Page 117 of Naughty Nelle

My mouth fell open as another woman breezed into the room. She was clad in ivory linen trousers that accentuated her long legs and a jade green silk blouse that looked stunning against her flaming shoulder-length hair. It was the beautiful redhead!

“And, Saarah, this is my twin sister, Gwen.”

His twin sister?I was speechless.

The willowy redheaded beauty extended her long-fingered hand. I shook it; her grip was firm.

“So, we officially meet at last.” Her tone was frosty, totally unlike her mother’s.

She made me uneasy. I forced a half-smile. “Yes, finally.”

“Can I open my present now?” asked Ben eagerly.

A dimpled smile formed on Ari’s lush lips. “Sure. Go ahead.”

Wasting no time, the little boy removed the package from the bag and tore off the wrapping paper. The box was marked Jimmy Choo. At the last minute, after discovering that I didn’t have another box for my gift, I’d decided to recycle it. Regrettably, I had no further use for it.

“You got me shoes?” the little boy exclaimed, disappointment evident in his voice and on his frowning face.

Ari shot me a look that read: What the fuck?

“Open it.”

The little boy ripped off the lid, and a big smile exploded on his adorable face.

“Cool! A train.” He immediately dropped to his knees and rolled it on the hardwood floor. “Choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo!” He gazed up at me with his green as a Christmas tree eyes. “Where’d you get this?”

Ari gave his son a stern look. “That’s not polite, Ben. You should say thank you.”

“It’s okay.” I smiled, pleased that the little boy was so exuberant. “I made it when I was in college.”

Ari’s sister fired me a chilly look. “And, Sarah, what college might that have been?”

The look Ari shot back at her was definitely disapproving.

“The Rhode Island School of Design.”

“Such a prestigious school,” said Ari’s mother before Gwen had a chance to respond.

“You must come from quite a comfortable family to afford that kind of education,” Gwen quickly added, her tone snarky.

Ari was cringing. Before he could utter a word, I proudly said, “I was on a full scholarship, and I worked at both the campus art supply store and coffee shop to pay my expenses.”

My words worked magic.

“My late husband worked his way through school. It makes you appreciate your education,” said Ari’s lovely mother. His sister Gwen shut up.

Gleaning a little information that Ari’s father might have been a self-made man, my eyes shifted to Ben. He was examining the train, turning it upside down and spinning the wheels.

“Does this train need batteries?”

“Yes. It’s programmed. You can tell it to do all kinds of things.”

“Like what?” asked the little boy with wide-eyed curiosity. Even Ari and his family—including his judgmental sister—looked intrigued.

“Tell it to backup.”

“Train, backup!” Ben commanded with a hint of his father’s bossy tone.

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