Priceless Ink: A Small Town Romance

by Lagomarsino, Giulia

  “How do you kill someone with Pine Sol?” Josh asked.

  “I didn’t know you were supposed to dilute it!”

  “Or clean it off surfaces,” Joe muttered with a grin.

  “It was one time!”

  “And that’s all it takes to kill someone.”

  “Who’s killing someone?” Anna asked as she walked into the room.

  Joe spoke up before I had the chance. “Sofia’s learning to clean, and she tried to kill me with Pine Sol.”

  “Is that all it takes?” she asked, cocking her head to the side.

  “I wasn’t trying to poison him,” I insisted. “The ice trays were dirty and I wanted to clean them out. So I poured some in the ice tray and left it to soak.”

  “Did you stick it in the freezer?”

  “No, but when I dumped it out, I didn’t exactly rinse it out before I filled it back up with water.”

  Anna waved her hand like it was no big deal. “That’s nothing. You added flavor.”

  “That wasn’t just flavor. I felt like I was drinking directly from the bottle,” Joe grumbled.

  “And I apologized.”

  “Be happy this was an accidental murder attempt,” Anna told Joe. “I think your brother is trying to kill me.”

  “He loves you,” Joe scoffed. “There’s no way he would want to kill you.”

  “Then tell me why he left his socks at the top of the stairs.”

  “Easy,” Josh nodded. “Because guys are slobs.”

  “Not Robert. He’s immaculately clean, yet he left his socks at the top of the wooden staircase? I slipped on them and fell down half the stairs! I could have broken my neck.”

  “I’m telling you, it was an accident. He’s crazy about you,” Joe insisted.

  “Or he’s tired of waiting for me, so he decided to get rid of me instead of breaking up with me.”

  “That’s a little far-fetched, isn’t it?” I asked.

  “Nope,” Carly said, walking past us. “I thought about killing Josh when he stopped to help me change my tire.”

  My eyes widened in surprise and Josh shot me a bored look. “She thought I was trying to kill her.”

  “All because you were offering to fix her tire?”

  “Well, to be fair, I was still running from my family at the time, and I couldn’t trust anyone.”

  “Yeah,” Josh snorted. “She thought I was coming to kill her because I was watching her at the gas station.”

  “You were staring,” Carly said accusingly.

  “And that means he wants to kill you?” I asked slowly.

  “In my world, that’s exactly what it means.”

  “So, what were you going to do if he was there to kill you?”

  “I always have a gun on me, and I would have used it.”

  My eyes widened in surprise. She was totally deadly, but also really awesome. I wanted to be her when I grew up. Well, aside from the killing people part. I just wanted that confidence that I could do it if necessary.

  Although…I leaned in closer to Joe and whispered, “She doesn’t still…”

  “Murder people?” Joe asked.

  “I was not going to say that,” I said slowly. “Should I be worried about being alone in the same room with her?”

  Joe laughed and pulled me in close to him. “You’re so cute.” I smiled at him. “It’s funny that you think she’s only a threat if you’re alone in the room with her.” My face dropped and he burst out laughing. “I’m kidding! She’s not a bad person, and she was running from her family, not trying to join in the killing.”

  The banter continued between the brothers, and eventually I ventured off on my own toward the other women. Will had shown up with Charlie and the only person missing, as far as I knew, was Andrew.

  “So, what are you going to do about the wedding now?” Anna asked Kat.

  “I don’t know. Do you think the universe is trying to tell us something?”

  “Yes, it’s saying don’t marry the Cortell brothers,” she snorted.

  “Why would the universe be saying that?” I asked curiously.

  “Marriage is a bad thing,” Charlie said, taking a sip of her drink. “I’m telling you, it’s all downhill from there.”

  “I thought you were over your marriage phobia,” Anna said.

  “Well, sure, with Will, but you,” she nodded to Kat, “are definitely someone that should stay away from the union. Look at your luck so far. And Anna, you should make Robert wait as long as you want.”

  “Why would you wait if you know you want to marry him?” I asked, confused by all this. The girls stopped talking and turned to me with a curious look. “It just seems that you all really love them. Why would you wait?”

  “Well…it’s not like we want to wait,” Carly said. “Things just keep…preventing us from taking that final step.”

  “Like killing people?”

  “Well, that and babies…” Kat answered. “At my last wedding, I may have accidentally pushed Eric off the bridge.”

  “Was it high up?”

  “Yeah,” she waved me off, “but he had a bungee cord attached. He was fine.”

  “So, can I ask a question?” All of the ladies turned to stare at me. “I get the feeling that none of the guys really like me, especially Andrew. Did I do something?”

  “Ignore them,” Anna said. “They’re all protective of each other.”

  “But they all seem to love all of you.” I took a deep breath as I looked over my shoulder at the guys in the kitchen. “I overheard Andrew and Joe fighting the other night. Andrew really doesn’t like me. He thinks I’m going to run out on Joe and break his heart.”

  “Are you going to?” Kat asked.

  “I don’t plan to. I mean, I have no idea what will happen in the future, but I really like Joe, way more than I ever thought possible. I want to see where this goes with us. But I can’t say if it will last. This is the first actual relationship I’ve ever had. It would be foolish of me to think everything will run smoothly.”

  “Amen to that, sister,” Charlie nodded. “I hear ya. I love Will, and I’m telling you right now that as sure as I am about him, I’ve also been on the other side.”

  “Yeah, but there’s a difference between wanting things to work and going into the situation pessimistically,” Kat said. “If you want things to work, they will.”

  “Really?” Anna huffed. “Because that worked so well for you and Eric? I’m on Sofia’s side on this one. Look at how happy you were with Eric, and then what happened? You lost the baby and it tore you apart.” I cringed at the way she brought that up so casually, but Kat didn’t seem upset by it. “You never would have seen that coming. From what Robert’s told me, everyone thought you were solid and nothing would stand between the two of you. And then look at Robert and me. It didn’t look like we would ever find our way. We both loved each other, but we couldn’t figure it out. I’m telling you, nothing is set in stone. It’s best to go in knowing that you’ll try your best. That’s all you can really ask for.”

  It was definitely a lot to think about, and as I sat there pondering what they had said, the banter around me continued. The ladies talk about a possible upcoming wedding for Kat and Eric. Anna debated the merits of finally giving in to Robert and marrying him. Charlie told us about how much Will had done over the summer with her son, even when she wasn’t around, and Carly told us about her problems with finding someone to watch Alessa. The way they talked, you could tell that they were all a family. Nobody was out for themselves here, and I started to wonder what was so wrong with my family that we never talked like this.

  I enjoyed hanging out with the ladies. Everything was so relaxed around here. There were no formalities or expectations. No one was staring me down, glaring at me because I had missed some social cue. It was strange because I had this strong desire to stand perfectly still beside Joe, take my place next to him and behave like the perfect trophy wife. Even amongst the women, seeing how
they behaved, it all felt wrong, despite it feeling so right.

  The atmosphere was so different than the stiff air in my parents’ house. Breakfast was always served at eight, and I was expected to be on time, dressed for the day with my hair and makeup in place. If I was at home for lunch, it was the same thing, I was expected at the table at precisely noon. And dinner was always served at six. If we were having a dinner party, I was expected to be downstairs, ready with a smile on my face at five. We would have dinner drinks and then move into the dining room to our assigned seats. I was always seated next to one of our guests and Graham was always seated across from me. I had a feeling this would be very different.

  “So, why did you run out of your wedding?”

  I snapped out of my thoughts and looked up at the expectant faces of Charlie, Kat, Anna, and Carly. There was no judgement on their faces, only curiosity.

  “Well, it started as this thing between our families, more of an expectation really. I didn’t love him, not in the true sense anyway. Graham and I have known each other for years and it just seemed we were supposed to be together. But the night before the wedding, I found him with my bridesmaid, and he told me he didn’t love me and never would. We were basically going to have an open marriage.”

  “What a bastard,” Kat seethed.

  “Sounds like the typical male,” Carly said without any heat. “I’ve been there before. I ran too.”

  “Any regrets?”

  “Only that I didn’t put a bullet in my father’s skull,” she said nonchalantly. “Maybe that would have made some difference.” She seemed thoughtful and then shrugged. “Then again, maybe not.”

  “But Joe said that you were in your wedding dress,” Anna said. “You were going to go through with it?”

  “I was,” I admitted. “But then when I was getting in the dress and staring at myself in the mirror, I just started to panic. And I couldn’t help but think that I was marrying him just for the sake of having a husband. I was doing it because my father told me to. And my life would never truly be happy because I was living it for someone else. So, my best friend watched the door and I ran.”

  “Ouch, you left him at the altar?”

  I could tell Charlie was teasing me and that she wasn’t judging me for my choices. “Well, better than getting divorced later on. From what I understand, my father isn’t too happy about it. He’s threatening to disinherit me.”

  “What are you going to do?” Anna asked curiously

  I laughed humorlessly. “Well, I’m still trying to figure that out.” I glanced in the other room at Joe, and felt a flush creeping over my skin.

  “You know he doesn’t have much,” Kat said.

  My gaze snapped back to her and I flushed bright red. I wanted to argue that I wasn’t that kind of person, but even I knew that I hadn’t changed that much in just a matter of days.

  “I’m not using him,” I said, trying to explain that I wasn’t just after him for what he could give me.

  “So, you’re okay with him being poor.” Anna said.

  “He’s not poor, and I’m not taking anything from him. I’m…I’m working with him. I’m trying to earn my own way.”

  “Look,” Kat said diplomatically, “We’re not trying to make you feel unwelcome. We just want you to understand that we’re protective of Joe. He’s a good guy, and he may not have much now, but he’s got a good head on his shoulders-“

  “Even if we can’t understand him half the time,” Anna cut in.

  Kat glared at her and continued. “We don’t want to see him get hurt. So, if this is you trying to see how the other half lives, just go home. He doesn’t deserve that.”

  Somehow the sting of her words was worse than anything my own family could say to me. Joe was the first real person in my life, the only one that had ever really seen me. I would never take advantage of that. And with the accusation, something snapped inside me.

  “I may be rich, spoiled, and a snob, but I would never intentionally hurt someone, whether they were rich or poor. And I don’t consider it slumming it to be with Joe. He’s taken very good care of me, and I know that it comes at a cost to him. So, you can take your assumptions and shove them up your ass!”

  I hadn’t realized that I was practically yelling until the quiet of the house consumed me. I was well aware that it wasn’t just the girls that were staring at me now, but also all the guys. My eyes locked on Joe’s and I hoped that I hadn’t just royally fucked up. But when I stared into his eyes, all I saw was pride shining in them.

  “I like her,” Will grinned, turning back to the guys.

  “Cool, so, do you want me to teach you to cook?” Kat asked. I had to drag my gaze away from Joe’s handsome face.

  “Wait, what was all that about?”

  She shrugged. “I wanted answers and you gave me them. I don’t know that I believe you, but it’s not about me. Now we have to cook dinner or we’re all going to starve.”

  Not knowing what else to do, and hoping to escape all the looks, I practically ran after her to hide in the kitchen.

  “Can I help?”

  “You want to cook?” Kat asked skeptically. “I was just going to show you what I was doing.”

  “Well, I’ve never done it before. It might be fun.”

  She snorted. “Until you have to do it on a nightly basis.”

  “Well, I learned to tackle cleaning. How hard can cooking be?”

  She pulled out a pot and handed it over, giving me a look that made me think she was laughing at me. “Fill this halfway with water and then put it on the stove to boil.”

  “Alright.” I snatched the pot and filled it like she said, then set it on the stove. “What’s next?”

  She glanced at the stove and then back at me. “You, um…you have to turn on the stove.”

  “Oh.” I looked back at the stove and tried to figure out what to do. You would think that a college-educated woman like myself could figure this out. I tilted my head as I looked at the knobs and then reached out to turn one. “What setting?”

  “High.”

  I did as she said and turned it to high. A red light appeared on the panel, indicating that the stove was on. I turned with a huge grin to face Kat. “Done,” I said proudly. Funny enough, she didn’t look at me like I was an idiot. She just smiled and laughed a little.

  “Alright, we’re going to make some meatballs.”

  I followed behind her, doing everything she said to do. My fingers got all gross from the meatballs, but I’d never had more fun. At one point, I glanced over my shoulder to see Joe staring at me across the room. His brother was talking to him, but he only had eyes for me. I’d never have someone watch me like he did, and it made me feel good, like I was worth paying attention to.

  I got back to work with Kat, just finishing up with the meatballs when Robert and Anna walked back into the kitchen arguing.

  “Look, I’m just saying, it makes sense that you should come work for me instead of my brother. Carly works with Josh.”

  “Yeah? Well, Carly probably wouldn’t kill Josh if she was with him every day. I would definitely kill you.”

  “I’m not that bad.”

  “You never stop talking about getting married!”

  “Because I want to have babies with you.”

  “Uh, guys, we have company,” Joe said, clearing his throat. “Maybe this isn’t the time to discuss this….”

  “There,” Anna pointed to me. “There’s a woman that can be your secretary. She’s perfect. She doesn’t have a job and she needs one.” She swung her gaze to me with a pleading look. “Please tell me that you have experience as a secretary so you can save me from strangling him.”

  “Um…” I glanced at Robert, noticing how he was glaring at me like he would kill me if I said I did. “I’m sorry. I just started working with Joe this week. Before this, the closest I’ve come is planning charity functions.”

  “Close enough,” she grinned. “See? She’s planned
charity functions. That’s right up your egotistical alley.”

  “Yes, but I’m working with Joe—”

  “Eh, he can spare you. You need money, right? So, this is perfect. You can work with Robert during the day and Joe at night.”

  “And when am I supposed to sleep?”

  “Sure, go pointing out the obvious,” she huffed.

  Kat walked up to me and watched in amusement.

  “Are they always like this?”

  “Worse, most of the time. There’s always this cat and mouse between them.”

  “Really? She doesn’t seem to like him very much.”

  “Oh, that’s just her attitude. She works for Eric, and when she first started, she used to throw donuts at him when he pissed her off.”

  My eyes went wide as I stared at her. “Does she still do that?”

  Kat cocked her head to the side in thought. “You know, I think it’s been a while.”

  “Joe said something about how he used to be a big time lawyer.”

  “He used to work in the city as a lawyer, and he was very good, but he gave it up to move down here to be with Anna. Now it’s a constant battle to see when she’ll finally give in and marry him.”

  “Does she not want to marry him?”

  “She does. I think at this point, she’s just seeing how long she can make him hold out.”

  Josh and Carly entered the kitchen as well. The more of them that joined, the less I felt like there would be enough room for all of us. I thought about how Carly and Josh started off and wondered if Joe and I could make the best of our situation, despite how we started. Obviously, Josh and Carly had been able to work through it. Maybe Carly had a few tips. I snuck off and grabbed Carly’s hand, brazenly pulling her away from everyone.

  She stared me down, waiting for me to say something. I started pacing, wondering if I could actually ask her this.

  “Oh my God, nobody has time for this in their lives. If you want to ask me something, just come out and say it.”

  “Do you think Joe and I have a chance?” I blurted out.

  She tilted her head and looked me up and down. “Nope.”

  I flinched back, sure she was going to tell me what was wrong or what our defects were. But instead, she just decided right then and there that we wouldn’t make it.