Lex and Lu

by J Santiago

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Published by River Grove Books

  Austin, TX

  www.rivergrovebooks.com

  Copyright ©2014 Angela St. James, LLC

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the copyright holder.

  Distributed by River Grove Books. For ordering information or special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact River Grove Books at PO Box 91869, Austin, TX 78709, 512.891.6100.

  Design and composition by Greenleaf Book Group

  Cover design by Greenleaf Book Group

  Cover credit: ©iStockphoto.com/Courtney Keating

  Ebook ISBN: 978-1-938416-89-7

  Ebook Edition

  For my brother Stephen, who has always believed in me. For Xander, Nico, and Lucas.

  PART 1

  1

  “That is one beautiful man,” Sky said with a sigh as Lu took the seat on the barstool next to her.

  Lu smiled indulgently at her friend. “Who this time?” she asked setting her cell phone on the bar so that she could see any activity.

  Sky moved her head slightly, nodding toward one of the dozens of flat screens surrounding them. Lu looked up with little interest.

  Sky laughed, but didn’t take her eyes from the screen. “You know how much fun I have looking.”

  “Soccer this time, huh?” Lu teased. “You didn’t drag me out so that you could ogle men on TV, did you?”

  Sky ripped her eyes from the screen. “Of course not. I made you come out so that you could be a normal, twenty-six-year-old, single woman.”

  “Normal? So all I have to do to be normal is come to a bar and watch TV?”

  “No, Louisa May Knight. We have to order drinks, maybe do a couple of shots too, and flirt with actual real-life men. You do know what men are, right? ’Cause I’m not quite sure I’ve ever actually seen you take an interest in one.”

  “Don’t start. My mother and sister have this conversation down to a science.” Lu tried to control her frustration. “I don’t need you on my case too.”

  Sky, as usual, bulldozed over Lu’s annoyance, raised her hand to signal the bartender, and had two shots of Patron sitting in front of them before Lu could protest. “You do know how to do a shot of tequila, right?”

  “Ugh, Sky, what is with you tonight? Why are you suddenly so hell-bent on pushing me? I feel like you’ve channeled Willa.”

  Sky threw back her head and laughed, which drew attention because Sky had one of those throaty, sexy laughs that men can’t resist. “Willa would love that. Now, drink your damn shot.”

  Rolling her eyes, Lu imitated Sky, without looking directly at her. After licking her hand, she took the saltshaker from Sky, shook it, licked again, threw back her shot, and shoved a lemon wedge into her mouth. Wincing, she directed her gaze at Sky.

  “That was horrible,” she said. “Why do you feel that it’s necessary for me to go out? I’m in the middle of my comps. What is the point of all of this?” Lu asked.

  “You never have any fun.”

  “How do you know? I have a great time with Nina. So it might not be normal, irresponsible fun, but I’ve never been that person. Ask Will.”

  Sky rolled her eyes this time. “Do you not think Willa and I haven’t talked this subject to death? Why do you think I made you come out with me tonight? You’re too young to be this serious.”

  Lu chuckled. “Will didn’t tell you that I’ve always been this serious? My mom started calling me an old soul when I was two. I tried irresponsibility when I was a teenager and it got me more responsibility. It’s not all it’s cracked up to be.”

  “Oh, woe is me. Just shut up and relax tonight. That’s all I’m asking.” Sky winked at her. “How ’bout a drink?”

  “Fine. What are we drinking?”

  “I’m thinking we should stick to tequila. Margarita?”

  Resigned to her fate, Lu agreed. There was little reason for her to try to fight the tornado that was Sky. The irony was not lost on Lu. In an attempt to escape her fun-loving sister, Lu became best friends with Willa incarnate. Right now, she wasn’t sure who was worse—Willa or Sky. But whoever penned the phrase “Opposites attract” pegged every meaningful relationship Lu had ever had—even the one she had spent the last eight years attempting to forget. Margaritas delivered, Sky lifted her glass for a “cheers!” moment.

  With the clink of their glasses, Lu and Sky surveyed the bar. “Not many options here tonight,” Sky muttered, disappointed.

  “Well, if there are any good options, I’m sure you’ll find them,” Lu said with a laugh. She had a difficult time keeping track of the revolving door that was Sky’s love life. “And bad options too,” Lu said, winking at her friend.

  “Very funny. An eight on the joke scale,” Sky replied. “And if you check your phone one more time, I’m going to take it from you.”

  Lu shrugged guiltily. “Sorry. No more, I promise.”

  “Look, it’s 11:00. If you haven’t heard anything by now, you won’t. Right?”

  “Absolutely. I’m done.”

  Sky’s gaze shifted back to the TV. “Hey, isn’t that the guy you grew up with?” she asked, pointing at the screen.

  Lu closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to see. She turned slightly and watched the action on the TV. The cameraman chose that moment to get a close-up of him, and Lu’s stomach dropped. “Yup,” she said, “that’s Lex.”

  Sky whistled low. “Wow! Did he look like that when you knew him?”

  Lu studied him on-screen. “I don’t think so. He’s all grown up now, filled out.” She watched for another second. The sweat rolled down his face, his short hair no help in absorbing it. She couldn’t help a small smile. “One thing that hasn’t changed—he’s always sweated like that. It was nasty when we were little and it’s still gross.”

  “I wouldn’t mind helping him work up a sweat,” Sky murmured with a wink as Lu turned away.

  “I suppose there are thousands of women that feel the same way,” she replied.

  “Oh, yeah. That man gets what he wants, when he wants. No question.”

  Lu shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “So, what’s next? We hanging here?”

  Sky’s gaze drifted back to the TV. Annoyed, Lu waved her hand in front of Sky’s face. “Sky, let’s finish these drinks and either call it a night or go somewhere else.”

  Sky pushed Lu’s arm out of the way. “Wait a sec! I’m trying to read this.”

  “Read what?” Lu asked, getting more frustrated.

  “The announcers just said that right before the game, he found out that his father had died. No one was sure if he was going to play tonight, but he did.”

  “What are you talking about?” Lu asked, panic rising in her chest. Everything around her faded out. She stood up and yanked on Sky’s hand, trying to get her attention.

  “What are you talking about?” she demanded.

  Startled by Lu’s tone, Sky stopped watching the game. “The ticker at the bottom of the screen said that Lex Pellitteri’s father died earlier today,” Sky explained.

  Shocked, Lu stared unseeingly at Sky until her cell phone lit up and buzzed with a text message.

  Lu picked up the phone. It was from Willa.

  Willa: Mr. P. was in accident today. Will call later. Hang tight and don’t even think about
coming home.

  Lu: I know he’s dead. I’ll be there as soon as I can.

  Willa: DON’T!

  Lu: I’m coming home.

  Willa: ALONE???????

  Lu paused. She wasn’t sure how to answer that. She didn’t want to cause any trouble, but there was no way she was staying away this time. She’d stayed away for too long. And Mr. P. was the one person who had supported her. It would be OK if she went alone. No one would begrudge her that.

  Lu: Yes.

  Willa: OK. Text me when you leave.

  Lu picked up her purse. “I’ve got to go.”

  Sky grabbed her arm. “What the fuck is going on, Lu?”

  “I need a favor.”

  “Only if you tell me what the hell is going on.”

  “You’re blackmailing me—now?” she asked, incredulous.

  “Hell, yes. What’s going on and what do you need?”

  “I have to go home. Mr. Pellitteri is really special to me. I have to go home, but I need you to take care of everything here. Can you do that for me?”

  Sky was completely taken aback by Lu’s show of emotion. Ordinarily, Lu never lost her composure, never showed any sign of anything affecting her. But now her big, cornflower-blue eyes were luminous with unshed tears. Her hands, one of which was still held by Sky, was shaking.

  “Of course. But I don’t understand.”

  Lu heaved a big sigh. “Lex is the guy. And I have to go home.”

  Sky needed no other explanation.

  Amber slid the French door open. She tried to make noise so that Jo wouldn’t be startled. Long ago, they had stopped knocking on each other’s doors. But after a day like today, startling her friend wouldn’t have been good. She made her way into the kitchen, the house as familiar as her own. In the third drawer over from the sink, she found the wine opener. Pulling two glasses from the rack above the minibar between the kitchen and the dining room, she made her way back to the island and proceeded to open the wine.

  In a haze of disbelief, Amber sat heavily upon the bar stool that faced the kitchen. She’d lost count of the times she had sat at this counter drinking wine, laughing, sometimes crying over the past seventeen years. If she couldn’t believe Mike was gone, how was Jo feeling?

  She heard Jo’s footsteps before seeing her face.

  “Hey, Dr. J.,” she called out, hoping to elicit a smile from Jo. The kids had long ago tagged her with that nickname.

  It may have worked for a split second, but the smile was fleeting. Dr. Josephine Pellitteri rounded the corner in all her weary glory. Even at 57, with two adult children and the sudden loss of her husband, Jo’s beauty was still apparent. Her black hair had one or two grays, while everyone else had been hiding it for years with a rainbow of colors from the hair salon. She looked tired to Amber as she entered the room.

  “Hello, my friend,” she said with a weary smile.

  “Somehow, ‘How are you?’ doesn’t seem appropriate.”

  Jo crossed the kitchen and picked up the waiting glass of wine. “Cakebread?” she said, her eyebrows creeping up into the shadow of her bangs.

  “Yes, always have a bottle for special occasions,” Amber said, while slowly turning the glass in her hand. “I figure we have about five minutes before the rest of them show,” she reminded gently.

  “That long?” Jo responded. The weary smile still in place.

  “Four and a half. Have you heard from the boys?”

  Jo sat on the edge of the stool. With a chuckle, she said, “I think you can probably answer that question for yourself.”

  “Peter will be here as soon as he can, and Lex’s agent didn’t know when he would arrive?” she offered, sure of her response.

  “Nail on the head.” Jo paused to take a sip of her wine. “He played tonight.”

  “We all cope in different ways.”

  “I couldn’t help it. I watched. And you’d never know. He scored and there he was, ‘swag’ and all.” She put her hand quotes around the word swag.

  “He wouldn’t be Lex without the swag,” Amber replied knowingly.

  “Cocky son of a bitch.”

  Amber couldn’t help it. She laughed. “Always has been.”

  Returning to her wine, she braved the next subject: “How are you?”

  Jo stared into her glass. “To be honest, I haven’t had much time to process that he’s gone. I mean this morning we bickered about when we would go see Lex again. Then he leaves here in a bit of a fit for his ride. As soon as I park at the hospital for surgery this morning, I’m ushered into the chief of surgery’s office. They tell me what happened, but all I hear is blah, blah, blah. I want to know who was on in the ER when he came in, but it didn’t matter. He was dead at the scene, so my walk—more like huff—down there was futile. And then it’s identify the body, notify the boys, his brothers, you guys. It’s all sort of happening to someone else.” At her pause there was a hesitant knock on the door.

  The other four women walked in, each with a bottle, looking as if they were the ones who had lost their husband.

  Jo glanced at Amber, picked up her wine, and led the way out to the patio. Everyone followed somberly, as if they were on their way to the gallows. Quickly, Jo’s protective wall reasserted itself and she looked around at the women who had been her pillars for fifteen years. No one said anything for some time as they got glasses and poured their drinks.

  Amber raised her glass when everyone else’s was full and said, “To Mike!” Robotically, they all clinked glasses, each secretly thankful that this toast wasn’t to one of their husbands. “To Mike!” echoed off the walls of the empty house and surrounded them.

  “Fuck,” Stacey said as she set down her glass. “What happened, Jo?”

  Amber shot daggers at her and opened her mouth to tell her to stop being so insensitive, but Jo’s hand on her arm stopped her.

  “Might as well say it once so we don’t have to rehash it later.” She paused—to catch her breath, really. Telling the boys earlier that day had been the most difficult thing she had ever done. Somehow she knew this wouldn’t be as bad. “He was on his morning ride. And, to tell you the truth, they’re not sure what happened specifically. But he died of TBI—sorry, traumatic brain injury. He was dead on impact.” She didn’t offer more details and no one asked.

  An unnatural silence followed. There typically weren’t any quiet periods among the group. Jo watched with a sick fascination as all of her friends, with the exception of Amber, avoided her eyes. She imagined she would see reflections of pity, sympathy, and relief in all of them. She knew her gaze would probably mirror that if she were on the other side. They drank in silence.

  The appearance of Willa broke the quiet, which was par for the course with her. Jo sat watching as Willa walked over to her, crouched down in front of her chair, and pulled her into an embrace. “I’m so sorry, Dr. J.,” she murmured. “I will always miss him.”

  Jo grabbed ahold of Willa and hugged her fiercely. “Thank you,” she said.

  Willa pulled away and stood. “Anyone need a refill?” she offered. Knowing that none of the ladies would turn down more wine, Willa moved toward the sliding glass doors, turned slightly and said, “Mom, what’s a good chaser?”

  Amber looked curiously at her oldest daughter. Meeting Willa’s gaze, she stood and walked toward her. “I’m not sure what we’ve got. Let’s check it out.”

  Even in her exhausted state, Jo knew Willa needed to talk to her mom. She’d seen that move countless times over the years, although when the kids were younger the excuses had been different. There was the nail polish that they couldn’t find or the brush that had too much hair stuck in it. In her house, Jo had heard about the cleat that was missing or the toilet that hadn’t been flushed. Excuses all, to get their mother or father alone to ask for a sleepover, or to borrow the car, or for money.

  Conversation had picked up around her, but she wasn’t in it. Her mind had moved on to the things she needed to take care of ove
r the next few days. When Amber and Willa reappeared with wine, Jo started to decline. Willa poured her a glass anyway. “You’ll need this,” Willa explained.

  “What can we help with?” Cami inquired.

  “I am sure there will be things, but at the moment, I don’t know specifically,” Jo answered, still absorbed with making her internal list. Distracted, she missed the byplay going on around her, so she was surprised when Stacy, Cami, LeeAnn, and Natalie began to make excuses to head out.

  “I’ll get with you when she’s had a chance to make the arrangements,” interceded Amber.

  Standing, Jo embraced them all—Stacy, Cami, LeeAnn, and Natalie. More alert now, she said good-bye to her friends. Over the years, they had been there for all of the growing pains that families experience. And normally, you didn’t go through anything that one of the other women had not already been through. You could always rely on someone’s willingness to discuss her own struggles. It had become another family unit that wrapped around each of their own and made the struggles easier to bear. They knew each other pretty well. Which is why Jo didn’t hesitate to sit down at the table, pick up her wine, and pin Willa with the death stare that she was famous for.

  “What the hell’s going on, Willa?”

  Willa looked to her mother. Somehow, she felt Amber could deliver the news more effectively.

  “Willa just got a text from Lu.” Amber paused, gently picked up her wine, and took another fortifying sip. “She’s on her way home.”

  Jo leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. She wasn’t surprised, not really. Maybe it was time. In her mind she saw her family fracturing even more but there was little she could do about a decision that had been made earlier. Partly horrified, partly relieved, she looked at Amber and Willa.

  “Is she coming alone?” Jo asked, fearful of the answer.

  “Yes,” Willa replied.

  “Thank fucking God!” she murmured. Maybe she wasn’t ready to set things straight.

  Exhausted after a hard game and a sleepless night, Lex rolled over and shut off the alarm clock on his iPod before the blast of music coming from it shattered the early morning quiet. Eighteen hours of knowing that his dad was dead hadn’t lessened his sense of disbelief. His father had died while he in the midst of his pregame warm-up. His manager had handed him the phone as he walked off the pitch so that his mother could tell him before his game. Normally they would have waited, but with information flying all over the globe at warp speed, they were afraid that a reporter would ask him about it in postgame interviews. And the last thing they wanted was for Lex to be blindsided by that kind of news.