Page 53 of The Heiress
“Elisha,” Dad said with calmness, unperturbed by my outburst, “sweetheart, you’re what’s most important in our lives, you know that.”
A lump formed in my throat, rendering me speechless, not doubting Dad’s words at all. My whole life I’d been his precious princess, the apple of his eye, Mom and Dad’s sunshine. And that would never change.
“Your Mom and I just want to know you’re safe and happy,” Dad said. “When we get back, we’ll come and talk this through.”
“I am.”
“Excuse me?” Dad asked.
“I am happy,” I said, suddenly wanting Dad to know about all thenormalthings I’d been doing. “I went shopping at the Black Friday sales, I went for a picnic lunch at the lake in Covington, I’ve been to a cafe that does delicious lattes and apple donuts.” I paused, stopping myself from blabbing about Phoenix giving me his hoodie and running in the rain to the car. “Um, and I even played a bit of tennis.”
“I’m so proud of you, sweetheart. That’s exactly what Mom wants to hear about.”
“I miss her,” I said, eyes welling, “I miss you too.”
“It won’t be long, sweetheart, I promise,” Dad said. “It’s just after midnight here, so I’ll say goodnight for now. But keep your phone on!”
I laughed at his growling, but with the end of the call, emotion overwhelmed me. I didn’t want to be alone and without thinking, I skipped down the stairs, coming to an abrupt halt at the doorway to the kitchen. Laura and Phoenix were in an embrace, and though I knew I was witnessing something private, I stood mesmerized, unable to turn away.
“I forgive you Mom,” Phoenix had said, “but you have to forgive yourself first.” He’d picked up her slender hands, saying, “You can’t do this to yourself.” And in a voice that verged on desperation, he asked for her promise.
Laura’s brittle declaration of love sent my heart into a spin, and I was no longer sure who my tears were for—my parents so far away, or the tender moment between a mother and son who had faced trauma and tried to deal with it in their own separate ways.
And I don’t know why, but I wanted in. I wanted to share in the moment, these two people who had welcomed me into their home, shared their weekend with me, opened their hearts to me.
“Sorry to interrupt, but is there room for one more?”
I was pulled in without hesitation, my hammering heart immediately calmed when Phoenix’s arm encircled me. I squeezed him back, feeling every emotion with him. Pretty soon our tears had morphed into laughter, and it was Laura who stepped away to blow her nose. Phoenix’s arm still rested across my back and I did nothing to disturb the contact.
“Is everything all right with your parents?” Laura asked, passing a box of tissues to us.
I nodded, not wanting the attention on myself. From what I’d heard, this was a moment for Phoenix and Laura to savor. “Yes, absolutely, everything’s fine.”
But Phoenix wasn’t willing to accept that. “Really? You sorted things with them?” His voice was inflected with a softness that showed he cared, he genuinely cared.
“For now,” I said, not wanting to dwell on Dad’s disclosure that there was something he was hiding. Was it an economic downturn, investor dissatisfaction, a dwindling empire? To want me out of the picture, it had to be serious. That wasn’t anything I’d considered—that Mom and Dad were already facing momental stress, and my bratty, stubborn ways were not helping them. My perspective changed in a heartbeat, throbbing with remorse, because what I was dealing with was so minor, so petty in comparison to what Mom and Dad and Laura and Phoenix were going through. “How about you?” I whispered, dabbing at my eyes.
“Yeah, I think we’re good,” Phoenix whispered, and I squeezed his arm.
Laura suggested we go out for dinner, and we arranged to meet Taylor and her dad back at the Country Club. Taylor had been instrumental in leading the club’s team to victory against St. Helen’s, and the mood was vibrant. Taylor was on a high from winning all her matches, and Phoenix looked so happy when his Mom ordered the rosemary crusted rack of lamb.
A trio of musicians were playing and the dance floor was soon crowded. It was old rock and roll music, so we encouraged Laura and Mr. Frank to dance, while they tried to get us kids to join them.
“My feet are sore,” Taylor said.
Phoenix merely shook his head, but I imagined he might be tired too. He’d played tennis with Taylor this morning, did his workout, and hit balls with me. It was a lot of physical exertion for someone recovering from a broken pelvis.
Dancing was something I loved, but needless to say I didn’t want to be the third wheel with Laura and Mr. Frank again. Neither Taylor nor Phoenix said anything, our eyes peeled on them jiving on the dance floor.
“Hey!” Like a mini tornado, Bianca stormed up to our table, Addison in tow. Bianca sat on Laura’s vacated seat, her brow furrowed in blatant curiosity at my presence, sending my heart to nervously miss a beat, but she looked over to Taylor and asked, “When’s Max coming back?”
“Tomorrow.” Taylor wasn’t one for speaking more words than was necessary.
“It’s a shame he wasn’t here to see the tennis,” Bianca said, turning to me. “Hi. I thought I saw you watching earlier.”
I nodded, but there was a supercilious smirk on her face as she shot a look at Addison who was standing beside her chair.
“So, is it true you told everyone you were staying at Bianca’s for Thanksgiving?” Addison asked in a distinctly plummy voice.
