"I guess I'll go and get it then." He sighs, standing up and walking to the door.
I keep my eye trained on Liv, she looks like she plotting all kinds of thing in that pretty little head of hers. I want nothing more than to go and comfort her but every time I've tried in the last hour she blew me off. Its fucking ripping me apart, slowly watching as every defense that I thought I had knocked down slowly comes back up.
"Everyone, this is Dana." We all look up on Phil's voice.
Honestly, she's like a less pretty older version as Liv, except that whereas Livs eyes are a gorgeous deep sea blue, hers are almost black. The plasters a fake smile on her face that I notice a mile off as everyone except Liv and I stand up to greet her.
"Milf." Brady whispers to me behind his hand.
"Dude trust me, you'd rather your dick shrivel up and die than go near than that." That gets a low whistle out of him.
"Dana, this is my wife Pam." Phils uts his arm around my Mom as I watch the Bitch slowly look my Mom up and down with distaste.
"Lovely to meet you." She sticks her nose in the air.
I look toward Liv who hasn’t moved an inch, not even turning around, the only clue that she has any life in her is the flexing of her fingers. I can faintly hear Phil in the background introducing the witch but my attention is solely focused on Liv who's seems like she's not even in the room. Crouching next to her, not giving a fuck what anyone thinks, I take her hand in my own, looking into her face and noticing unshed tears breaks me.
"She's gonna ruin everything Noah." She whispers, slightly squeezing my hand.
"Do you wanna gt outta here, fuck everyone else, if you don’t wanna be here we'll go somewhere else." I stare into her watery eyes to show my sincerity, cause I'm being completely honest, I would get her out of here in a heartbeat if that’s what she want.
I watch her take swallow and deep breath before shaking her head.
"No, no I'm ok really, I won't let her win."
"Atta girl." That gets a watery smile out of Liv.
"Olivia." Her whole body tenses on hearing the squawking voice of her Mother. That reaction alone makes me wanna slap her Mom silly.
She throws me a wink and stand up to turn around, she doesn’t speak but the way her head is slightly raised says it all. She basically telling the incubator to bring it on and no matter what I've got her back, just as I know most of this room has.
"You look........lovely dear." I can see why one of things Livs always complained about was the voice, it goes right through me.
"Thanks, you look different, you look older." That gets a horrified look which has me pretending to cough to hide my laughter.
Looks like its one nil to Liv.
"Dana, this is Pam's son Noah." I give her a glare that hopefully passes on the message that I don’t fucking like her, I suspect she gets it because she simply nods before looking back toward Phil, laying her red clawed hand on his forearm.
I watch as my Moms face tightens, she doesn’t take her eyes from Phil's arm and the daggers she's shooting from her eyes, I almost expect her to rip the succubus' arm out. My Moms a real lady though, she'd never act that way, as much as I might like her to kick Danas ass, that old Southern belle thing she's got going on hold her back. Hell, id love to fucking kick Danas ass, unfortunately my Dad always taught me never to hit a woman, this bitch being a woman is debatable though. No real woman could treat their daughter or put their own child through what she has. I tell myself to think happy thoughts because the thoughts I'm thinking aren't gonna lead me any place good.
I discreetly put my hand on Livs lower back resisting the urge to rub my hand down to her delectable ass. I want her to know I've got her back no matter what. I regret not having it as much last night with Brandy's Dad, I wanted nothing more than to punch that guy in the throat but that would have only have made things ten times worse. Right now, with that evil bitch standing in front of us, nothing's holding me back. One wrong move and I'm taking that bitch down, consequences be damned.
I smirk a little on seeing Chase shove the camera in Danas face. She struggles to keep her composure and I just don’t get how Phil can be so fucking blind when its so obvious to me that shes a fake ass bitch. Then again, I'm already aware of what she's like so I know what to look for.
"Oh crap, the batteries in my camera are dead. Have you got anymore Phil?"
"Language Chase!" My Mom admonishes.
"Sure have buddy. Go in the second drawer of my desk and you should find a brand new pack."
Chase runs off, camera in hand as Dana continues to rub her hand up and down Phils arm. Her looks uncomfortable but doesn’t pull her up on her obviously flirty behavior, that seriously pisses me off. What the hell is the guy playing at? My Mom is standing right there and I coulda swore I just heard her growl.
"Have you been working out Phil? You seem so strong now." Are you fucking kidding me?
I hear a gasp come from my Mother and I almost expect her to say something, thankfully Liv comes to the rescue.
"Can I have a word with you please?"
Dana answer with a frown, reluctantly taking her hand from Phil and following Liv out of the room.
"What the hell man?" I say, looking at Phil with an angry stare.
"What?"
"Dude when a woman puts their hands on you, you take them off. Rule 101 in women, they don’t like that shit." Brady shakes his head.
"Oh don’t be ridiculous boys, Dana and I have been divorced a long time, she was just being friendly." He looks from me to Brady to my Mom, I doubt he gets an understanding expression from any of us.
"Sometimes honey, you are such a dumbass." My Mom says before flouncing out of the room.
I don’t know whether to nod in agreement or burst out laughing, I've never heard my Mom talk like that and if the circumstances were different, id be laughing my ass off. I know that Phil only has eyes for my Mom, if I thought any different id punch him the fuck out now. I just hope he takes those blinkers off concerning his ex wife soon before he loses his daughter and his wife.
He looks at me as if expecting some kind of sympathy or pity, he's looking at the wrong person though, that right there is my Mom, aint no way I'm taking sides here. As well as that, in the next room or wherever the fuck shes gone, is my girl. I don’t give a shit if he doesn’t know about it, it's still true. Fact is its about time Phil picked a side, he needs to show where his loyalty lies and if it's to that harpy, he needs to get the fuck gone.
I walk about from him shaking my head and wondering where the fuck Livs gone. Chase comes back into the room looking all kinds of put out.
"They threw me out." He throws his hands up in the air as if he's been completely affronted.
"Who?" I ask confused.
"Liv and her Mom."
SHIT!!! Theres no way I trust Dana alone with Liv and if she upsets her in any way, I'm gonna strangle her. I rush towards Phils study, leaving a very confused room of people in my wake. I near enough break into a run as well as slipping on the oak floor a few times. As I get to the door it swings open, a very disgruntled Dana barges past me and storms away. I'll deal with her later, right now I just wanna make sure my girl is ok.
I walk into the room to find Liv sitting in her Dads office chair slumped over the desk, her head in her hands. I immediately walk over and wrap my arms around her. She looks up and I breathe a sigh of relief that she's not crying since that was my first thought when I walked into the room and saw her.
"Are you ok? You still wanna stay cause we can totally get out of here?"
"Yeah, she's just such a bitch."
"What happened?" I tip her chin up so she's looking straight into my eyes.
"Later." She gives me a kiss on the lips and squeezes her arms around me. I just know I'm not gonna like what she's gonna tell me but I'll bide my time and be patient.
Taking her hand I lead her out of the room, I definitely don’t wanna let her fuckng go. As much as she's putting on
a brave face, the slight trembling of her hand is giving her away and it's really starting to make my blood boil. She pulls out of my grasp just before we enter the Living room where everyone is now holding either a glass of wine or some apple cider. Walking in, I make sure to look Dana right in the eyes, giving her the most evil look I can muster. It’s a look that says "I'm onto to you bitch." I'd say she gets the message by the ducking of her head, probably thinks that sweet as pie act is gonna wash with me but is it fuck!
Livs my entire world,my heart, my soul, my life. Anyone fucks with her, whether its fucking Brandy, Chris or the troll that’s currently standing in my living room, I'm gonna take them the fuck down. Id pretty much made my mind up the day Liv came clean to me fully about her past but the way this bitch has acted since she got here has sealed her fate. I don’t care if I have to wait six month, six years or fucking sixty years, she needs to get her comeuppance. It’s the least my girl deserves for the shit she's been put through in her life.
"Well this is nice." Phil says with tight lipped smile.
"Really? I think this is horrible." My Grandma ever so kindly puts, she's another piece of work.
"You didn’t have to come Martha."
"I'm glad I did, this is a train wreck waiting to happen." And with that she takes a gulp of her wine and smiles a little like the Grinch, the old bat does have a point.
I notice Phil glaring at her out of the corner of my eye and bite back a laugh, he seems to have this one sussed at least.
"Well Dana, I can see where Liv gets some of her good looks from. I've been trying to convince her to follow in my footsteps and join the pageant world. When you're blessed with looks like she is she should take advantage of it."
"Mmmmm." Dana hums, noncommitaly, spiteful bitch. She's probably jealous of Livs looks, I wouldn’t put it past her.
"So you come from Atlanta?"
"Yes but I'm thinking of moving, maybe to a small town." I don't miss her looking straight at Phil as she says it, as if she's expecting a reaction out of him. He just nods and takes a sip of his drink.
"You should try Salem, I hear they love your kind there." Liv deadpans, resulting in Brady near enough spitting his apple cider across the room. I even notice Phil break a smile at that.
Dana doesn’t reply, just stares at Liv, a look of anger on her face that Liv throws back tenfold.
"I think I'll go and see if Pam needs any help in the kitchen." Phil shouts over his shoulder, already on his way out of the room.
You could cut the tension in the room with a knife, I even notice Brady raising his eyebrows at me a few times. This is probably the most uncomfortable moment I've ever had and ever will have. If I could cut my Grandmother and Dana out of a conversation without risk of my Mom walking in a roasting my ass I would. I keep my hand discretely on Livs lower back, the wall's behind us so there's no risk of anyone noticing.
After a few minutes of stunted conversation Phil comes back into the room to tell us Dinner is ready, leading us into the dining room where the table is set and my Moms waiting. As with every year, my Moms gone the extra mile. The best china on the table, green and gold leaves painted on, the sparkly silverware that I'm sure took my Mom hours to polish. The white silk tablecloth that covers the huge table screams money and the large assortment of white peonies and tall stems of Pussy Willow sits in the center of the table. I'm a guy so tables and decorations and shit arent really my forte but it does look beautiful.
"The room looks great Mom."
"It looks beautiful Pam and the food looks amazing." Liv says, a smile on her face that shows her pearly white teeth off.
She has a point about the food, a huge and crispy turkey sits just in front of Phil's seat at the head of the table, dishes of mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, various vegetables, stuffing, caramelized onions, just basically a ton of fucking food. I feel my stomach growl just looking at all the food, this is the best things about Thanksgiving, the food.
Everyone takes a seat, I make sure to take a seat next to Liv who's on one side of her Dad while my Mom is on the other. Dana doesn’t look too happy sitting next to my Grandma who's on the other side of my Mom. Somehow Chase has ended up at the end of the table and he looks mighty proud of himself. Personally I think I've got the best seat in the house, my girl on one side and Brady on the other.
"Crap I need my camera for this."
"Chase will you please mind your language, you can get your camera in a minute." My Mom says gently.
I hold Livs hand in mine as Phil gives thanks for his family and for having his daughter here to spend Thanksgiving here with him. That’s pretty much the same as what I wanna say. I never would have thought this time last year that I'd be sitting here a year later with my forever. This is just the first of many Thanksgivings for me and Liv, sure I'm disappointed that it isn't perfect what with the incubator sitting opposite but I'm determined to try and make this as happy as I can. Liv hasn’t had many happy traditions since her parents got divorced, this is the first time she's spending a holiday with her Father since she was a child.
I know that most people think the whole point of Thanksgiving is to be grateful for what we've got and happy to be with our families, blah blah, fucking blah. I'm a seventeen year old and even I know its just about the fucking food, which is why this part is my least favorite. Everyone just basically gives thanks for the same things anyway, they just say it in different ways. Maybe when I'm older and I have my own children I'll be more appreciative of the holiday, all I can think of right now though is how fuckng hungry I am.
I get that knot in my stomach, like I need to be on guard or some shit. I feel like my instincts are screaming something at me but I don’t know what. I look towards Phil as he starts rambling on about all the things he's thankful for this year, his main one being that he has Liv with him. I notice the surly look on Dana's face at his words, she obviously doesn’t understand that not every parent is a stone cold bitch to their kid.
Phil looks to my Mom who is beaming at the nice stuff he's just said about her, seems her doubts concerning Livs Mom are all but forgotten.
"Well this year I'm thankful for my wonderful family. I'm thankful for my darling husband who takes care of our family and who I love more and more everyday." Although I wanna gag at the happiness of my Mom, Dana's face is way too entertaining, bitch looks like she swallowed something foul. "I'm thankful that we have Liv here finally, it's nice to have another woman in the house. I'm thankful that Chase is doing so well in school. Most of all I'm thankful for Noah who I couldn't be more proud of. Sweetie I'm so happy that you're joining the police force, I couldn’t be more proud and I know your Dad would feel the same too. Though I wish you would have told me dear, luckily I found the application form when cleaning your room or else who knows when I would have found out."
I spend a few moments swallowing the lump in my throat from her mentioning my Dad. As I'm sure any son does, all I ever wanted, all I still want is to make my parents proud.
"You joining police after college dude?" Brady asks, giving me a slap on the back.
"Actually Bro, erm, I'm joining straight outta high school." I say, instinctively leaning slightly back.
"Can you do both? I didn’t think you could join the academy and do college at the same time." Brady frowns.
"You can't." It's times like these that I wanna scream at the dimness of Brady, this experience is fucking painful and fuck, like slowly pulling a plaster off. I take a deep breath, willing myself to just get the words out. "I'm not going to college, Brady."
"What about our plans though, all the partying and shit?" The whole tables attentions are focused solely on us.
"I don’t think college is for me." I shrug.
"Wait a minute, me and Cindy broke up because I was gonna live with you at college next year instead of her and you never had any fucking intention of going. I was torn apart by this shit and you just sat there knowing full well that one word and I could of given her what
she wanted. Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?" At this point Brady stands up, knocking his chair backwards onto the floor.
"Listen bro, I'm sorry, I just didn’t know how to tell you." I feel bad enough and this really isn't the fucking time to be airing this shit out.
"I'm going to get my camera for this." Chase jumps out of his chair, running out of the room.
"I get it, I do. I mean, you're getting pretty good at lying and I'm sure you spend too much time buried in that fucking pussy to give a damn about anyone else."
"Watch your fucking mouth Brady." I'm getting defensive myself now, standing up so we're chest to chest.
Phil slides in between us, a hand on each of our chest.
"Now now boys, let's calm it down." Nobody's listening at this point.
"I should watch my mouth? You basically fucking ruined my relationship. Should I return the favor huh?"
I take a step forwards, willing to take him the fuck down if he does what I think he's hinting at.
"I said I'm sorry for fucks sake, you can't blame me for all of yours and Cindy's problems."
"Yes I can, CAUSE IT'S YOUR FAULT! I have your back constantly, I've fucking protected you constantly but it's all one sided. Your only out for yourself. Fuck this, I'm not showing no loyalty to you no fucking more. Since it’s a secret revealing today, maybe the rest of em should come out in the open, huh?"
"Brady." I warn.
"Oh no, hey Phil, did you know Noahs fucking your daughter, yeah they’ve been together since she got into town, right under your nose." I can feel the color drain out of my face a his words, shocked that hes fucking done this.
Phil looks from me to Liv, a frown on his face as if working out if Brady's telling the truth. Neither of us utter a word, not bothering to deny it since we were planning on telling him tomorrow anyway. We werent fucking planning on announcing it at the Thanksgiving dinner table though.
"Is this true?" Phil's voice is just a whisper, his face a picture of horror.
"Phil, calm down." My Mom says, not realizing she's basically implicating herself.
Forever Love Page 25