Chapter 10

“So, Lena darling,” Anne called out from across the table, before shoving a piece of the filet mignon in her mouth, “how has work been?”

They were having dinner: Garlic butter filet mignon. Dinner nights were usually three times a week: Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. It was the middle of the week, and as much as Lena loved their dinners, she just wasn't in the mood for it today.

“Stressful, as always.” She shrugged.

She might've blamed it on the stress, but deep down she knew it was more than that.

****

A few hours before…

“Jackson Stone” was the first thing she heard. Damon bursting through the door with so nervousness visible on his face put her on edge. Her inquisitiveness reared its ugly head, and it hit her that this was her chance to find out a bit about Damon.

Plus, she was sure they were keeping secrets.

She tiptoed back to the office as stealthily as she could, trying her best not to make a sound. Placing her ear just above the lock, she listened in on their conversation.

“What?” She heard Gabe's astonished voice and she couldn't help but notice the underlying terror hidden somewhere in it.

“You heard me,” came the reply.

Lena’s heart was beating loudly through her ears, wondering what would happen if any of the two men inside opened the door.

“But… how? When?” Gabe stuttered. Who was this Jackson Stone? They made him sound like terror personified. She didn't know him, but a feeling of fright spread through her at the mention of his name.

“Don't ask stupid questions, Gabriel,” Damon's irritated reply cut off her pondering. It was hard to imagine Damon scared. He seemed like the type who wasn't scared of anything. Of anyone. No matter how she tried, she just couldn't see it.

“Well, what does he want?” Gabe asked, his voice laced with anger. All it did was fuel her curiosity by a seventy percent.

“How would I know?”

“Fuck,” Gabe muttered.

“Fuck’s right.” A slight pause. “Because he wants to meet.”

****

Lena sighed. That was the problem with knowing things you shouldn't. You wouldn't know what to do with all that information when you do find out. Confronting Gabriel about what she heard was out of the question, because he wasn't going to tell her. She didn't need a genius to tell her that.

Damon was another matter entirely. She could go to him but the chances of him telling her even a shred of anything useful was slimmer than Gabe's. Added to being mysterious, he was also extremely secretive. And she was sure he would deny everything. Men were like that.

“—he's good to you? Lena?” George’s deep voice pulled her out of her reverie. His eyebrows were raised in a questioning manner.

“Uh... What? I'm sorry, I didn't hear your question. I'm just so stressed out.”

Amusement danced in his eyes, “I was asking about Damon. I hear he's become quite the nuisance to you.”

Right. “That he has. He's okay, I mean he's brilliant. Just a huge pain.”

“Just a huge pain?” Gabe echoed. “You literally said he's the devil's incarnate.”

Anne's brows shot up. “That bad?”

She nodded, her cheeks reddening as the laughter in Anne’s eyes became clear to her. “It's horrible. It's like he's everywhere.”

“Personally, I think it's because he likes you,” she replied, carelessly sipping orange juice from her glass.

A loud snort flew out of Lena’s mouth. “Yeah, right.”

“He's a good boy, that Damon. Known him since he was five.” George shook his head, his eyes wandering off dreamily like he was thinking about a memory. “Modest, too. Hard working, just like his father. It's little EJ that was always mischievous.”

I was going to ask who EJ was, before Gabe answered, “EJ, Elvis-Joseph, is Damon's younger brother. A little brat, is what he is.”

She vaguely remembered Damon telling me he had two siblings at lunch the other day. She didn't give it much thought then. Now, she did though, since the urge to know more about him was so compelling.

“I'd love to meet him,” she said demurely.

“He's delightful, just a bit too blunt. Last time I saw him, he is only sixteen,” Anne said. She noticed the way they spoke about the Peters’ so formally, like they were all such a big family. It made the thought of meeting the rest of them all the more appealing.

“Gabriel, honey, help me clear the table. I'll get the dessert.” Anne slipped out her chair to the kitchen, as Gabe got busy clearing the dishes.

“You sure you doing okay, sweetie?” George spoke up when we were alone. The warmth in his eyes brought a smile to her lips and for the hundredth time, she counted herself lucky to have found favor in his sight. She wasn't surprised that he was asking her this sort of thing; it usually popped up more often than not.

Instinctively, her hand reached out to cover his across the table.

“I'm okay, really.” She gave him a sad smile. “It's just that it's been precisely two years, the memories seem more fresh than usual. I'll have to go see them sometime this week, since it's the anniversary of their death.”

She could tell he saw way past the smile, “Yes, it is. I'll have to go see them too. I'm so sorry, sweetheart, I wish they hadn't gone that soon.”

“It's hard, but I'm getting there. I have you, Anne, Gabe, and Caroline with me. I couldn't ask for more.”

The smile that took over his face this time was genuine. “We love you, and we'd do anything for you. Don't forget that.”

“Okay, dessert’s here,” Anne announced from the hallway as Gabe trailed behind her with a happy grin on his face, reminding Lena of a fourteen-year-old boy who just saw boobs for the first time.

They were having blueberry cheesecake crumb cake for dessert. The entire room was filled with little moans as cheese melted heavenly in their mouths, and belly-aching laughs as Anne recalled some of the exploits and tales of Gabe and Damon and someone else named Gerald as children.

This was her family, she realized. She once heard somewhere that the living and the dead had nothing in common. That wasn't to say she would ever forget her parents, but that she was ready to move on to a future without them and what awaited her. This was her future and she gladly accepted it.

****

“It's just...” she groaned to Caroline the next day in the back of her bakery. After work, she'd come straight from the office, not bothering to change out of her work clothes at home. There was so much on her mind, weighing her down heavily that even the thought of sitting still was futile. She wondered how she slept at night. “They're hiding something, Care. I can feel it.”

Care gave her a careless laugh. “Feel? You're clairvoyant now?”

Lena could tell that was all a joke to her, and her irritation increased. “I'm serious, Caroline. Before, it wasn't too conspicuous but it was there. The hushed tones, quiet phone calls, constant eye contact. I'm telling you, there's something they're not telling us—”

“You. Something they're not telling you; I'm not interested.”

Lena rolled her eyes but continued. “Ever since Jackson popped up, it's like they've becomes shadows of themselves. The fright in their eyes is so obvious.”

“Jackson?” Care narrowed her eyes.

“Apparently, he's this really evil guy in the story,” Lena mumbled stupidly. It did sound farfetched now that she thought about it.

“Lee, you're making this sound like a scary movie.”

“But it's the truth,” she whined.

“I think you just need a little bit of rest. Even if there's a Jackson, I'm pretty sure he's not as bad as you make him sound. Your inquisitiveness is getting the better of you, Lee. You need to give it a rest. Ignorance sometimes is bliss, you know?” she cooed softly.

It was times like this she felt like she was going mad. She'd told no one else about this except Care for this very reason. No one would believe her. Everybody knew that she was curiosity personified, hence their thinking she cried wolf most of the time. “Fine,” she mumbled.

She must've been lost in her own thought, because nothing else would explain why she didn't notice Care's trembling hands before. “Care? What's up?”

“There something I'd been wanting to talk to you about.”

Her words made her remember her strange behavior lately. She hadn't pushed because Care wasn't someone given to force. In fact, she hated probing. She thought about the time she saw her arguing with Gabe and knew it had something to do with him.

With a calm expression on her face, Lena nodded in response.

Care was visibly shaking and she was on alert. Care didn't shake. Ever. “Caroline? What is it?”

“Okay, Uh. . . You see, the thing I ... is...” Care’s stuttering only made her more impatient, her eyes instinctively rolling in annoyance.

“Spit it out, will you?”

It was so fast she almost missed it.

“I fucked Gabe.”

Lena felt her jaw drop to the tiled floor.

“Or he fucked me. Whichever. The thing is we fucked.”

Jesus.

Lena was silent for a few moments, processing the information. That was why she'd been ignoring him, her too. That was why they were in a heated argument: because they thought she would be angry. Oh my God, it had to be the most hilarious thing she'd heard all year.

Without thinking, Lena burst out laughing. Eventually, it got hard to breathe through the laughter and she had to take several breaths, making it look like she was on the verge of tears. Her laughter continued for a while and from the corner of her eyes, the confusion on Care's face was priceless. Lena’s laughter boomed louder, a few snorts coming out of her mouth.

It was probably because she didn't know what to make of it, but Care joined in. Next thing they knew, they were on the floor with their hands over their stomachs in hysteria.

“Phew, Jesus, Care,” she wheezed. “That was the funniest thing I've heard in a while. Is that why you've been avoiding me?”

“Kind of.” She said as she wiped drool from the corner of her mouth. “I didn't know what you'd think.”

“I'm not angry.”

“I know. I'm sorry.”

“You don't have to be. When did it happen anyway?”

She chuckled. “That night at the bar. After you left with Damon. We started out dancing, and then we were kissing, and then we were against a wall with him slamming hard into me. It was... spontaneous.”

Lena’s eyes widened, “Against a wall? Really?” Was it just her, or did it sound tempting?

She nodded. “Best sex I've ever had.”

“Wow.” Lena shook her head in wonder. “That good, huh?”

She gave her a lopsided grin. “Better than good.”

“But the thing is,” she continued, “he's kind of mad at me now because I was against telling you but he didn't see the harm. I told him to stay away from me until I figured out my feelings.”

“Feelings?” They were still on the ground, lying side by side and her hands reached out to tuck a strand of hair that had gone loose from Care’s bun behind her ear. “You have feelings for him?”

“Since that night, I think.”

“Whoa.”

She couldn't believe she didn't see all this before. She had to be the shittiest friend out there. “Well, what's there to sort out? You like him, and I'm pretty sure he likes you.”

“That's the point. He likes me. It's weird. Sure, he's hot and all but I've always seen him as my best friend, nothing more. Lena, I'm scared.”

She gave her a warm smile. “There's no reason to be. Just talk it out with him, yeah? You have my full support.”

“I love you, Lee,” she sighed.

“I love you too,” Lena said. “Both of you.”

In silence, she thought of Damon. To be completely frank, their situation wasn't that different from Gabe and Care's. Lena was well aware of the feelings she had for him, and considered herself a hypocrite seeing as she gave advice but never followed it. she heaved out a sigh, deciding that she would cross that bridge when she got to it.