by Emma Vikes
That was expected of Eleanor. But why does it seem like Max is scared to be reprimanded? Maybe... maybe his Dad did but maybe I was just making things up in my mind. I wanted to ask him but the little guy and I had just met and the question was intrusive, even if he was just a kid. I picked up the ball and Max’s eyes widened even more. He took a step back, blinking rapidly as I raised the ball in my hand. “Max, chill. I’m not going to hit you with this.”
“But I...I didn’t see you were there...I...I wanted to throw the ball outside and you were sitting there. I didn’t...I didn’t see you...I swear!”
I cocked my head to the side and knelt in front of him, the ball in hands. “Do you know how to play?”
Max was quick to shake his head. “No one’s free enough to teach me how to and Mom doesn’t buy me balls.”
“Why?”
“She says...she says I might...break something in the...house.” He had a stutter, I observed.
“Do you want to learn how to play?”
When Max looked at me, there was no fear in his eyes but it was now filled with hope. There was something about the way he was staring at me, a child’s hopefulness filled with the youth’s innocence. But there was something more that tugged at my heart. It was the same with Violet after Rebecca died. “Will you teach me?”
I cocked my head to the side, a playful smile erupting from my face. I could feel my usual confidence at the tip of my fingers as I spun the ball on my thumb. “I’ll make you a playmaker before the wedding.”
There was hesitation in his eyes and so I dribbled the ball on the ground, letting him watch me first and then took the shot where I stood. I smiled when the ball swished into the net. It’d been a while since I’d played basketball but it was nice to know that I still got it. Behind me, Max started clapping and when I turned to him, his eyes were now filled with adoration. Sometimes, I forget how easy it was to charm a kid. It was as if anything adults do - even if it wasn’t close to perfection, it still blew them away.
“So, want me to teach you, kid?”
Max’s eyes were still wide but this time, with astonishment and adoration. He moved closer to me and I allowed him to follow me to where the ring was, picking up the ball and raising a hand at him so he would stop. We were four feet away from each other and I tossed him the ball. Clumsily, he caught it and for a moment, my mind flashed back to the first time I held a basketball in my hand. Milo used to be so into soccer when we were younger and I never found it fun. My Dad took me to the department store and told me to choose any ball. I picked up the orange one. We went home and he began to teach me the basics. I’d played since then, making varsity in middle school, high school and briefly in college.
“Let me see you dribble,” I told him, crossing my arms across my chest and watching as he awkwardly began to dribble. I motioned for the ball and showed him, explaining to him that force was needed so you could dribble better. We spent about half an hour dribbling, tossing the ball back and forth each other.
By the time that he got the hang of it, Max had loosened up to me. “Can you...can you teach me...to shoot now?”
He still stuttered. “Say it straight first.”
Max swallowed and shook his head. “I...I can’t.”
I bit my lip and then tossed him the ball then crossed the distance between us. I positioned his hands, his left on the side and his right on the bottom. “That’s how you’re supposed to hold it when you take a shot. The left hand is for support and your right hand is for the force that you need to shoot the ball. You can bend your knees so you can jump when you take the shot. Try it.”
Max nodded his head, biting his bottom lip and his eyebrows were furrowed in concentration. He took the shot, not jumping but standing on his tip-toes and the ball was too far from the ring. I jogged to get the ball and went back to Max who was pouting. “I’m not good at this.”
“You weren’t good at dribbling or passing earlier but you got the hang of it,” I answered, handing him the ball again, “and no one gets it the first time, kid. That’s why we try again.”
I let him take a shot over and over again and at one point, I had to lower the ring so it wouldn’t be too high for him. He still couldn’t make a shot and I could see that he was about to cry in frustration. He held the ball in his hands, positioned him the way I taught him and then with all his might, he pushed the ball forward using his right hand and we both watched as it sailed in the air and cleanly made it through the net.
Cheering, I picked him up and Max was laughing with glee, his giggles filling the backyard. Neither of us heard his mother calling his name out in the house, her voice becoming hysterical by the minute. “MAX!”
Both Max and I abruptly stopped and I set him on the ground. We turned to the back porch where Eleanor stood. Her hair was a mess, brown hair out of the ponytail she had tied it in. Her makeup was smudged all over her face and the fear was so clear in her eyes. “Oh my god, Max!”
She rushed to where Max stood, enveloping him into a crushing hug as Max tried to pry himself off of his mother. He whined, “Mom!”
Eleanor kissed the top of his head. “You need to take a bath and change. We have to go to your Aunt Megan’s.”
“Oh shit, I forgot!” I suddenly said and Eleanor glared at me but didn’t say anything. She simply tugged Max away and Max looked back, waving at me.
He called out. “Can..can we play...tomorrow?”
Eleanor kept on tugging at his hand and I flashed him a thumbs up, nodding. I followed them inside the house, showered in the bathroom downstairs and changed. Megan would kill me if we were late for the dinner. I checked my phone and saw that Everett had texted, telling me that he couldn’t come back to change since they were already busy back there and Violet didn’t want him to leave.
Which meant that I was going to drive the three of us to Milo and Megan’s. This would definitely be an awkward car ride.
When I exited Everett’s room, Eleanor and Max were already in the living room. Eleanor looked casual this time, wearing jeans and a cropped shirt that hiked up from time to time, showing her toned stomach. I tried my best to look away because I would land in deeper waters if she caught me staring. “Where’s Everett?”
Her tone was clipped and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. She made her distaste so obvious when she could’ve played it out as indifference. “Vi won’t let him leave to change here. Looks like I’m driving us to Milo’s.”
Eleanor bit her lip, the annoyance so clear in her eyes. But Max cheered and slipped through his mother’s grasp, reaching for my hand which surprised me. And Eleanor. She watched with wide eyes as Max held my hand tightly, grinning up at me. “Let’s go, Leo!”
He didn’t stutter this time and I grinned back, ruffling his brown curls as we left the house and Eleanor locked it. Eleanor sat in the front seat, turning her head to the window and ignoring me. But Max made up for his mother’s coldness because he filled the entire car ride with his stuttering chatter and contagious laughter. We finally reached the house and the driveway was almost filled with their guests’ cars.
The moment I stepped foot in the house, Violet tackled me in a hug, screaming my name over the chatter. I picked her up and spun her around, kissing the side of her head. “I’ve missed my favorite niece!”
Violet giggled. “I’m your only niece!”
Megan called her to introduce her to Max and I wanted to be there- as a protective uncle- when Milo clasped me on the shoulder, hard. I turned to my older brother and I saw the seriousness glinting in his eyes. “Office. Now.”
I followed him to his office slash study, the place where he used to hole himself up when he was still filled with anger over his late wife’s affair. When I closed the door, Milo asked me without any hesitation. “What’s up with you and Eleanor?”
My throat suddenly felt dry as I stood rooted in my spot, Milo’s piercing gaze paralyzing. “What?”
He crossed his arms. “Megan mentioned that the
re’s something weird with you and Eleanor. Is there anything you want to tell me, Leo?”
Eleanor had always been my secret. My brothers knew every dirty laundry I had but her. She was never someone I’d mentioned to them. That part of my past, that brief encounter- or whatever it can be called- wasn’t something that I was proud to tell them about. I was never really sure why I couldn’t. Maybe I didn’t want them to judge me. Or maybe I just didn’t want to admit that it was the first time I felt something for a girl.
I could tell Milo everything right now. I could come clean, tell him that I left Eleanor at a lake house the morning after I took her virginity.
But there were some wounds that weren’t meant to be uncovered because doing so only made it worse. So I cocked my head to the side and flashed him my trademark smirk. My brother could call me an asshole. He wasn’t wrong about that.
“She was one of the casual encounters, Milo. She’s bitter about it. No big deal.”
Milo eyes narrowed. “Then make sure you keep your distance, Leo. Drama is the last thing I need for my wedding.”
He left me alone in the office after that and I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and tried to calm myself. When I opened the door of Milo’s office, Eleanor was the first person I saw. She was holding a glass of wine, talking with Mrs. Barrymore. She was laughing and smiling and she looked so carefree, so different from the girl wearing the orange dress, drenched in the rain. My chest felt tight and I swallowed, Milo’s words echoing in my mind, followed by Eleanor’s words earlier.
Had I meant anything to you, I would’ve gotten a decent goodbye.
She was still so beautiful and my fingers twitched, begging for a camera to take a quit shot at the captivating beauty that was right in front of me but just as my mind reminded me that I didn’t have one, it also reminded me of something else.
It wasn’t a beauty that I had the right to capture anymore.
CHAPTER 4
Eleanor
Sunlight filled the room and the white paint made everything even brighter. There was no denying that it was morning and when I glanced at the digital clock placed on the nightstand of the room I was in, the digits 7:20 was glaring right at me. I rolled to my side, expecting Max to be asleep beside me. He was a heavy sleeper and I knew that he didn’t get enough sleep yesterday because he was excited to meet Violet and they wouldn’t leave each other’s side last night and he even cried when we said that we had to head back. Megan was willing to let him sleepover but I didn’t want to give them another kid to look after since they already had Violet and Atlas.
Surprisingly, it was Leo who managed to convince him to come back to the house we stayed in.
Max wasn’t beside me and I shot upright, staring at the empty space. Without thinking of putting on a robe, I rushed downstairs, calling out his name and hearing his stuttering response that he was in the kitchen. When I reached where he was, I stopped dead in my tracks. My curly boy was seated beside Leo, his own curly hair on display, sticking out in every direction. The two of them sat beside each other, their shoulders brushing together and there was someone else in the room, by the stove, holding a spatula and flipping a pancake over the pan.
It wasn’t Everett but he had the same Hudson charm. He looked up and saw me first, his eyebrows rising up in surprise, blue and gray eyes glinted with amusement. “I think your Mom’s here, Max.”
His voice was low and he cocked his head to the side, a slow smile making its way on his face as he assessed me. I rolled my eyes, the move eerily familiar. Max turned his head so he could look at me but at the same time, Leo did too. Two sets of piercing gray eyes bore right into my golden ones and I swallowed, the intensity of the gaze enough to make my knees buckle beneath me.
Almost seven years later and I hated that Leo still had that effect on me.
But I let out a breath and played it cool. I walked over to Max and kissed the top of his head and he looked at me, a toothy grin on his handsome face. “Hi...Mom! I didn’t...want to...wake you!”
I smiled, kissing his forehead and nodding. “It’s alright. But don’t do that when it’s just us at the hotel, okay?”
Max looked up at me and pouted. “Can’t we just stay here until we leave for Irving?”
“Irving?” Leo repeated beside us, looking at me expectantly, as if I owed him an explanation. I ignored him but his younger brother, the one by the stove piped up. I vaguely remember Megan had told me that the youngest Hudson was named Julian and as far as I could remember, Leo mentioned about a brother named Julian too. I think he must’ve been the rockstar and they did mention that he was coming here a day later than the two because he was meant to perform live in Boston or something.
“You’re moving back to Irving?” Julian asked, turning off the stove and carrying a plate to where we were. He placed the plate stacked with pancakes in front of us and handed us each a fork. I made a move to get another plate but I felt a hand wrap on my wrist.
It was Leo’s and his warmth tickled my skin, sending a wave of tingles all over my arm as I stared at his hand on mine. Quickly, he let go, as if there was an electric shock that made him do so. “Moving back to Irving?”
I never really mentioned to Leo that I was from Irving just like he was. It was simply a topic that we didn’t really touch because we were too busy learning about everything else. Well, that was what I thought we were doing. Leo was just simply bidding the time until he could sleep with me. It was a typical move of Leo Hudson and no matter how many warnings and red flags were thrown my way, I didn’t heed to them.
Still, I ignored Leo but I could feel his gaze on me as I answered Julian. “How’d you know I was from Irving?”
Julian shrugged, picking up a piece of pancake, folding it and stuffing it in his mouth. He swallowed and then answered me, “Milo picked me up earlier. He mentioned that you were staying here with us for a night and I asked how they knew you. He said you were Megan’s friend from back home.”
“How come I never...ow!” I didn’t let Leo finish his sentence. I stepped on his foot. It was clear that his brothers had no clue about our past and it obviously didn’t mean anything to him. I just didn’t want any drama to unfold because of us so I had to make sure that it stayed the way that it was.
“Megan and I used to be neighbors. We’ve been best friends since. Kept in touch despite the years and distance,” I informed Julian with a smile. He looked between Leo and I but didn’t say anything. Instead, he cocked his head to the side, a small smirk playing on his lips as he let his teeth graze the skin of his bottom lips subtly.
“That’s weird. If you used to live in Irving, I would’ve bumped into you one way or another. Pretty girls were the only ones in my line of vision.”
I let out a snort and shook my head. “Maybe because I was a lot taller then since I am older than you by a couple of years.”
Julian dropped his act and chuckled, nodding his head at Leo. “So him, then?”
“Neither of you two saw Megan back in Irving until she began working for Milo. Don’t you think it’s the same for me?” I wanted to drop the topic and it seemed that Julian knew he was on to something. My phone rang upstairs and I quickly spun around, releasing a breath of relief when I reached the room I was staying in.
I answered the phone. “Hello?”
“Elle! Oh my gosh. We have a problem. The person that I talked to about the venue. Shit. He was a scammer, okay? I didn’t. God damn it. I should’ve known better. I should’ve read the reviews. You’re a lawyer, right? Maybe you can put him on trial or something. I’ve already paid for the venue. Shit. Fuck. I screwed up. Damn!” She was talking a mile per minute and I could barely register what she was saying and the signal was crap in the bedroom so I had to rush downstairs.
“Hold up, Morgan. Can you slow down, please? I can’t understand you.”
By this time, it was clear that Morgan was crying. “I’m sorry, Elle. I screwed it up. I didn’t...I should’ve made sure that
person was legit. I’m sorry, Elle. We don’t have a venue for Megan’s bridal shower.”
Her voice was shaking as she told me this and I closed my eyes, trying to keep myself in check. I didn’t want to be mad at Morgan. She made a mistake. She was just as busy as me with her work and I should’ve made sure too that the person that she had contacted about it was legit. There were a lot of scammers these days and I was a lawyer, I should’ve been the one who made sure.
But now I understood why Morgan was crying and the frantic tone in her voice. The bridal shower was meant to happen tonight. We’d already reached out to Megan’s friends. “So we don’t have a venue. Shit. I’ll...I’ll figure it out Morgan. Maybe we can contact a hotel or get an AirBnB or something. The food...we’ll figure it out. Just...don’t tell Megan anything’s wrong.”
“I’m really sorry, Elle,” Morgan said one last time and I closed my eyes, nodding but then realized that she couldn’t see me. I told her I’d call her once I had a venue but I wasn’t even sure if I could find one. I leaned against the railing of the stairs, my hand on my forehead, rubbing it. Damn it. We were screwed.
“Is the world ending?”
I looked up and saw Leo. He was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed against his chest, his head cocked to the side. His curly hair was now tied in the way that he seemed to be wearing it now. His shirt fit tight against his skin and it made his well-defined chest visible. I blinked, turning away at the sight but the sight of him made my stomach drop. Didn’t I tell him to stay away from me or had if I hadn’t, wasn’t it clear enough for him that he was the last person I wanted to talk to?
Ignoring him, I fiddled with my phone, going through AirBnB within the city if it was possible to have it book in the last minute. But it seemed that there weren’t too many units within the city to book. Unconsciously, I chewed on my thumb, a habit that I had when I was beginning to get nervous. Last night, Megan had mentioned that she was excited about the bridal shower that Morgan and I had prepared for her. She was the last person in the world I wanted to disappoint.