place the bacon on top before cutting it into quarters. Like she was preparing food for a toddler.
“Are you interested in the Black Friday sales?” Mom asked Elisha. “Covington always has some very good deals.”
“It’ll be madness down there,” I said, “and worse in River Valley.” Mom had the toast up to her lips.
Elisha gave a small shrug. “Are you going?”
“Of course! I could show you around the shops,” Mom said, putting the toast down on her plate, “that’s if you’d like.”
“Sure.” Elisha smiled sweetly as she lightly blew on her cup of hot tea.
I was waiting with anticipation to see whether Mom would pick up her toast again. “Great! We could grab a picnic later and go to Victoria Lake for lunch,” she said, now looking at me. “That’d be a nice gentle walk for you without your crutches, and Elisha can get to see the sights.”
Mom popped the square of toast into her mouth. I almost wanted to cheer, but I was too stunned on hearing Mom’s plan for the day included shopping with Elisha. It was one thing for Mom to accomodate Elisha for the weekend, quite another to entertain her and take her sightseeing and for me to be part of it. Especially after I’d tried to tell Mom about Elisha’s true colors, which were every synonym of rude, standoffish and hostile. But it seemed she chose not to listen. Yep, Mom hadn’t witnessed the Ice Queen in action, having been sucked in by Elisha’s quiet and pleasant demeanor—and I could only hope it wouldn’t be at her peril.
