Page 15 of The Most Dearest
“And it’d be well deserved. A dose of rickets wouldn’t hurt either. He doesn’t get much sun,” I replied. This revenge journey was like a pleasure cruise. Cordelia was my gorgeous cruise partner, Miranda was cruise director, and Harrison provided unparalleled entertainment. It’s just a pity there was no kids club we could enroll Emma in to keep her out of our hair. Kids that young really needed proper adult supervision.
Chapter 16: Cordelia – Award winners
The whirligig of time brings in his revenges.
Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare
I’d been seeing Damon all week, and I had to admit, he was pretty good company. He was a good listener and had a hilarious “dad joke” sense of humor. Harrison had always made me laugh with his casual dry comments, but Damon had me laughing so hard my stomach hurt. After our dinner dates this week, I’d headed off to his place on Saturday to hang out with his friends. They were really nice, and eager to offer more tips to piss Harrison off. Samuel, a cop friend of Damon's, asked if Harrison was doing anything illegal that he could bust him for. I’d laughed heartily at that. Harrison sat up straight and adjusted his seatbelt when police drove past his car. There was no way he’d do anything illegal. Samuel seemed almost disappointed about that.
That night, I’d stayed at Damon's in his spare room. We'd planned that ahead of time, but I didn't pack anything. It was more realistic for Harrison to think it "just happened" when I came home the following morning wearing last night's outfit. And it worked like a charm. He and Alvin were sitting on the front step drinking coffee when I wandered across Damon's lawn, shoes in hand, to enter our house. No one said a word, but Harrison gave me a disapproving look, like I was a teen girl who'd missed curfew, and he was the concerned father witnessing my walk of shame. I made sure to walk gingerly with my feet slightly apart, like I'd taken dick all night. As usual, Alvin was mute, keeping her eyes focused on the letterbox. I almostfelt sorry for poor Alvin. If she really was a naïve teen, Harrison was the last man she should be with. He'd chew her up and spit her out when something shinier came along.
I enjoyed a relaxing Sunday morning and had just finished lunch when Miranda and Jules arrived in their gardening gear. Damon had already arrived, looking handsome and muscular in old jeans and a fitted pale blue t-shirt. We had hauled the plants from Jules’s car to the lawn when Harrison wandered outside.
“Stop making improvements Cordelia. If you think by ‘adding value’ to the house you're gonna get a cent out of me, you’re wrong. Save your efforts.”
“The most value we could bring to this house would be if we could get you out of it,” Juliet said simply. It was the first time she'd interacted with Harrison since we were together. His shocked face was highly gratifying. Juliet was the quiet serious one. She didn't tell people off and she rarely voiced her objections.
“Juliet,” Harrison acknowledged. “I am sorry for any hurt I have caused you.”
“Pfft,” she responded, turning her back on him. “Okay, Damon, if you shovel the soil, Cordy and I will look after the daisy bushes. Miranda, have you got the fertilizer?”
"Yes boss," Miranda quipped, pulling on her gardening gloves. “Is Dad still bringing around the woodchipper, Jules?” She directed her question to Juliet, but her eyes and serious face were firmly on Harrison.
Harrison looked around at the scene in front of him. We were too busy to deal with his shit. “Well, just remember what I said. I’m not paying for landscaping.” At that, he took his pompous ass inside. Precious Alvin was taking her usual afternoon nap. She was a toddler after all. He needed to give her some juice anda cookie before he laid her down. No doubt he was going to join her for some afternoon delight. Classy given we were just outside the guest bedroom window.
Miranda plonked the bag of fertilizer in front of Juliet, then wandered off to Juliet's car again. “I got a great deal on some extra plants,” she said. I frowned. I’d planned this garden to the most minute detail. I didn’t recognize these plants.
“What is this?” I waved my hand to indicate the wide box of young plants. “Catnip,” she answered in a low voice. “I thought it would be perfect under Embarisson's window. A whole row of it.”
Juliet shook her head. “Remind me never to piss you off, Randa.” I agreed to the new gardening plan and Damon took charge of the heavy work. A few hours later, the yard was looking amazing. It was everything I’d planned, apart from the catnip of course.
Juliet had to rush home for a shift, and Miranda said she and Cam were heading off to a movie, leaving me to enjoy some iced tea with Damon in the front yard. Before Juliet left, she asked if I was able to catsit Marta, her sister-in-law’s calico darling. Of course I agreed. I needed a cat here. They're so “full of germs.” We’d been asked to mind Marta previously, but Harrison had refused.
Damon and I toasted to a successful afternoon and chatted about his plans to take on a similar project in his backyard. I loved gardening, so I offered to help in any way I could.
“What’s on the agenda tonight?” he asked.
“Dunno. I’m feeling too lazy to cook. Maybe some Uber and a movie?”
“I can stay. I mean, I can stay tonight. You stayed at mine last night; it makes sense that I would be here tonight.”
I cleared my throat and stared into my iced tea. Staying at his house in the guest room was one thing, him in my room all night was another. Miranda had been flippant when she suggested that, and at the time, I’d been invested in the strategy. Now it seemed like it might just be a prelude to awkwardness. But he was right. I wanted to sell this. Harrison was becoming increasingly frustrated and uncomfortable by the day. Surely he’d give in soon, and Damon might just be the catalyst for his surrender.
“Sure, that’d be great. We’ll just order in and chill out until bed,” I agreed.
“Okay. Well, I’m going to shower this sweat away and walk Nettie. I’ll be back in a few hours?” he suggested.
“See you then.” I waved him off and walked to my bathroom for my own shower. As I passed the living room, I saw Emma and Harrison entangled on the sofa. We must have been too loud for them to nap in their own room. The sight was disturbing and jarring. I knew he was no longer my boyfriend, and each day my feelings for him were fading, but we'd been together for so long that seeing him with someone else gave me an involuntary shudder. Alvin was a bitch for being with a taken man, but other than that, she didn’t seem so bad. I knew I was mean to call her Alvin, even if it was only Miranda who said it to her face. She was an attractive young woman, far too good for Harrison. I didn’t consider her my enemy. If anything, she was a useful tool in my life, stopping me from progressing any further in a relationship with a cheating asshole. She’d get over her eventual heartbreak when Harrison left her. She was young. He’d be a life lesson for both of us.
After my shower, I came out to claim squatter’s rights in the living room, pleased to see the empty sofa. I heard dear old bossy Peggy from next door in the hallway.
“The next meeting is Thursday at 7 pm sharp. We hope to see you there. The cats are becoming a major problem, and Margaret Thompson is tired of finding their droppings in her ... Oh, hello dear,” she said, smiling at me.
Suddenly aware of the bright colors on the wall beside her, Peggy turned, taking in Miranda’s latest masterpiece. Her look of disgust grew more pronounced as she absorbed the undead erotica. I saw the moment she noticed “Harrison” in the artwork. Her eyes widened and she clutched her throat. I often used “pearl clutchers” to describe easily shocked people, but Peggy was the OG pearl clutcher.
“This is … interesting. I hope you’re not planning any external … art.” I didn’t answer. Let her stew on that.
Emma emerged from the kitchen, breaking the elderly lady’s focus onThe Erotic Dreams of Sir Mini Mitts. It really was a beautiful piece. It would be a shame to paint over it when Harrison left. Peggy appeared confused. "Another sister? Goodness, how many of you are there?" she asked.
