Twelve

Standing before Lani’s vanity, I smoothed the last lock of hair with my new flat iron Kristen had convinced me to buy on our last mall trip. I always wore my hair in big waves, and to see it so sleek was a little strange. But I liked it. It looked longer, hanging just passed my shoulders. I had cut so much of my hair off around Thanksgiving, and I missed having it hang down my back.

Unplugging the flat iron, I rested it safely on the dresser to cool and took one final peek at my look. Red and black plaid skinny pants. A black sweater that hung to my thighs and black heeled boots that went to the knee. I usually wore flats, so to be in heels was a little strange. I could walk fine in them, the air just seemed different this high up.

I opened the door and wandered into Laura’s room where Lani was putting on her eyeshadow. It’s amazing what a bottle of wine and an impromptu sleepover in your boyfriend’s sister’s room can do. We had spent the night getting to know each other. Laughing, talking, and hearing the most adorable stories of Erik as a little boy. It was clear these girls cherished their baby brother and as a result, I cherished them. In true sleepover spirit, I had crashed on their floor, so even if Erik had wandered up to Lani’s room last night looking to lure me into his bedroom, I wouldn’t have known.

“Hey, does my hair clash with my pants?” I asked feeling self-conscious. I never wore red for this reason. But I really loved these pants.

Lani started laughing but looked at me intently before she answered. “No, it’s a dark red, not crayon red, so it looks nice, and the black sweater breaks up your hair and the plaid.” She shook her head. “But, I can honestly say no one has ever asked me if their hair clashed with their pants before.”

I sat on the edge of her bed. “It’s a struggle not to clash. That’s why I usually wear black.”

“And here I thought it was because you were a creature of the night.” She smiled, and I laughed. It was amazing how fast I had felt comfortable with Lani. Maybe it’s because she was so much like Erik. I just gravitated toward her.

Lani had on black leather pants and a dark green turtleneck that she paired with a chunky necklace and black heels. Her strawberry blonde hair was pulled into a ponytail with a perfect pompadour. She was so pretty, and when she caught me admiring her in the mirror, I blushed and look away.

There was a knock on the door, and Erik walked in wearing his black jeans, black boots, and a dark blue sweater I had never seen before. He had the collar popped up, and his hair was in a low ponytail. He was too cute.

“Lani, the star on the tree went out again.”

“Of course it did. That thing is ancient. I believe people were listening to music on records when mom bought it.”

“You know the drill. Let’s go.”

She shook her head no. “I’m in leather pants. Brit can do it.” He turned to me and grinned.

“Do what?”

“He’s going to put you on his shoulders so you can fix the star on top of the tree. Dad insists on buying a ten-footer every year, and every year that damn star fizzles out before Christmas morning.”

“And every year since I was about fifteen, you and me fix it,” Erik said.

“Erik, they need a new star. I’m too old for this crap.”

“I like the old star. C’mon, it’s a tradition.”

“Make a new tradition. Brit, you’re hired.” She turned her attention back to the mirror and applied a coat of shimmery lip gloss.

“C’mon.” He cocked his head and walked out the room, knowing I’d follow. I turned to Lani.

“Don’t you guys have a step stool?”

“Now where’s the fun in that?” Erik called from the hallway.

When I walked into the living room, Erik was moving gifts away from the tree so he wouldn’t step on them. Then he crouched down and tapped on his shoulders.

“Get on.”

“I change my mind. I’ll grab a chair from the kitchen.”

“You can’t break tradition!” I think he was serious.

“That’s a tradition between you and Lani. Not me.”

“Dad!” Erik called as his father passed by. I gave him a look. Was he really going to stoop to this level?

Mr. Draxton popped in. “What’s up?”

“The star is out.” Yes. Yes he was.

“Want me to call Lani?”

“Already did. She’s afraid of tearing her leather pants. Claims she’s too old.”

“Brit, looks like you’re on deck.” Mr. Draxton inhaled deeply. “That dinner smells wonderful. Erik, do you know if Dan is joining us tonight?”

Dan was Lani’s boyfriend. I perked up. I’d love to not be the only non-family member here. Not that they hadn’t made me feel overwhelmingly welcome, but it’s nice to not be a minority.

“She didn’t mention it, why?”

“Mom set the table for seven. And when I asked her, she changed the subject and started fluttering around the kitchen.”

“She probably didn’t even hear you. You know how she gets when she’s cooking a big meal.”

“Yeah. Maybe she didn’t even realize she set an extra place. I’m going to grab a beer, you want one?”

Erik perked up for a bit, then shook his head. “Nah. I’m officially twenty-one on Saturday. I can wait two more days.”

“Right, because liquor has never touched your saintly lips before.” His dad rolled his eyes then left the room.

“You hear that, you have saintly lips,” I teased.

“How lucky for you, kissing me must be heaven!”

“Ugh. Corny!”

“Overshot?”

“Only by a mile.”

“Come on, get on my shoulders.”

I groaned but knew I wouldn’t win. So with a shaky leg, I straddled Erik’s neck. He rose up faster than I had anticipated, and I screamed.

He laughed. “You okay?”

“Not really, I just realized now I’m afraid of heights.” I could not have chosen a more inaccurate choice of words. Erik started stumbling around the living room, causing me to cling to his neck for dear life.

“Crap, I feel dizzy…” He staggered about, and I almost peed my pants from being so scared.

I grabbed the only thing to give me leverage… his hair. He froze. “Walk slowly to the tree so I can fix the damn star and you can put me down.”

“As you wish.” He walked over slow as a snail, and I rolled my eyes. When we finally reached the tree, I stretched over with a shaky hand and fiddled with the star. The wire had come loose. I only had to play with it for a few seconds before the light came back on.

“There. Now put me down.”

“You know, I could get some great exercise this way.” He bent down and did a squat. “One.”

“Erik!” I almost flipped over.

He ignored me and bent his legs again. “Two.”

This time, I was more prepared. I even laughed, which only encouraged him.

“Three.”

“How many are you going for, killer?”

“One hundred.”

“I’ll give you until ten, then I scream for your dad.”

“Four.” He rose up again. “Trust me, he won’t help you.”

The doorbell rang. Erik looked up at me. “I guess our mystery place setting has arrived.” I heard the door open, and Mrs. Draxton squealed.

“Let’s see who it is, shall we?”

“No! Put me down first.”

“I haven’t even gotten up to ten yet.”

“Oh honey!” Mrs. Draxton said from the vestibule. “I’m so glad you made it! Erik will be thrilled to see you.”

“Hear that? I’m going to be thrilled!” Erik started bouncing his shoulders to make me jiggle like Jell-o above him. I felt like a total jerk. Before we could walk out of the living room, Laura ran in.

“Shit,” she muttered, and I looked at her wondering why she was so disturbed. “Erik, do you know who mom invited over?”

“No clue.”

“Alice!” Laura lowered her voice, the second syllable coming out like a hiss. I couldn’t see Erik’s expression so I had no idea if Alice was a good thing or a bad thing. Mrs. Draxton walked in with Alice behind her. She stepped to the side, and I was able to get a clearer view.

Alice had platinum blonde hair and light eyes. She was tall, too, at least five-foot-nine. I wondered if she was a cousin. She certainly looked like she could be a Draxton.

“What the hell is she doing here?” Laura mumbled. I looked at her. She seemed pissed. Okay… maybe not a cousin.

“Laura!” Mrs. Draxton looked horrified. I really wished Erik would put me down. Why did I have to be towering above everyone in the middle of the drama?

Alice looked embarrassed, but then she turned her gaze to Erik, and a warm smile spread across her face. Oh god, please let this chick be Erik’s version of Jaime. A best friend who has no sexual attraction to any man—or more specifically, my man—at all. “Hey Erik.” She didn’t say his name. She breathed it. “It’s been a long time.”

Erik didn’t answer just bent his knees slowly so I could get off without looking like any more of a circus freak. Once I was back on the ground and standing on my own two feet, I felt really small between these two. Even with my heels, this girl had an Amazon thing going for her. Sexy Amazon, not scary Amazon. Lord knows I would have preferred scary.

“What are you doing here?” He sounded stunned. I glanced at him; he was pale.

“Erik!” Mrs. Draxton snapped. “Is that any way to treat our guest? Have all my children lost their manners?”

Erik shook his head, embarrassed, then smiled at Alice for the first time as he quickly retied his ponytail. I had destroyed his neat hair while I was freaking out up in the mountains.

“She’s right. I’m so sorry. Merry Christmas.” He took a step over to her and hugged her. A real hug. Like how you hug your cool cousin that you haven’t seen in close to a year because he’s a Navy Seal out on a secret military mission.

“Who is that?” I whispered to Laura.

“Alice Groves,” she said the name slick with hate.

Okay. A name wasn’t really helpful. “But who is she?”

Laura grabbed my hand and pulled me into the dining room. “I don’t know why she’s here, but that’s Erik’s old girlfriend.”

“His girlfriend?” My heart slammed into the pit of my stomach.

“Ex… they broke up like two years ago.”

“Well, how long were they together?”

“Most of high school. They tried to stay together when they both started college, but you know how that goes.” No. No, I don’t know how that goes. “My parents loved her, but personally… I think she’s crazy.”

Huh. Was this the twisted relationship that left the Draxton girls wary of any new love interest in Erik’s life?

“Crazy?” I perked up. “I have experience with crazy.”

“Not like this. She hides it well. Seriously why the fuck is she here?”

I have to say, I was flattered by how upset Laura was over our little dinner guest.

“Laura?” Mrs. Draxton called from the hallway. “Laura! Can you tell Lani to come down to see Alice?”

“Fuck!” Laura whispered. “Just remember, he’s with you now. Stay strong.” Then she tossed on a fake smile and walked back into the living room to get to the stairs.

Stay strong? How ugly was this going to get? I peeked back inside and studied Alice. She had long flowing platinum blonde hair that cascaded down her back and hit her hips. I was so tempted to tug it and see if it was real. I mean, who has hair like that? Unless you’re Khaleesi on Game of Thrones, no one.

Then there were her eyes. They were lost somewhere between blue and green. Turquoise. Where my skin was pale with an ashen quality that resembled the undead, she was fair with a natural pink hue in her cheeks and a dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose. As far as I could tell, she wasn’t even wearing a drop of make-up. I started to put my money on the fact that she was part fairy. What real girl looked like this? When she opened her mouth to speak, I expected to hear elven.

Mrs. Draxton had excused herself to finish dinner. When she walked passed me, she gave my arm a rub. “Such a nice girl,” she said with a shaky voice, and I had no idea who she meant, me or her? But I had a feeling it was Alice.

I had two options. I could spy on them from the corner or suck it up and introduce myself. I really wanted to spy. That seemed creepy, so I braved the unknown.

“Hey, I’m Brit,” I said, walking in with so much confidence I must have just been bunked over the head by my fairy godmother.

“Oh, I’m sorry! Alice, this is my girlfriend.” Erik put his arm around my waist, and I exhaled in relief. That’s right, baby… I’m almost wishing my name was still on your arm right now.

“So nice to meet you.” She shook my hand and kept her gaze on my hair a little longer than was necessary. “So… uh… how did you two meet?” She swallowed, and I could tell this was just as awkward for her as it was for me.

“Art class,” we said at the same time, and I saw the sparkle leave Alice’s eyes as she was just smacked with a dose of how cute we were together. Not everyone can handle it.

Brit-1, Alice-0