“I’ll be picking her up later,” Emma said quickly.
“Good,” Martin said, recovering rather nicely. His acting skills had kicked in and he seemed calm again, but Addison knew better. She couldn’t wait to talk to him after dinner.
“What time will your family be here?” Ever the peacemaker, her mother chimed in. She looked at Celia and spoke again before she could answer. “My husband and the rest of the crew should be here around two.”
“That will work out lovely. My parents and family are coming in close to lunchtime. I can’t wait to see them. Martin’s never met any of them, and I hope that he gets along with my family as well as I get along with the two of you.”
Addison wanted to choke on her tea for that remark, but she managed not to. She recovered, took another drink to steady her voice, and decided she might as well make her announcement. “I have a guest coming, too, if that’s not a problem.”
This had their attention. “Who might that be?” Martin asked, seemingly happy to have the conversation moved away from Randi.
Addison set her glass down, smiling. “Raffaello called yesterday. He’ll be here Saturday night. I invited him to dinner Sunday. I assumed that would be okay.”
“Of course it will,” Celia interjected. “I can’t wait to meet him, and of course he can stay here. There is no use in him getting a motel in town. We have plenty of room.”
“That’s very kind of you.” Addison gritted her teeth. Very kind of you to offer, as if you have the right to say no.
Celia kept the smile on her face, since she couldn’t see what Addison was thinking and spoke again. “Is he Italian, as his name infers?”
Addison nodded, “Yes he is, but he was born in New York. He normally spends Christmas in Italy, with his family, but this year he was working. He’ll be off from work for just a few days, so he’s coming here. I can’t wait to see him, and for mother to finally get to meet him.”
“I’ve heard so much about him. I feel like I know him already,” Lillian smiled. If she’d noticed anything about the slight tension at the table she didn’t show it. “I love it when families get together like this. It’s always so much fun, and the children -- well, they hopefully will learn the same traditions.”
Addison shared a look of "Oh, no, here we go again" with Martin and, as she guessed, her mother pulled out the "I’m getting old" card.
“Someday, I hope to have several grandchildren to share Christmas with. Hopefully, it will happen before I’m too old to enjoy them.”
“I keep telling my children the same thing,” Emma stated, pushing her plate back. “I just get dirty looks. I’ll just be happy if they get married. I think having children is becoming too much work for this younger generation.”
“You’ve got that right,” Lillian smiled. “They're too soft. Americans are all too soft.”
“Oh no. You’ve done it now.” Addison drank down the rest of her iced tea and rose from the table. “Don’t let her get started on that topic, or Celia will have us all deported.”
Chapter 45
Family Time
The fact that Randi was spending the night with Emma was driving Martin nuts. He wanted to see her, touch her, and hold her in his arms again. It had been tempting to just tell Emma that he’d go pick Randi up, but he knew this was his chance to spend some time with Celia and talk to her. He had to tell her tonight.
After dinner Emma left and everyone else went in and sat around the Christmas tree, having coffee or hot chocolate.
Martin talked to Addison about her boyfriend, and noticed that she seemed relaxed. He wanted to ask if she had made up her mind about moving in with Raffaello, but he didn’t. His mother also seemed in a better mood, he guessed because his dad would be joining them tomorrow.
As he sat lost in his thoughts while Celia told them the latest update on Sue, he couldn’t help but think about the differences between Randi and Celia.
Randi was more of a country girl. There wasn’t anything city about that one. He could see her fishing, hiking, camping, some of the things he’d forgotten about since he’d started acting.
The last year had been a busy one. He’d not had much time for the fun things in life. He wanted to go back home for a visit, and he just couldn’t imagine Celia wanting to go. The small home that he was raised in -- well, she would turn her pretty nose up and kindly suggest they stay in a hotel instead.
Randi, on the other hand, would curl up on the weathered couch and be at home. A smile crept over his lips as he imagined the scene. Those two dogs she loved would be by her side sleeping, one large furry ball. She’d more than likely be reading something on her iPhone.
He knew he was filling in the pieces that he didn’t know about her so he wanted to know more. He wished it was Randi by his side and envied Addison, that she would be spending Christmas with the one she loved. The word love echoed through his mind, and as Celia was bringing her story to a close he looked at her.
At some point he’d thought he was in love with Celia. He’d even been thinking about asking her to marry him. That’s what you did -- date someone, get to know them and then . . . wedding bells. But, then came Randi.
“I think so, don’t you, Martin?” Celia spoke and he came out of his thoughts. He smiled at her and paused, trying to dig out what she’d been saying, but it wasn’t there.
“I think I know my brother pretty well,” Addison began, “It’s a no, right? I know you get your picture taken so much, you just hate family settings.”
Martin nodded, “You’re right. I do hate it. I don’t mind a few candid shots for the family, but no professional photographers for certain.” He rose, walking over to adjust an ornament, hoping he’d answered correctly. There was a lull in the conversation and an idea came to him.
“Mom, have you checked your sugar? I know that you had dessert.”
“No, but I should get to that. Addison, would you mind going to my room and getting my kit? I’ll head to the kitchen and wash my hands and this cup.”
“You can just set it in the sink," Celia said. "The help will get it in the morning. It was nice having a quiet dinner. I’ve enjoyed our chat.”
Martin knew his mother would wash the cup, but she didn’t mention it. “It has been nice. Thank you. I hope you enjoyed the meal.”
“Oh my, yes. I’m stuffed. You outdid yourself. I hope you can fix that yummy dessert once more while my mother is here.” Martin watched his mother’s face light up. If she didn’t like Celia before, this would make her love her. She always appreciated it when people raved about her sweets.
When his mother was on her way to the kitchen, Martin sank down into his favorite chair. He sat looking at the tree for a few seconds and then he looked to Celia.
“We need to have a talk,” He said.
Celia set her cup on the mantle and moved to sit on the arm of the chair. She reached out and brushed his hair back. “I think I know what you’re going to say. I know I’ve been hinting and pushing for you to pop the question. I wanted you to know I regret those comments. You won’t hear another word.”
Martin wasn’t expecting that, but it didn’t matter. “In the beginning I have to admit it crossed my mind, but I can see now that I was wrong. I didn’t mean to . . .”
“You don’t have to go on. I’m happy with things the way they are. There is no rush on anything. I think we should stick with what you said a few days ago. We’ll just ride the party out, and then when things are quiet, sit down and talk this all out.”
“No, I need to . . .”
“Martin, it’s not the right time. This can wait. Go spend time with your family. When the crowds are gone and it’s just us, we’ll be okay.” Before he could say anything she was gone.
He didn’t know if she knew what was coming and was just putting off the inevitable, or if she was in denial. Either way he wasn’t going to chase her down and make her listen. He would tell her tomorrow. Maybe he’d just put his hands on her shoulders a
nd blurt it out. It might be the only way he could make her listen.
*****
“Didn’t you think Celia was laying it on thick?” Addison said as she came into the kitchen, unzipping the small pack that held Lillian’s glucose monitor.
“Why don’t you say that a little louder? I don’t think she heard you.” Lillian took the kit and sat down at the kitchen table.
“She’s gone to bed, and is at the other end of the house by now.” Addison sat down at the table. “I’m not sure where Martin took off to. Maybe to call Randi.”
Lillian fixed the needle and then reached it to her daughter. She could poke her own finger when she had to, but she didn’t like to. “I don’t think he was too happy about the fact that Celia had sent Randi out on that errand.”
“No, he wasn’t, and I can’t help but think Celia figured something out. She seemed a little too pleased with herself at dinner, and the getting along with us was overkill.” Addison leaned in closer, taking her mother's hand.
“I think she’s trying to impress Martin, but it’s not working.” Lillian grimaced slightly as the needle popped. Then she held out her finger and once the drop of blood was ready she placed it on the meter while Addison got rid of the needle.
“She doesn’t know it, but she might as well give up. Martin has been bitten. Randi is on the way in, and Celia is on the way out. She just doesn’t know it yet.” Addison washed the needle off and then tossed it in the trash.
“It seems that if she’s going, she’s going down fighting.” Lillian smiled at the meter. "No pill tonight.”
“You’re doing good. Did you really have any dessert?” Addison put everything away and zipped up the bag.
“The desert wasn’t as sugary as everyone thought. You liked it, didn’t you?” Lillian smiled. She knew that Addison always claimed to not like her fake sugar.
“Did you play one of those tricks on me again? You know that I hate it when you do that.” Addison leaned back in the chair and glanced through the house.
“You liked it, didn’t you?” Lillian repeated.
“I’m pleading the fifth. Did you like the dessert, Martin?” Addison asked. Martin came in, pulled out a chair, and sat down.
“Did she do the old sugar switch again? You should have known she had, when she started eating some herself. Besides, it had that taste to it.” Martin made a face.
“It tasted fine. No one said anything when they were gobbling it down.” Lillian crossed her arms and looked at her children. “So don’t start complaining now.”
“I’m not,” Martin smiled. “Matter of fact, I’m going to have another piece.” He rose from the table and went to the refrigerator. Addison rose and took some saucers from the cabinet.
“I’ll have a piece too, and get out the milk while you’re in there.”
“Will do.” Martin set out the cake, the milk, and then he dug into the other side and took out the ice cream. “I think this will help get rid of that aftertaste.”
“There is no aftertaste,” Lillian argued, but this only won her a dirty look.
“Oh, ice cream. I’ll have some of that too.” Addison started going through several drawers until she found spoons, forks, and napkins. She also took out some glasses and poured some milk. “Mom, do you want some?”
“I’ll take some milk, but nothing else, thank you.” Lillian was thirsty from the pasta and sipped on her milk while her children sat down and began to eat. She looked at her son and spoke. “Did Celia go to bed?”
“Yes, I wanted to talk to her, but she wasn’t ready to listen. I’ll deal with it tomorrow.”
“Do you think it was an accident that she sent Randi away? Is there any way that she could know?” Addison took a bite of ice cream and looked at her brother.
Lillian leaned around Martin, worried that if Celia didn’t know, that she would after hearing them talking. “Maybe you should talk about this some other time. If she doesn’t know, she’s going to.”
Martin shook his head, “She’s gone to bed. And I don’t know. She could have figured it out. I’ve not been cautious when talking to Randi.”
“That’s obvious. I caught the two of you kissing right here in the kitchen,” Addison scoffed.
“You what?” Lillian straightened in her chair and looked at Martin. “You didn’t.”
“Thanks a lot, sis.” Martin gave Addison a dirty look before taking a bite of cake.
“Sorry. I forgot that she didn’t know about that part. It’s not that bad. So what if you kissed her? You’re not married to Celia.”
“No but he’s dating her. That should mean something. Sometimes I wonder if I raised the two of you right.” Addison only rolled her eyes, and Martin raised one brow.
“Neither of you have anything to say?” Lillian rose and shook her head. She finished her milk and rinsed her glass. When she was done she stopped behind Martin, resting her hands on his shoulders.
“I know that you’re not happy with Celia, but be careful that you know what you’re doing before you start another relationship. You’re playing with two hearts and two lives. Also, Randi seems like a nice girl, and you don’t want to hurt her.” With this Lillian leaned over, and picked up her case, and walked from the room.
Chapter 46
Gone With the Wind
Saturday morning Celia got up at eight, showered, washed and dried her hair, and did her make-up. The house was in order, everything was ready for the guests, and if she had her way, Randi would be gone before her family arrived.
She had worked out a plan while trying to fall asleep the night before. She was pretty sure it was infallible. She would put her strategy in motion by sending Martin a text message.
Normally Martin rose by nine on Saturday so when he woke, he would find her text. She’d typed out that she’d be out of their room by nine in case he wanted to shower. She knew that he loved the showerhead in their bathroom, and that he’d take her up on the offer, if she wouldn’t be in the room at the time.
It irritated her, the way he deferred to his mother. She still lived in the Stone Age, mentally, back when women stayed home, barefoot and pregnant.
It was tempting last night to just go to his room in some skimpy, lacy thing, but she knew it would only anger him further so she’d held off.
She knew there were a couple things she could do. One, she could tell him that she was pregnant. Two, she could dig up some dirt on Randi and blackmail her. But if she could get Randi to leave on her own, that would be even better, and that was her plan.
Slipping out of the room, she went down the hall to one of the guest rooms and began to work on the rest of her plan. She sat listening and waiting for Martin to come up the stairs and head to the bathroom. He would shower and then shave.
There would be a window of thirty minutes, tops. The moment she heard the bedroom door open, she stepped out of the guest room. Being as quiet as possible Celia listened at the bedroom entrance for the click of the bathroom door closing.
She counted to fifteen and then quietly pushed the door open. As it squeaked, she flinched, but nothing happened. The first thing she did was leave a note she’d written on the desk, with a red rose. She found the shirt Martin had been wearing and picked it up.
She looked it over and started trying to rip a few buttons off. It didn’t work like it did in the movies. Many times she’d seen a couple feeling passionate, and one of them would just grab the other's shirt. In a snap all of the buttons would fly away.
Well, in real life it wasn’t working at all. She tugged and pulled, trying to get the buttons off. Finally she just gave up. Walking over to the desk she found a pair of scissors and cut three of the buttons away.
She then she went to the bed, unmade it, dropped a black teddy and the buttons on the floor and stood back, surveying her handiwork.
It looked just like they’d shared a night of passion together. With the note, the rose and a few other things, Randi would be convinced that she was wast
ing her time.
Celia set two glasses on the nightstand and took out an empty wine bottle she’d been drinking from a few nights ago, setting it by the glasses.
After looking around the room, she smiled. It would look very condemning to Randi, and, more than likely, she wouldn’t even give Martin time to explain his side of the story.
There was one more thing to do. As soon as Celia heard Martin running water in the shower, she took out her phone. She dialed Emma and seconds later she picked up.
“Hello?”
“Yes, this is Celia. I need to speak to Randi for a few minutes, about where she left the van parked at the airport. Can you send her right up? Also, have her bring two fresh towels.”
“Are you sure, ma’am? Mr. Taylor said no temporary help in his personal rooms.”
Celia closed her eyes. Why does that not surprise me? Celia composed her thoughts and then spoke. “I think it will be okay this one time.”
“Yes, ma’am. She’ll be right up.”
Celia closed her phone with a huge smile on her face. Everything was working out just as she’d planned. She unbuttoned three buttons on her blouse and took off one shoe. She opened up the bedroom door and sat down on the edge of the bed, waiting.
In five minutes or less, she heard someone coming up the steps. When Randi walked up to the door, Celia slipped on her shoe and rose from the bed. She walked over, buttoning up her shirt. The girl had three towels in her arms.
“Thanks for being so prompt.” Celia didn’t offer to take the towels. Instead, she finished with her buttons. “I want you to clean the room up, make the bed, and take the glasses downstairs. You can leave the towels on that chair. Martin will be out of the shower in a minute, and he only has one towel."
“Yes, ma’am,” Randi said.
Celia grabbed her purse and her phone. “I’m going downstairs to make a few phone calls. I apologize for the mess. Can you take care of it now?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll do it now.”
“Thanks, it’s kind of a mess. You see, Mr. Taylor and I kind of patched things up last night. For some reason he’s been distant, but last night he was anything but.” Celia smiled, started to go, but then turned back.
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