Chapter 136
Arriving early had been the right move. With such a massive home, it was easy for Vivian to avoid dealing with these strangers who shared her blood as they trickled in one by one. Of course, she allowed Samuel to introduce her to them, and put up with some small talk, but he’d move them along after a short time.
“Still doing alright?” He asked after every introduction.
“You’re going to start saying that in your sleep if you keep asking,” Vivian warned him.
Her father shrugged. “If we sleep in the same room, you’ll just answer, ‘I’m fine,’ while you sleep. It’ll work out.”
Vivian couldn’t help rolling her eyes. “I’m fine,” she said, purposefully answering that way because of his teasing.
“Okay, I deserved that,” he admitted with a smile. “But I’m allowed to worry.”
“I know. But I really am fine.”
“Samuel!”
They both turned to meet the owner of the voice, an elderly man with no hair to speak of. Stooped with age, he still walked with confidence as he stopped just in front of them. “And this must be the young lady, Vivian.”
“Nice to meet you,” she replied as if on auto pilot. It was the line she’d said the most that day, and would be saying in her sleep if things kept up.
“I am your great-uncle, on your father’s side,” the man explained, giving Samuel a wink. “You can call me Grumps. I’m too old, and too crotchety, to bother answering to anything else.”
“Oh… okay,” she nodded, sneaking a glance at her father, who looked amused.
“Now, I’m going to borrow your handsome father here for a few minutes. I’ve got a debate going on with my son and grandson, and need someone with half a brain to tell them they’re wrong and I’m right, as usual.”
“You met them earlier,” Samuel offered. “Earl and Charlie.”
Vivian remembered them both, and could see the similarities they shared with Grumps; mainly the singular dimple on the left cheek and cleft chin. “Go settled their debate. I’m good on my own for a little.”
A frown was forming on her father’s face, but she didn’t let him get a word out as she gave his arm a small push. “Go. Seriously.”
“Alright. Let me know if you change your mind,” he told her, worry in his eyes as he looked her over for a second before following the elderly man.
“Who knew you were such a softy,” Grumps teased as they left the room.
Vivian couldn’t imagine the whiplash people were experiencing, seeing her usually stoic father dote on his daughter as much as he had been. The thought amused her a bit as she wandered around. If she happened upon someone she’d already met, they exchanged small waves, but left one another alone for the most part. I wonder what he had to say, or do, to get everyone to treat me like this wasn’t my first time at a family gathering?
Lost in thought, she found herself stepping into a sunroom where a large dog lay sprawled on the floor. A child was laying next to him, gently petting him while whispering, “Soft pets for soft dog. Soft pets for soft dog.”
The dog’s tail thumped every few seconds as Vivian watched from the door, not wanting to ruin the cute moment.
“Oscar! Where did you go? I swear to God, if you’re playing with that mutt…”
The child, whose name must be Oscar, suddenly sat up and stared at Vivian, eyes wide. His dark curls were a mess as he glanced back at the dog, who’d lifted his head for a moment to see why the pets had stopped. “Uh oh,” the boy whispered to the dog. “Mommy is gonna be so mad. Don’t tell her I was here!” In the blink of an eye, Oscar was on his feet, running out a door she hadn’t noticed on the other side of the room.
From behind her came the sound of footsteps. Vivian turned to see a woman with dark curls and narrow green eyes. “Have you seen my son?” She asked, tone clipped as the woman glanced into the room to see the dog within. “He’s obsessed with Arlo, so I thought…”
“He ran through the other door,” Vivian offered, feeling guilty at selling out the boy, but not wanting the woman to worry. “Is he not supposed to pet the dog?”
“He’s allergic to dogs,” the woman grumbled. “In about an hour he’ll start complaining he’s itchy everywhere, and I’ll have to deal with it.”
“Motherhood sounds tough.”
“You have no idea.” The woman sighed and looked at Vivian for the first time. “I’m not sure we’ve met? I’m Janine Cornell.”
“Vivian,” she offered, deciding not to bother with her last name. Everyone she’d met that day had already known her name but, without Samuel standing by her side, it seemed this woman hadn’t made the connection.
“Oh! Samuel’s girl,” Janine exclaimed. “I’m so sorry. I should have guessed as much.”
“I don’t mind,” Vivian reassured her with a small smile. “How old is Oscar?”
“Four, but I cannot wait until he’s a bit older, and I can stop worrying about him doing dumb things.”
“I… don’t think he’ll ever stop doing dumb things,” Vivian hesitantly told the woman, who let out a heavy sigh.
“Let me dream, please. His father — my husband — is the same and somehow I fell for him. It’s my own fault. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a child to find, and scold.”
“Good luck,” Vivian called after Janine, who smiled and waved before disappearing through the other door.
Arlo, for his part, was still sprawled on the floor, tail no longer moving as no one was giving him any attention.
Vivian decided to change that, venturing further into the room to crouch next to the huge dog. The dog looked like a pure bred Saint Bernard, complete with a puddle of drool where his jowls rested on the floor. Huge brown eyes looked at her, but otherwise he didn’t so much as twitch.
A giant oaf was how Vivian would describe him. She wasn’t sure what gave her this impression, but something told her nothing could make Arlo move from this spot on the floor, unless he, himself, wanted to move.
Holding out her hand, she allowed Arlo to sniff it for a few seconds before reaching behind one of his floppy ears and giving him a scratch. A groan rose from the dog when she hit a good spot, his tail beginning to thump against the floor.
Switching from crouching to sitting, Vivian decided she would spend some time getting to know this member of the family a bit better.