The Cursed Series, Parts 3 & 4: Now We Know/What They Knew

by Rebecca Donovan

  Maggie’s green eyes are electric, like a spark has lit her up from within.

  She’s always been a flirt. I’ve accepted that it’s part of her personality. It’s not who she is but how she’s made. I’ve even seen her flirt with Niall, and that’s … disturbing. But she doesn’t mean anything by it. We’ve been friends long enough for me to know that. At this point, I’m convinced I know her as well as my sisters, maybe even better. And this … feels dangerous.

  “Isaac wants chocolate chip waffles,” Parker announces, a sleepy Isaac trailing behind him.

  I nearly drop the bowl that’s in my arms, alarmed by the boys’ entrance. I have no idea what’s got me so on edge this morning. “I’ll have to see if we have any chocolate chips.”

  “I’ll look,” Maggie offers cheerily, disappearing into the pantry.

  “Would you like some waffles too?” Parker asks Damon, who’s sliding the ring onto his finger.

  “I think Uncle Damon needs to go to bed,” he tells Parker.

  “But we’re already awake,” Parker argues, not understanding.

  “Some of us for way too long,” he tells the boy, ruffling his dark hair. “See you later, Peach,” he says as he passes me, trailing a hand along my arm.

  I shiver and instinctively pull away.

  Footsteps descend the stairs. I turn in time to find Julia Thorne watching her husband teeter across the lawn toward the pool house. She sets a hand on her protruding stomach protectively, her eyes not leaving him until he’s found his way inside.

  “Good morning,” she says with a warm smile.

  I avert my eyes, pouring batter over the hot waffle iron, feeling like I’m the one betraying her. “Good morning. I’m making waffles. Would you care for some?”

  “If it’s not too much trouble,” she replies. “I can make scrambled eggs and bacon to go with them if you’d like.”

  “That sounds great.”

  “Found some!” Maggie declares, holding up the bag of chocolate chips in triumph.

  The boys cheer from the table.

  “You’re their hero,” I tell her when she sets the bag on the counter next to me.

  “But am I your hero?” she asks, planting a kiss on my cheek. She smells of alcohol and something spicy, like faded guy’s cologne.

  When she notices Julia cracking eggs into a bowl, she says, “Let me do that. I need to earn my keep.”

  “Are you sure?” Julia questions uncertainly. “I don’t mind.” She makes an odd expression, her nose twitching. “What is that …” She leans toward Maggie, her eyes widening. “Oh, Faye, I think something’s burning.”

  “Oh, crud,” I exclaim, realizing too late that the iron is smoking. “I set it too high.” I remove the charred waffles with the tongs and step on the lever of the trash can to toss them away.

  “Don’t burn our waffles!” Parker cries out passionately.

  “It’s okay, buddy,” I tell him. “I got you covered.”

  Julia has slipped away, leaving Maggie beating eggs beside me.

  “What happened to you last night? I thought you were meeting us at the party you said we couldn’t miss.” I adjust the temperature before pouring more batter onto the heated waffle iron and sprinkling it with chocolate chips.

  “You know how it goes on the island. Think you’re doing one thing and end up doing something else. I got swept away and lost track of time.”

  “Who swept you away?” I ask, flashing her a knowing expression.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know,” she answers with an innocent shrug of her shoulder and waggle of her brows.

  I laugh, and take the boys their chocolate chip waffles.

  “Where are you coming from right now?” I ask Maggie upon returning to the waffle iron to pour the next batch. “It doesn’t look like you’ve been home yet.”

  “I haven’t. I slept at the cottage.”

  My jaw tenses involuntarily. I try to hide it as I press the iron’s handle down.

  She bumps me with her hip, laughing. “Don’t even get that weird look. You know I would never. He’s one hundred percent devoted to you.” She leans in and whispers, “Believe me, I’ve tried.” Then she pinches my butt when I blanche and proceeds to laugh hysterically. “You really do need to loosen up, Faye. You’ll give yourself a heart attack before you’re twenty.”

  I force a smile, trying to laugh it off. She’s one of my closest friends. There’s no way she’d do that to me. And Kaden would never … but then I hear Damon’s voice, speaking of how it’s a guy’s nature to wander, and my stomach churns.

  “What smells so good?” Olivia sings, entering the kitchen with her usual grace, not deterred by the ever-growing baby inside of her. Her skin glows, and her blue eyes twinkle.

  “Mom! We’re eating chocolate for breakfast,” Parker declares like he’s getting away with something.

  “Did you thank Faye for making you such a special breakfast?” she asks, kissing Parker on his chocolate-smudged cheek, followed by a kiss on top of Isaac’s head.

  “Hey, I helped!” Maggie fake pouts. “I set you little dudes up with the chocolate chips, remember?”

  “Thank you, Maggie. Thank you, Faye,” the boys chorus with their mouths full of waffle.

  “What has Saint Faye done this time?” Cassandra asks, appearing from the far end of the house where she and her fiancé are staying.

  I swallow the sour taste in my mouth, just thinking about the fact that someone wants to spend the rest of their life with her. I can hardly tolerate her for a weekend.

  If anyone’s a saint, it’s Nick. The more I get to know him and see how horribly she treats him, the worse I feel for him.

  Like Kaden said when we found out about the engagement, “What the hell was he thinking?”

  “That’s sweet of you to cook,” Olivia says to Maggie, who beams back in return.

  “Here to help.”

  When Olivia returns to the table with a glass of orange juice, Maggie leans in and mutters so she’s not overheard, “Least I can do after swiping that bottle of vodka Friday night.” She winks at me.

  I shake my head and chuckle.

  “Speaking of helping,” Cassandra chimes in, “I want Niall to speak with Nick about his firm before we leave.”

  “Nick’s still in law school—oh, good morning, Nick.” Olivia quickly corrects her annoyed tone with that of her signature pleasant one.

  Nick stops short, recognizing that he’s walked in on a family squabble, as has happened a lot this weekend between the two sisters. And Nick has a way of fading into the background when it does.

  “Good morning,” he answers. Having just showered, his chestnut-brown hair is wet and neatly parted to the side. “Uh, can I get anyone a coffee? I’m going into town.”

  Apparently, the smell of coffee makes Cassandra ill, so anyone who wants one is forced to drink it outside of the house. And he chose this? When everyone declines, he disappears out the front door—something that he’s become notorious for. I’ve barely seen him the entire weekend. I wish I could say the same for his fiancée.

  Maggie scrambles the eggs in the large skillet with a spatula. She lowers her voice and says, “I saw him last night.”

  I glance over at her. Her lips are pressed into a smile so wide it covers her face. She’s radiating.

  “Knew someone kept you away.” I giggle. “Why haven’t I met him yet?”

  Maggie dismisses me with a roll of her eyes, as she’s done each time I’ve asked this weekend. “Don’t want you stealing him from me again.” Using a pair of tongs, she flips the bacon, then laughs when she notices my blank expression. “I will forever tease you for that, and you will always look like I stole your lollipop when I do. Faye, stop. You know I’m so over it. I have so much more to occupy my mind. And my body. And my …”

  I shoot her a look, eyeing the kitchen table where Julia, Olivia and Cassandra are talking while the boys crash trucks into each other.

  She scoots so
she’s right next to me. “Did I tell you he has the most talented tongue? He does this thing—”

  I bump her with my hip, my face crimson. Maggie starts cackling.

  “Good morning,” a smooth voice says from beside me, arms wrapping around my waist. I start and laugh nervously when Kaden kisses me on the cheek. “What’s so funny?”

  “Good morning.” I shoot a quick glance toward Maggie. Words aren’t necessary.

  Kaden smiles in understanding. “Good morning, Maggie.”

  “Kaden,” Maggie acknowledges with a curt nod. Then she meets my eyes and waggles her tongue behind Kaden’s back, making me laugh.

  “You’re ridiculous,” I scold her.

  She winks at me, then scrapes the eggs into a bowl. “Get the bacon for me?” she asks Kaden, carrying the bowl to the dining room table at Olivia’s request.

  “We’re spending the entire day together, right?” he confirms, setting the strips of bacon onto folded paper towels to absorb the grease, then adds quickly, “With the boys.”

  I nod, my insides melting as he plants a quick kiss on my neck before taking the bacon to the table.

  Soon, the entire house is awake, Niall being the last to arrive after Nick has returned from his coffee escape. I’m stationed at the waffle iron until everyone’s fed. By then, Parker is done playing with his trucks and is antsy, wanting to go outside.

  “I’ll take him,” Niall tells me. “Thank you for the waffles. Now be sure you get something to eat.”

  “I can make you an omelet,” Kaden offers, resting a hand on my lower back. It feels like a warm stone, even through his sweatshirt, heating me to my core.

  “Thank you,” I say, smiling appreciatively.

  “We’ll clean up,” Olivia says, bringing empty plates from the dining room table. “Cassandra, will you bring over the boys’ plates?”

  “Uh, no,” Cassandra says, her nose scrunched in disgust. “I need to get ready to go out on the boat with JoJo and Karolena.”

  “I’ve got it,” Nick declares, leaning over to kiss Cassandra on the cheek, just as she abruptly turns away. His neck reddens.

  I lower my head to save him the embarrassment of an audience.

  “I’ve got to get going. Mom needs me at the store,” Maggie announces, setting her plate in the dishwasher. “See you guys later?”

  “We’ll expect you this afternoon for the picnic, Maggie. We’re setting up badminton and croquet,” Olivia calls out before disappearing down the hall toward the master bedroom.

  Maggie is not one for either game, but she smiles mischievously and murmurs out of the side of her mouth, “Only if I get to drink their wine.” She plants a loud kiss on my cheek as I laugh at her antics.

  We couldn’t be any more different, but I’ve been drawn to her since the second we met. Maybe it’s her brazenness that I admire. Maggie’s fierce and opinionated. While I’m reserved and polite.

  She hollers her goodbyes as she departs.

  Kaden carries my plate to the patio. I follow with a glass of orange juice, sitting next to him at the table under the wooden slats of the pergola. Niall is with the boys, out near the lawn’s edge, just before the steep slope transitions into sea grass and sand dunes. He’s pretending to be a monster, chasing after the boys, who laugh and run away. I smile at the image.

  “Do you find Maggie attractive?” I ask, my eyes still following Parker as he rolls on the ground, his father tickling him. When Kaden is quiet too long, I realize how the question sounded and redirect my focus to him. “Sorry, I mean … she’s bold and unapologetic. She seems so comfortable, being her, not caring what anyone thinks. I didn’t know if that was an attractive quality to most guys.”

  Kaden scoots his chair closer and lifts my legs onto his lap. Caressing my ankle with his thumb, he says, “Maggie is … a lot. And she’s fun to have around. But she’s nothing like you. And you’re the girl I’m in love with. So that’s not a question I can answer.”

  I smile, feeling foolish for asking Kaden’s opinion about my friend.

  “Did she really stay at the cottage?” I ask, knowing how late it was when I snuck back into the house. I can’t imagine what time she appeared at his door.

  “She’s crashed on the roof on and off throughout the summer. Says her mother will kill her if she shows up drunk and begs me to let her lie under the stars. Other times, I think she stows away on unoccupied sailboats down at the harbor.” Kaden shakes his head, laughing at the thought. “She’s definitely daring. I would never have the nerve to do that.”

  When Olivia steps outside, I quickly pull my legs off Kaden’s lap. My shyness just adds to the list of differences between me and Maggie.

  Maggie graduated this year and has plans to travel. She has a collection of maps for countries around the world, with routes already plotted out. She’s been accumulating travel guides and backpacking gear for years.

  I know exactly where I’m going when I graduate. Kaden and I have our entire lives planned out. Together. And that’s what’s going to get me through our time apart. To hell with Damon’s conjecture. Kaden and I are in this life together. My heart skips a beat, just thinking about it. What an amazing life it’ll be.

  After two days of building sand castles on the beach, bike rides across the island and laughing ’til my stomach ached, it was our last day together on the island, and I was holding on to it with both hands, afraid of letting go. But that’s the fault with fear—if you hold on too tightly, something is bound to crack.

  Niall takes Nick, Damon and Isaac out on the boat for one last sail while Olivia, Julia and I stay behind to prepare the food for the picnic. Kaden sets up the lawn games with “help” from Parker, who mostly points at where everything should go while eating his snacks.

  “I wanted to take advantage of the lawn one last time before they break ground for the pool next week,” Olivia says, lining up sliced watermelon on a white porcelain platter painted with green ivy along its edges.

  “You don’t want the pool?” Julia inquires, rinsing a colander filled with strawberries.

  I remain quiet on the far side of the kitchen island, creating a charcuterie board inspired by a picture I found in a magazine. It’s intricately involved with rolled meats and sprinklings of nuts to resemble an artistic culinary display. I’m dedicated to the task, wanting to impress Olivia. I don’t know why exactly, but her approval and acceptance mean more to me than anyone’s.

  “Oh, I do. It’ll be better for the kids when the ocean’s too rough. Closer and less messy too. But I love having the lawn. I know; I’m acting spoiled.” Olivia places the marinating steak in the refrigerator and removes the parchment package of fresh scallops to prepare ceviche.

  Julia laughs. “Don’t apologize. My father-in-law had an entire building torn down because it was obstructing his view of Lake Michigan. That is spoiled.”

  And forced his son to marry you, so he could acquire your father’s business, I say to myself, having spoken more to Damon over the weekend about the forces that brought him and Julia together despite his misgivings.

  “Where are you from?” I ask, having assumed she lived in New York like everyone else the family knows since that’s where the Harrisons originated.

  “Chicago,” she answers, focusing on slicing strawberries without glancing my way.

  “Damon as well?” I ask, trying to engage.

  But she’s not having it. I wonder if I’ve offended her in some way. Or maybe she’s seen Damon and me speaking on occasion and made reprehensible assumptions.

  “Yes.” Her answer is short.

  It’s evident he’s a topic she’d rather not discuss. It’s been obvious to everyone that the two of them have a peculiar, if not strained, relationship. They don’t try to falsify their lack of affections for each other. I don’t think I’ve seen them alone together since Julia arrived Friday morning. Damon still sleeps in the pool house while his wife stays in a guest room upstairs.

  Olivia has gone ou
t of her way to make Julia feel welcome, inviting her to do everything with her, including sitting on the patio to read. I cannot imagine being in a loveless marriage. And with a baby on the way.

  It’s terribly sad.

  “Faye,” Olivia gasps when I present her with the charcuterie board, “that’s stunning. I don’t think I’ll be able to eat it; it’s so lovely.”

  I glow with pride, soaking in her approval like I’m basking in the sun. “Thank you.” She opens the refrigerator for me, so I can slide it on the empty shelf reserved for the large slate. “Is there anything else you’d like me to do?”

  “There’s a stack of blankets on the patio. Would you mind asking Kaden to help spread them out? I was thinking we could connect them in one long line looking out toward the ocean. Wherever is the flattest area.”

  “Sure,” I reply.

  When I pass by Julia, she still refuses to look at me. I feel bad for her, but I’m not about to crumble their marriage by confirming what she instinctively knows to be true about his infidelities. And according to Damon, he does not flaunt but will never deny if she asks—which she never has.

  It’s horrid that he’s given up on a marriage without inserting any effort. I don’t pretend to condone his choices, no matter how he’s tried to explain the natural tendencies of the male species. It’s deplorable. And I’m thankful Kaden is absolutely nothing like Damon Thorne. They’re as dissimilar as Maggie and me.

  “Perfect timing,” Kaden calls to me when I step out into the heated summer air. Even the breeze off the water feels like a warm breath on my face. “Can you hold up these poles so I can secure the lines? Someone”—Kaden pointedly eyes Parker, who just sits on the grass giggling—“is too busy catching grasshoppers to do his job.”

  “Grasshoppers are my job,” Parker argues, still laughing as one tickles his cupped palms. “If I don’t catch them, they’ll hop away.”

  I smile at an answer only a four-year-old can give. “Then will you help me spread out the blankets after?” I ask Kaden, who gives me a quick kiss when I take hold of the pole for the badminton net.