by Kat T. Masen
She appears offended. It’s not that I don’t trust Mom, it just seems like the more I talk about it, the more of a big deal everyone makes it out to be.
“Sorry, Mom,” I quickly say. “It’s complicated and I’m not sure what to say.”
Pursing her lips together, she remains quiet, not pushing me further. “I ran into Tom last week. He asked how you were.”
My ears perk up immediately. “And Benny?”
“Not sure, kid. Haven’t seen him around much. One of the ladies at the hairdresser’s said he was moving up north somewhere.”
“The ladies at your hairdresser also thought I had knocked up his girlfriend.”
She laughs and rests her hand on my arm. “I’m sure they both miss you. The three of you were inseparable.”
I don’t want to discuss them anymore either. They have moved on and so have I. I have a new life out here and new friends. What happened between us is a thing of the past. It’s time to forget about them and go on with life out here.
I excuse myself when Ava asks to play Barbies and hands me a boy Barbie, ducking to my room to give Morgan a call. “Hey, I’ve only got five minutes because I’ve got lawyers coming in. Some moron took pictures of Scarlett in an exclusive spa and wants to sell them to the press,” she answers all in one breath.
“Uh-oh. If it’s any consolation, she’s got a great body. If you’ve got it, flaunt it.”
She keeps quiet over the speaker, and perhaps my words weren’t the right choice. I don’t know how to save myself from here.
“So, this weekend, Lex and Charlie are having a barbecue. Are you free? I’d really love for you to meet them.”
“My dad is driving in for the weekend,” she says.
“That’s okay. I’m sure Charlie won’t mind.”
She remains quiet, then responds in a worried tone, “Uh… okay. So, I guess you’ll meet my dad.”
“Okay, and so for my next piece of news… my mom’s here,” I say slowly.
“Okay.” She follows with, “Is that good or bad?”
“Good, I guess, because I miss her. Bad, maybe, because she, uh—”
“She’ll whip out a baby photo of you in the nude wearing a handbag?”
I laugh. “Ironically, I do have a photo like that. I’ve never brought a girl home…”
More silence. I hate silence.
“Are you saying you’ve never been in a relationship?” she asks, somewhat shocked at my admission.
“Yes,” I admit, not ashamed of my playboy nature.
“Wow,” she exclaims over the receiver. “After all these years, how do you get out of staying with a woman?”
“Easy,” I answer. “I just wasn’t interested. I didn’t exactly mingle with women wanting a relationship.”
There’s noise in the background. Morgan apologizes, saying goodbye and hanging up the call. A few minutes later, I get a text.
Morgan: Don’t for one minute think you’re getting out of that conversation.
It was bound to come up, and if life has taught me anything so far, I need to start being honest with everyone and myself. Sure, I have a past. Don’t we all? But I’ve left it all behind. My baggage didn’t carry itself here to Los Angeles, and I’m certainly glad that Morgan is equally baggage free.
***
The food smells delicious, and true to Charlie’s word, Lex is great at the barbecue. There are many guests who Charlie introduces me to, from her neighbors across the street to Lex’s parents and sister. I politely say hello, making small talk like the well-mannered son my mom raised me to be.
And of course Kate, who has conveniently positioned herself next to the table with the punch under a big sun hat.
“Are you wearing that to shield the Earth from all the galactic forces?” I mock her.
“I’ll have you know that skin cancer is a deadly disease.”
“It is…” I agree. “You turn into a lobster, don’t you?”
“A British lobster at that, but hey, I got the magic juice.” She holds up a solo cup, cheering herself on.
I leave her alone to get drunk and sunburned and see Morgan enter the yard with her dad by her side. He's the spitting image of Scarlett—same eyes and even the eyebrows are shaped the same. Given that he’s from Little Rock, I expected some hick-town old man and am surprised he looks young and fit for his age.
She waves at me and I walk toward her, unsure of whether or not I should kiss her. So, I lean in and kiss her cheek as she pulls back and introduces me, “Noah, this is my dad, Max.”
I shake his hand as a sign of respect, and then offer him a beer. Lex and Charlie have joined us, introducing themselves. Charlie seems to take to Morgan, pulling her aside and introducing her to the girls. This is all new to me. I don’t know why I feel incredibly uncomfortable. It’s like all my worlds colliding in one backyard.
“I’m Ava, Uncle Noah’s favorite,” Ava says confidently.
Morgan leans across to me. “The sleepwalker and toothbrush bandit?”
I ruffle Ava’s hair. “Yep. She also enjoys using my cell and buying apps because Uncle Noah has never had to lock his account before.”
Ava has a way with her words, talking endlessly about anything and everything. Morgan has the patience of a saint, weighing in heavily on which Wiggle she likes best. I don’t even know what the hell a Wiggle is.
Lex’s niece asks Ava to come play, the both of them running off to join the other kids playing chase on the big green lawn.
We sit down at one of the picnic tables when Kate and Mom walk outside with bowls of chips and some salad. I turn my head as Kate sees us at the table, her usual mischievous grin playing on her lips. She leans over to whisper into Mom’s ear before they both turn around and walk our way.
Here we go.
This is it.
Why the fuck are you sweating bullets?
I turn around, pretending not to notice, when Kate purposely wraps her arms around me, giving me a big hug. “Hey, mama’s boy.”
I pull her arms off me. “You know my mom is standing right here?”
“Yes.” She grins. “She gave me the go-ahead to call you that. In fact, she insisted.”
In the space of a day, Mom and Kate seem inseparable. I don’t understand why. Kate is great, but I made it clear that nothing would happen between us. At least, nothing else would happen between us.
Mom clears her throat, raising her eyebrows at me. I shake my head, forgetting that Morgan and her dad are standing beside me.
“Morgan, Max, please meet my friend Kate, and of course, my mom,” I say, toning down the enthusiasm.
“Mom, Kate… this is Morgan, my uh... girlfriend.” I gulp.
Morgan’s eyes widen. I don’t know what compelled me to call her that.
Kate extends her hand, shaking Max’s first, then reaching out to Morgan. I notice that Morgan’s withdrawn, and appears quieter than usual. She has that same expression on her face from when I first had that meeting in her office.
“I’m so happy to finally meet you. Noah’s told me so much about you,” Kate mentions happily.
“Interesting,” she says, monotone. “He never talks about you.”
There’s an awkward silence. Of course, I don’t talk about her. What’s there to say? We’re friends, that’s it. I don’t understand Morgan’s abrupt change of attitude. Beside me, Mom has struck up a conversation with Max, leaving the three of us alone as they walk toward where Lex is cooking.
Kate looks at me, raising her eyebrows. “It really is nice to meet you. I’m going to grab a drink. The good stuff is inside. Aunty Kate needs some grownup drink to get through the game of hide and seek that’s just about to start.”
She offers for Morgan to join her, but she refuses. Coming off rude and snobbish. With her dad walking back toward us, it allows me to excuse myself for a moment to head to the house. Both Mom and Charlie are in the kitchen, preparing some snacks for the kids.
“Mom,” I call. �
��I need your help.”
“What have you done now?” she’s quick to question.
“Nothing... at least, I don’t know. Morgan’s acting weird all of a sudden and I want to ask her why but she’s with her dad. Can you distract him again, so I can pull her aside?”
“I noticed she seems introverted.”
“She’s normally not like that,” I say in her defense. “She just met Kate and then got all weird.”
Charlie and Mom look at each other, both of them with smiles on their faces like I’m missing out on their private joke.
“Noah,” Charlie says. “She’s probably jealous. I know you and Kate are really close, as in friends, but for those that don’t know that you guys look like a couple.”
“But we’re not.”
“I know that. Kate knows that. Women can be finicky. I can try to talk to her if you want?” Charlie suggests.
“No, I should probably try to fix this.” I sigh.
This, here, is why I don’t do relationships. Factoring in someone else’s emotions is draining. I walk outside and find them again. This time, Mom comes to my rescue, following with a plate of snacks, offering them to Morgan and her dad. Max continues to make more small talk with Mom, some joke about cheese which gives me a moment to pull Morgan aside.
“Thank you for coming today and meeting my family and friends.” I wrap my hand around her waist, pulling her close to me. I want her now.
“Your family is really nice, Noah.”
“And my friends?” I laugh.
“I’ve only met Kate, she seems nice.” And there’s that odd tone again.
“She is nice. But she’s only a friend, Morgan, nothing more.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
“Yes.” She sighs, leaning into me.
I kiss the top of her hair. “You’re cute when you’re jealous.”
“Argh. Is that what that is?”
I laugh, again. “Apparently so. Anyway, I’d like you to spend some time with Kate. She’s really awesome.”
“Okay.” She smiles.
The party continues on and much to our surprise, Mom and Max get into a heated conversation about politics which strikes me as odd since Mom never talks about anything political.
With Morgan chatting to Lex’s sister, I chase the girls around, making growling sounds as their screams echo around us. Between the running around and multiple times in the bouncy castle, I am beat.
“Uncle Noah,” Ava calls, again. “One more time in the bouncy castle.”
I groan, setting down my drink and following Ava into the castle. We play this game where I pretty much throw her against the inflatable wall and she giggles, asking me to do it again. On my fourth attempt, her cousin Andy stares back at me with a pale face.
“Are you okay, bud?”
He shakes his head, then tilts forward, projectile vomiting all over my shirt. My throat closes in, my stomach contracting as I attempt to control the dry heaving. The kids scream, frantically jumping out of the castle as Andy cries. I’m barely able to contain my own need to projectile vomit, but extend my hand out to him just as his dad comes in.
“It’s okay.” His dad, Julian, soothes him. Picking him up into his arms, not caring at all that he’s now gotten vomit all over his shirt.
“Sorry, man,” Julian apologizes. “His mom warned him not to have too much Jell-O and, well... this is what happens when you have too much Jell-O.”
It explains the array of colors splashed all over my white polo shirt. I tell him it’s fine, and follow them out as Charlie enters with a bucket load of sanitary cleaning products.
“Do you need help?” I ask, still reeling from the godawful stench.
“No, it’s okay. You clean yourself up. But thanks for offering. I think Lex ran off and vomited in the bush.”
Morgan looks back at me with a sympathetic expression while I walk toward the house cringing. I don’t know what to do with my shirt, wanting to throw it in the thrash but remembering the hefty price tag on it. I leave it in the bathroom sink, and hop into the shower, quickly scrubbing myself clean. When I hop out, I dry myself and change into my jeans before heading into the room. There’s a knock on my door, and Morgan enters, closing the door behind her quietly.
She can’t peel her eyes away from my torso, her lips clenching as she stands in utter silence.
“Geez, I have a face you know,” I tease.
She shakes her head, breaking her gaze. “Cocky bastard.”
I move closer to her, wrapping my arms around her waist. “Cocky, yes.”
I grab her hand and place it on the bulge of my jeans. She squeezes for just a moment, then tries to pull away. “Noah, there’s kids here.”
“Downstairs. Outside. Not in this room. It’s just you and me.”
I kiss the side of her neck, desperate to taste her. Running my nose along her collarbone, the smell of her skin draws me in. I need to fuck her so bad.
“Let’s go to your place tonight. Fuck your roommate.” I bury my head in her hair, desperately hoping she’ll agree.
“I have this thing, tonight. For Scarlett.”
“C’mon. Scarlett will understand. Just say you need the night off. After all... you are my girlfriend.”
That word is foreign and sounds odd every time I say it. This is why I hate labels.
“About that…” she begins, then stalls. “That was out of the blue. You could have warned me. My dad was right there.”
I let go of her, annoyed and walk to the dresser where I grab another shirt and place it on.
“C’mon, Noah, we haven’t even talked about any of this.”
“Is that my fault? I’m forever trying to reach out to you, yet you pull away. Isn’t that what I should be doing? I’m the guy here. I should be the one constantly unavailable,” I yell out of frustration.
“That’s sexist and unfair, Noah. I get it, you’ve been with several women. That’s all you do, fuck around. Possibly with Kate too, right?”
“Don’t even start…”
“This is too complicated,” she mumbles to herself. “I just really needed you. I can’t explain it.”
I can’t help but release a sinister laugh. “Yep, that’s what they all say.”
Her face contorts to a shocked yet angry stare. “Excuse me? I’m not like your other girls, Noah.”
“No,” I say, looking her directly in the eye. “That’s the problem here. You’re not at all like them.”
Standing apart, silence falls over the room.
“I can’t do this anymore. This fighting—”
I interrupt her. “And the running away?”
“I’m not running away.”
“So why can’t you cancel tonight? Or even invite me? God,” I tell her, embittered. “Are you embarrassed to be in a relationship with me?” It kills me to say it. But I can’t deal with her fucking secrecy anymore.
“Of course n-not,” she stutters. “Tonight is just…”
I grab my cell that’s sitting on top of the dresser. “I’ll call Scarlett.”
“Why?” she asks, panicked.
I scroll through my contacts and dial her number. When Scarlett answers, I place her on speaker. “Hi Scarlett,” I say in a much sweeter tone. “I had a meeting with Morgan and she mentioned she had something to attend tonight with you.”
“Hi, Noah,” she responds cheerfully. “Yes. There’s a red carpet party on Sunset. You should come. And bring some friends.”
I stare at Morgan, satisfied. She turns her head away, looking toward the window as she folds her arms.
“You know what, I’ll take you up on that. We ran out of time and I was hoping to catch her there.”
“Sounds great. I’ll have her to text you all the details. I’m really looking forward to seeing you, Noah.”
I say goodbye and hang up the phone. “So I guess you better forward me those details,” I remind her, sarcastically.
“You’re a
fucking stubborn ass, you know that?” she huffs.
“It’s like looking in the mirror, isn’t it?”
“Fuck you,” she mouths, before storming off and slamming the door behind her.
Chapter Twenty
I should have known better than to invite Charlie and Kate to the red-carpet event. Lex warned me it would create this bizarre frenzy within them. I laughed it off, being the naive dickhead who underestimated the power of a woman possessed by Hollywood.
With Mom in town and willing to babysit the girls, Charlie jumped at the chance to go out for the night. Both Charlie and Kate went into “wardrobe meltdown” as they called it, spending a good hour in Charlie’s closet trying to figure out what to wear.
Morgan left with her dad, apologizing to everyone that she had to be at an event. Max was kind enough to say goodbye. Morgan chose to ignore me, without a goodbye, taking her stubborn and childish ass along with her.
We arrive at the party in separate cars, Charlie taking it upon herself to invite Haden and Presley. I don’t mind so much, it just put Kate and me in an awkward position being surrounded by married couples.
The room’s large, a big event space that’s decked out like a nightclub. Dimly lit with a stream of neon lights. The bar area takes the whole back wall, each barstool occupied with guests. The music is playing loudly in the background, making it difficult to hear each other.
“I think I just saw Zac Efron,” Kate squeals into my ear, squeezing my arm tight.
I roll my eyes then lean in. “Isn’t he young enough to be your son?”
She slaps my chest instantly, knocking me back slightly. “You had no problem with my age prior to our beach incident.”
“That’s before I knew you were a grandma,” I joke lightly.
Kate’s only a couple of years older than me but has a youthful glow easily mistaking her for being younger.
“By the way…” I add, “… you look hot tonight.”
She’s wearing one of Charlie’s dresses, a sheer black dress that sits short with tall black pumps, making the top of her head sit just below my eyes.
“Why thank you.” She grins happily. “You scrub up pretty good yourself. Nine out of ten.”