by Nina Perez
“Uh, yes,” I replied, taking a big sip of my own wine to keep from saying any more. Loud shrieking from the twins distracted Cate from asking another question. She jumped at the noise and spilled her wine.
“Yeah, definitely won’t be me. Are you and Patrick…?” She left the question in the air and it took me a moment to figure out where she was going with it.
“Oh! No. We just started. I mean, we’re not—”
Cate let out a loud belly laugh. “I’m just teasing you. Relax. Though it is good practice for the inquisition I’m sure will be coming from my mother. I think when she was a little girl all she wanted to be when she grew up was a grandmother. Trust me, by the time you leave she’ll already have your wedding dress picked out and be trying to shove prenatal vitamins down your throat. Better you than me. So let me officially thank you for showing up to this family gathering and taking the pressure off yours truly.”
Somehow, I seriously doubted I needed to worry about that. Everyone seemed very cordial towards me, and I felt at ease except whenever Mrs. Murphy entered the room. She barely spoke to me and, when she did, it seemed she had trouble looking me in the eye. She’d thanked me for the muffins and sat the box next to several cooling pies before declining my offer for help in the kitchen.
I felt uncomfortable, but didn’t want to read too much into it. Instead, I concentrated on getting to know everyone else. Mr. Murphy appeared very interested in my work at Braxton and Lloyd and listened intently as I explained what I did. He reminded me of Patrick in that he took a genuine interest in what you had to say. I noticed he was like that with each of his kids as well. I was standing near the fireplace, speaking with Thomas’s wife Mary, when Mrs. Murphy announced dinner would be served in ten minutes.
A familiar voice behind me whispered, “We gotta stop meeting like this.”
I turned and there was Paul smiling back at me. Relief at seeing a familiar face draped over me. I might have even audibly sighed as I hugged him hello.
“Chloe, this is my mother Virginia.”
Paul’s mother was a thin woman with brown hair and she strongly resembled Paul. “Nice to meet you. Paul told me what a wonderful time he had with you and your family yesterday.”
“Oh, it was great to have him over. I’m glad you had fun,” I said, turning back to Paul.
“Chloe, come with me out to the car? I left the cake.”
“Sure.”
Paul and I exited out the front door and headed for a minivan parked at the curb.
“I did that on purpose, left the cake in the car. I just had to find out what you thought of the Murphys and I knew I needed to get you alone to do that.”
I laughed loudly and was even more grateful Paul was there. We walked around the far side of the van and leaned against it so anyone watching from the house couldn’t see us. Like two kids, we began to gossip.
“Well, to be honest, I’m having trouble keeping up with names. Maggie and her boys are kind of easy to remember because they all start with M.”
“Yeah, her husband’s name is Mitchell, but he probably won’t be here. Theresa told my mother that they were having problems. What do you think of everyone else?”
“Cate is a blast. She’s so funny. I really like her.”
“Yeah, she’s my favorite. After Patrick, of course.”
“Of course. Liam seems nice. We haven’t spoken that much though. I can’t get a read on the older brothers.”
“Hmmm, Tommy and Kellam. I never really had a chance to get to know them that well. They were already grown and out the house when we were growing up. Has anyone mentioned Charlotte yet?”
“Not really and it’s so weird. It’s like you would think someone would ask where she’s at or if she’s coming. Aside from Cate asking if I’d met her, it’s like she doesn’t exist.”
“Well, according to my mother, Theresa’s in denial. She really believes that Charlotte is just extremely busy with school. That’s how she is, though. She likes to put a nice shine on shit, as my father used to say. For instance, this whole thing with Maggie and her husband—she insists that it’s no big deal, but everyone has seen him around town with another woman, a younger one at that.”
“You are too much!”
“I am a journalist, you know. It’s in my blood. Now come on, let’s get back in there before they miss us.”
As we made our way back inside, I asked myself why I hadn’t admitted to Paul the arctic chill I felt from Patrick’s mother. By the time we sat down to eat I’d decided that gossiping about the family was one thing, but admitting that Mrs. Murphy didn’t care for me was another entirely. I didn’t even want to admit the possibility to myself, and was holding out hope that it was all my over-active imagination.
Sitting between Patrick and Paul at dinner I didn’t have time to give it further thought. The meal was wonderful; lots of traditional Irish dishes I’d never heard of, like colcannon, oyster stuffing, and black pudding, plus the traditional Thanksgiving fare. My earlier impressions seemed to hold true; Cate was still the funniest and most easygoing, followed by Liam, who offered to give Patrick and me a ride home as he had plans to meet some friends in the city later that evening.
“It’s a shame Charlotte couldn’t make it.” Patrick’s mother said. “I suppose school is keeping her quite busy.”
I could feel Patrick tense next to me as he looked down the table at his parents; his mother was transfixed on her plate and Mr. Murphy had reached over to place a hand on her shoulder. Everyone else at the table seemed to be occupied with the food on their plates as well. No one was willing to point out the obvious: no matter how busy Charlotte might be with school, it was Thanksgiving break and she should have been there.
Once the subject was changed and the conversation could drown out what he was saying, Paul leaned over and whispered, “Denial flows at this table more than the gravy.”
He wasn’t kidding. Patrick seemed to have lost his appetite and I knew he was worrying about the news he had to break regarding Charlotte. I reached under the table and held his hand. He squeezed mine in return and smiled. It was a nice moment totally ruined by the strained look on Mrs. Murphy’s face as she noticed.
After dinner most everyone gathered in the family room to watch the home videos of Thomas’s most recent vacation with his wife and son. Paul’s mother had decided she was ready to call it an evening and asked Paul if he’d mind driving her home.
“Chloe, want to ride with me? It may give Patrick a chance to talk about that which remains unspoken, if you know what I mean.”
I excused myself to find Patrick to let him know I’d be leaving. Just as I was about to enter the kitchen, hearing my own name made me pause.
“So, you don’t like Chloe?” I heard Patrick ask. His voice sounded tense.
“It’s not that I don’t like her. I just don’t understand why you didn’t tell us she was… African American,” his mother said.
“Because I didn’t think it would matter. Does it?”
I knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but I couldn’t help it. They were talking about me, so I justified to myself that it somewhat acceptable.
“Of course it matters.” Her answer shocked not only me, but Patrick as well as I heard him gasp.
“Are you kidding me?”
“Don’t look at me like that. I’m being realistic. Stop looking at me like I’m some kind of… racist.”
“You said it, not me.”
“Patrick! What has gotten into you? Since when do you talk to me that way?”
“Since I come home with my girlfriend, who happens to be an amazing girl, and you feel the need to pull me in the kitchen and ask if I’d considered the consequences of such an inappropriate relationship. That is how you put it, isn’t it? Inappropriate relationship?”
“If you would just let me explain. I’m sure she’s a nice girl. It’s just I want the best for you and—“
“Chloe is the best.”
My he
art soared, but I wanted Patrick to let her finish.
“—and her being… may cause you both unnecessary trouble. I mean, I just don’t understand why you’d put yourself through that.”
“Because she’s worth it, and besides, times have changed. I don’t know if you heard, but there was this little thing called the civil rights movement.”
“Fine! I’m glad you’re having fun with this and making a joke out of my concerns.”
“That’s because they’re ridiculous. Does Dad share these concerns?”
“Oh, you know your father. He’s a romantic. He doesn’t realize that people will think—”
“What will people think? What? That I have a girlfriend who’s smart, sexy, funny, beautiful, and good to me? Yeah, I can see how that would worry you.”
“Okay, Mr. Wise Guy. What about your children? Have you thought about that?”
I suppressed a laugh, but Patrick was unable. “Mom! Are you serious? We just started dating.”
“You live with her, Patrick.”
“That came first, you know that. We didn’t expect for it to happen. You can’t help who you fall for.”
“You’re in love with her?”
I could hear Mrs. Murphy’s sharp intake of breath. It wouldn’t have been surprising to find she’d sucked all of the air out of the room.
“I don’t know. I could be. Do you need to sit down?”
“I just want you to be careful and to be sure. I love you, and life is hard enough without adding extra obstacles. I want you to be happy.”
“Chloe is not an obstacle.” I could hear Patrick take a deep breath. “If anything she has made it easier for me to deal with things. You have no idea.”
“Why don’t you tell me?”
“Well, for one thing I’m not the child you need to be worried about.”
“What does that mean?”
“We need to talk. All of us.”
I didn’t need to hear any more. I made my way back to the family room to inform Paul I’d be more than happy to take the ride with him. I had a feeling Patrick and his family wouldn’t even notice I’d gone.
The love story of Chloe and Patrick continues in book five, which will be available for Kindle download in time for Christmas.
How will Patrick’s family take the news about Charlotte? Will he get the role on Shining Moments? And will a tragedy bring Chloe and Patrick closer together or tear them apart? Find out when book five is available by December 23.
In the meantime, you can follow Nina Perez on Facebook, Twitter, and her websites to stay updated on the six-book Sharing Space series, The Twin Prophecies books, and more.
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Table of Contents
Chapter One:
Chapter Two:
Chapter Three:
Chapter Four:
Chapter Five:
Chapter Six:
Chapter Seven: