“Dad, it’s not like their lives are nonstop orgies.” I looked at my sister and rolled my eyes. She smiled, obviously knowing who we were talking about. “They’re just guys. Not everything you see in the media is true. They’re a little rough around the edges, but you met Ky and Ace, they’re good guys, and they’re not even around all the time. Mia won’t be on her own. I wouldn’t let anything happen to her. In case you’ve forgotten, I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time, I can handle a couple weeks of Mia. I can make her check in with you or whatever you want, but please just consider it.” Mia frowned at that, but she would have to get over it if he actually agreed.
I was quiet while he thought it over, hoping he would give in. I watched Mia chewing her lip and fidgeting with her hands. It felt like forever before he finally spoke, but really it wasn’t long before his voice came through the phone. “If, and it’s a big if, I were to agree to this,” I let out the breath I had been holding and smiled at my sister because I knew we had him, “I would need to talk to Mia first, make sure she understands some ground rules first.”
“Of course.” I handed her the phone and then listened to a string of “Mmhmm’s, and yes sir’s” while she nodded in agreement even though he couldn’t actually see her. She ended it by saying, “Thank you Daddy,” and then she handed the phone back to me.
“Your mother really isn’t going to like this.” He sounded tired and resigned.
“Well maybe she should stop trying to control every aspect of her children’s lives and stop putting the kind of pressure and expectations on them that no one could live up to, and just accept them for who they are. Things would be a lot different if she did,” I told him, not bothering to mask the bitterness and hurt in my voice. My mother had destroyed our relationship and even came between my father and me. We were barely more than strangers, but maybe it wasn’t too late for Mia if my dad would finally do something instead of letting my mother continue her rigid and authoritarian rule in that house.
“You’re right,” he sighed and I almost dropped the phone. I mean I knew I was right, but I hadn’t expected him to agree with me. I thought for a second that I must be hearing things, but then he continued. “I agree that some things need to change. You just keep an eye on Mia for now. I want to talk to both of you each day to check in, but for now she can stay. I’ll talk to your mother so that she won’t be a problem and we’ll just play it by ear and figure out when Mia needs to return later.”
“Okay,” I mumbled, not really capable of saying anything else. Even though I had hoped for it, I hadn’t actually expected this outcome from our conversation. My father reiterated that he didn’t want Mia running wild in the city and that he expected me to keep her safe and in line. I assured him once again that I wouldn’t turn her loose into a lifestyle of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll and he finally relented and said he’d call back later after he talked it out with my mom. I was sure that conversation would go splendidly. All day I kept expecting my phone to ring with her number so she could yell at me and find a way to blame everything on me. It didn’t though, so my father must have managed to reason with her.
The guys were back in the studio. They’d left early this morning for a label meeting beforehand. Mia was anxious to see Boston and I had the day off so we decided to meet up with Jax and Lissa to do some shopping and show Mia some of the sights. Boston really is beautiful in the winter time, especially the shops and businesses that go all out for the holidays. The streets in the shopping districts and the malls were bustling with holiday shoppers and the entire atmosphere, although slightly hectic and crazy, was a lot of fun.
I even found the perfect gift for Ace, at least I hoped. It was hard to figure out what to get him. Not only did he have enough money to buy himself whatever he wanted, but our relationship was so new that it was hard to decide what an appropriate gift was. I mean, did I go with something generic, like cologne and socks, or did I get something more personal and meaningful? I ended up somewhere in between, with a few different things that I hoped he’d like. I found a deck of cards that were actually throwing knives. They were probably a bad idea, but I knew he’d have fun with them. I just hoped none of the guys ended up in the hospital.
I’d also learned that the house the guys lived in wasn’t actually their house, but it was Ace’s house. He’d bought it and they lived with him, so when I saw a shop that sold home décor made from recycled car and motorcycle parts, I had to go in and look around. The house was amazing and beautiful, but there weren’t very may personal touches that really made it his. He may have given up his job as a mechanic when the band made it, but he was still into old cars and bikes. I’ll admit I went a little bit crazy in there, so did Jax, but they had a lot of really cool stuff and it wasn’t too outrageously priced.
I picked out a planter made from an old carburetor, because he did have a few plants inside the house, and a really cool clock made out of a piston rod. I wished I could afford the pool table that was set in a car frame. I would have to bring Ace here after the holidays. There was so much stuff I thought he would like.
“What about these?” Mia asked, holding up a couple of objects. It took me a minute to figure out that they were gear head toilet flushers.
I laughed, “Those are awesome.” She decided to get them just for him just for fun. The description assured us they would fit on most toilets. After that I decided I should probably stop, but when we were checking out, they had a little Christmas tree on the counter with ornaments hanging from it for sale. There were a bunch of silver stars made from small sections of bike chains that were contorted to create the five points. I really liked them, so I grabbed three to hang on the tree Ace brought home yesterday. Home. That was a funny thought, but I really did feel like home was there, in his house, with him. It was a nice feeling.
Later we passed a little art and framing shop and I decided to buy a nice picture frame so I could find a good picture of the two of us to stick in it. I told myself that was all, but then we walked past one of those trendy little stores in the mall, with low lighting, loud music and tattooed employees, and I saw all the Ashes and Embers paraphernalia in the window.
Mia looked at Jax, “Does it weird you out when you see chicks wearing shirts with your husband’s face on them?”
Jax chuckled, “Nope. It weirds him out more than it does me.”
I looked in the window and then back to Jax. I grinned and then she laughed. She knew what I was thinking. I couldn’t resist. We bought a bunch of wristbands, key chains, beanies and every other small item we could find that had their name on it. We got the idea to hang stockings for all of the guys at Ace’s and stuff them with the band merchandise as a joke.
Ace had convinced me to go home with him on Christmas Eve so we could spend Christmas morning with his family, but we would be coming back that day for Christmas dinner with the group. Mia was hoping she wouldn’t be sent home before then. She was curious and excited about spending Christmas with a not so dysfunctional family.
We spent the rest of the day looking for silly gifts to fill stockings for all of the guys, and candy. We bought so much candy. If nothing else, we were definitely giving the gift of diabetes.
The four of us had a really good time and it was nice to hang out with my sister, even if she was a typical teenage girl. She talked about her friends, the girls she hated and the guy, or well guys, she liked. Her life definitely wasn’t short on drama. I felt like listening to her was a little like listening to an episode of Gossip Girl. Okay, maybe not quite that bad, but close. I remembered being a teenager and I imagined that I had been a lot like her, at least until I’d met Clayton. He changed everything, he changed me.
By the time we were on our way back to the house, I had spent too much money and eaten too much mall food, but the good news was that I was completely done with my Christmas shopping. I’d even managed to get Jax’s present with a little distraction help from Mia and Lissa.
“I
wish we could’ve had more days like this,” Mia commented in the car.
“Me too,” I told her, “but we’ve got time now. We’ll get to do this again.”
“I’m going to go to college here,” she surprised me with that one.
“Yeah? You’ve already made up your mind? What are you planning on studying?” I asked her.
“I don’t know, I’ll figure it out,” she said nonchalantly like she could just pick a college major out of a hat and call it good.
“You don’t know what you want to study, but you know you want to go to school here. Which school?” I asked her knowing there was really only two around here that my parents would find acceptable and my sister wasn’t the tech or science type of girl, so really that left one.
“I suppose I could go to Harvard and make Mom and Dad happy, but maybe I’ll just pick a community college to piss them off, or maybe I’ll be a stripper.” Her amusement actually irritated me.
“Mia, you shouldn’t joke about your future like that.”
“Why not? It is my future. I can do whatever I want.” She talked about it so casually, like it didn’t even matter to her. It was the first time I’d really seen my mother’s arrogance in her. Of course it looked very different on the two of them, but still Mia was so used to living a pampered life, not having to fight or struggle for anything. She expected life to come easy to her, to get her way. The opportunity to go to a school like Harvard meant nothing to her, it was just something she could do if she wanted, like going to the damn beach. I had to remember that it wasn’t her fault and keep my frustration in check.
“Mia, it’s fine that you don’t know what you want to do right now. You’ve got time to figure it out, but don’t take your future so lightly. You have the opportunity to go to any school you want. You can get the best education out there and you’re acting like it would be a burden to you. Do you even realize how many less fortunate people would kill to have options like that?”
“Yeah, I guess so,” she shrugged.
“No, don’t guess so, Mia. I would have killed for those opportunities. Clayton wasn’t my only dream you know. I wanted to go to school too, but I chose him and I don’t regret that, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still hurt that I passed up my chance to go to one of the best music institutes in the country. So when you’re spinning the wheel of your future and not caring what it lands on, you might want to think about that.”
“I … I’m sorry. I didn’t think about it like that. I guess I was just acting like a spoiled brat.”
“You’re not a spoiled brat, or well, you’re not a brat.” I grinned at her. “I know you didn’t mean anything by it. I just don’t want you to waste your opportunities. You were right when you said it’s your future. Don’t make it about getting back at Mom and Dad. Really decide what you want and make it about that, and after growing up with Mom, the least you can do is make them pay for a fancy education.”
Mia seemed to be really considering what I’d said and I hoped she would take it to heart. It even got me thinking more about my own future. I decided I was going to look into taking some classes after the New Year. I wouldn’t be attending Harvard, but I could probably manage one of the community colleges, or maybe find an online university.
I wanted to tell Ace, I knew he would be happy and even excited for me, but I didn’t. Something held me back and made me wait. I didn’t want to tell anyone until it was a sure thing, just in case it didn’t work out or I couldn’t really manage it financially. I didn’t even want to get my hopes up yet. The good things in my life had a habit of not working out.
Chapter 27
Ace
“Yeah, mhmm,” I nodded in agreement with whatever my Uncle Dan, Danny’s dad, was saying. I wasn’t really paying attention. My eyes were searching the room for my girl. I didn’t see where she wandered off to. It was entirely likely that Aunt Debbie had her cornered somewhere and was trying to set her up with one of her sons. Yeah, until there was a ring, Aunt Deb didn’t really respect boundaries, and unfortunately for my cousins Matt and Robbie, their mother was determined to find them a nice wife, even if she had to poach one. Kevin, her oldest son, was lucky enough to have snagged his own wife and didn’t have to worry about his mom’s meddling anymore.
Thankfully my dad chose that moment to interrupt us with a sports question for Uncle Dan. He and my brother were debating team stats or something and needed it settled. Uncle Dan was definitely the sports buff in the family and I doubted if there was any sports related trivia that he didn’t know. He was disappointed when Danny went into the arts and photography instead of playing college baseball like everyone had expected him to when he’d been offered a scholarship after high school.
My father’s interruption provided the perfect opportunity to slip away to find Sadie. I saw Aunt Deb talking to my sister in the dining room, so that was a relief, but really any one of my family members could have been filling Sadie’s head with a number of embarrassing stories. They all seemed to like her, and they were a friendly bunch, sometimes overly so and they could be a little much if you weren’t used to them. They weren’t shy either, which might not seem like a big deal, but when you’re a seventeen year old boy and you have to listen to your aunts talk openly about menopause and the hormones that provided the second coming of sexual awakening for them, it was a pretty fucking traumatic, big deal. I couldn’t touch Jules for two weeks after hearing that conversation at a family reunion.
I was relieved to walk into the kitchen and find Sadie leaning against the counter, sipping apple cider, not being harassed by the crazy members of my family. She was watching Mia help my mom pull appetizers from the oven and tray them. I walked up beside her and wrapped my arms around her waist, nuzzling my face in the crook of her neck and inhaling the fruity scent of her shampoo.
“My mom sure seems taken with Mia,” I whispered in her ear.
She leaned into my embrace and I felt her body relax on a deep sigh. “I think the feeling is pretty mutual,” she said. “The next time Mia runs away I wouldn’t be surprised if she comes here.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the next time I come home, my room has been painted pink and has pictures of your sister hanging on the wall.”
I felt Sadie’s soft laughter escape her body. “It means a lot to me that your family has been so welcoming to both of us. It may not seem like a big deal to you, but … well, you were at Thanksgiving. Christmas with my parents’ is along the same lines. This is the only normal holiday Mia has ever experienced and she’s having a great time.”
Mia had effectively attached herself to my Mom’s hip since we arrived yesterday evening, helping in the kitchen and preparing for tonight’s guests. The traditional Christmas Eve gathering always happens at my parents. The whole house fills with aunts, uncles and cousins from both sides of the family. Marcus brought Maysie with him this year, and Spade was around here somewhere as well, probably hiding from Aunt Deb. Her only daughter recently divorced her husband and was back on the market. I didn’t really see Spade as potential stepfather material for my cousin Maggie’s six year old son, but Aunt Deb wasn’t as picky it seemed. Sure my family was a little nuts, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything. “You know you guys are both welcome here anytime. My family clearly loves you both.”
Just then Mia came bouncing over excitedly, “Sadie, can we spend next Christmas here too?” I certainly wasn’t opposed to that, in fact if I had my way, Sadie would be spending every Christmas with me and my family, indefinitely. “The food is good, everyone is actually nice, there are kids running around and laughing,” Mia went on. “It’s a real Christmas.”
Gran walked over and handed Mia a tray of frosted cookies to put out and she bounced off again. “Such a sweet girl. She’d be great for your cousin Matt,” Gran said suggestively.
“Now you sound like Aunt Deb. Gran, the girl is only seventeen.” My cousin Matt was younger than I was, but that was still too old for Mia.
“Hmm, you’re right. What about James?”
“Gran, James is in junior high. I’m not sure that he’s into cougars, and how about if we wait a few years before we try to auction Mia off to the guys in this family.”
“You know, I was only seventeen when I married you grandfather, of course that was because he knocked me up and we had to have a shotgun wedding or your great granddaddy would have castrated him, but that’s beside the point.” See what I mean about over sharing?
“This isn’t the eighteen hundreds anymore Gran,” I joked. “In today’s society we like to let the girls reach eighteen before we start trading them for goats and pigs.”
She smacked me on the back of my head. “You’re not as funny as you think you are, smart ass,” then she looked at Sadie and whispered in what she thought was a low enough voice, “if this one is resisting and taking too long to put that ring on your finger, I’ve heard that you can take a pin and just poke holes right through a condom wrapper and it’s completely unnoticeable.”
Sadie’s eyes went wide and I thought she was going to spit hot cider all over the place. “Geez Gran, Fuck! You know I can hear you, and you can’t say shit like that. At this rate she probably wouldn’t even say yes if I asked. I know I would have serious reservations about marrying into this batshit crazy family if I were her.” I grabbed Sadie’s arm and dragged her out of the kitchen. By this point she was struggling to hold back her laughter, and then she stopped and looked at me seriously.
“Where are you taking me?” She said breathlessly. “We can go up to your room,” she ran her finger down my chest and gave me her best seductress eyes, which were pretty damn effective. I had to take a small step back to keep things from growing uncomfortable. “You can have your way with me,” my jaw dropped and uncomfortable didn’t even begin to describe how I was feeling with the thoughts that were now consuming my mind, at least until I saw her crack a smile, “I’ll provide the condoms,” she bit out between another fit of giggles.
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