Page 9 of (Un)Spoken

Standing under his arm, my mother, Julia, smiled at me, as if unsure how to proceed. If my father was our family’s rock, my mother was the sun, the person who always guided me home. Growing up, our home was always filled with her laughter, making it the most welcoming place in the neighborhood, but the years had stripped some of her joy, especially when Cole felt so lost to us.

My mother’s brown eyes softened as she looked at me, wanting to say more than this space would allow. I nodded, hoping they could read the unsaid apology in my expression.

I stepped forward, breaking the stalemate between us. My mother sunk into my embrace, and tears dusted my eyes when my father kissed the top of my head. Cole watched the whole exchange with a concerned frown, probably trying to understand the odd fracture between us.

No matter what happened, there was no doubt that my parents were good people. Even when they were disappointed in me, I never questioned how much they loved me. Emilia adored them, and they were the first ones to show up whenever she needed them. But they also had grown up in a different time and held onto some of those old-fashioned beliefs. My decision not to marry Cam when those two lines showed up would always be a point of contention between us, but I could put that aside for Cole’s sake.

“Is that her?” a feminine voice called out. “It’s so nice to—oh.”

I chuckled as my parents let me go, turning to face thenew arrivals. Cole chuckled, pushing me over to greet them. “Hey, Marta and Curt, this is my baby sister, Tori. She just got in from Texas this afternoon. Tor, these are our next-door neighbors.”

Marta reached out first, vigorously shaking my hand. “We are so excited to meet you. Cole hasn’t stopped talking about you for weeks.”

“Likewise.” I smiled, shaking her hand and then turning toward Curt. “Cole said you’ve been so helpful with getting everything up and running at the Lodge.”

“Pssh,” Marta said, waving her hand through the air. “Curt’s picked up a couple of side projects, and I helped set up the kitchen. That’s nothing compared to what these kids have been up to.”

“Speaking of which,” Cole said, looking around her, “where is Alex?”

Everyone visibly flinched at the same time. Marta was the one actually to speak, though. “She felt bad about not helping with dinner, so she thought she’d make a cake for dessert.”

“Fuck,” Cole hissed under his breath, earning a whack in the arm from our mother. “Please tell me you checked the fire extinguisher.”

“Of course,” Curt chuckled. “And don’t worry, Marta supervised. Seemed like everything was going well, but she’s refusing to leave the kitchen until it’s done. Afraid she’s going to burn the damn thing.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Marta chuckled.

“I’ll go grab her,” Cole chuckled, moving toward the kitchen. “Get settled in the dining room, and we’ll bring everything in.”

We walked to the other side of the house, settling into a dining room attached to the kitchen. I immediately smiledwhen I saw Alex perched in front of the oven, her hands on her hips, staring at the cake as if it had personally offended her. Cole came in through the other entrance, placing his hands on her shoulders and loosening some of the tension there with his thumbs. She scowled up at him for a moment but softened as soon as he bent down and kissed her forehead.

As she spotted the rest of us coming into the room, she dusted her hands on her jeans and turned out of Cole’s embrace. She beelined immediately for me, her bright blue eyes crinkled with delight. “So you must be Victoria. I have to say, I was starting to have my doubts that you were real.”

My face fell, and I could feel the color draining from my face. Words failed me as I stared at Alex. Even though she was a couple of inches shorter than me, my hands shook as I tried to form words. But just as I was debating darting out of the house, Alex’s lips curved into a slow smile. “Sorry, that probably was a shitty thing to say. What I meant was, I’m really happy you’re here. It means a lot to both me and Cole.”

“Oh,” I chuckled, holding my hand to my heart. “I…Yeah, I’m thrilled to be here too. This town is beautiful.”

“Thanks,” she beamed. “It’s not as flashy as most cities, but it’s home. We like it.”

With that, she ushered me into my seat across from my mother. Curt and Marta sat on either side while my dad and Cole took opposing heads of the table. Alex sat on Cole’s left, leaving a space between me and her. I looked down at the empty chair, hoping it was for the one person I’d been dying to see tonight. “Are you expecting anyone else?” I asked, feigning ignorance.

“Adam’s supposed to be here,” Cole shrugged. “But he’s running late. He should be here before dessert.”

Disappointment settled in my gut, and I hated that all it took was one conversation for my childhood crush to turn into full-blown lust. Truth be told, no one, and I mean no one, knew that I’d thought Adam was the most handsome man in the world when I was younger. I guarded that secret like my own field of gold, not wanting to be ridiculed for my attraction to the much older boy.

My crush had faded over time, and I’d forgotten about him outside of his work in movies. By then, he was just another handsome actor, attractive but unattainable.

But seeing him earlier made something snap inside me, a feeling I’d long buried since breaking up with Cam. Seeing him so close? Smelling the lingering cologne on his skin? Well, that made me feel more desire than I had in years.

Glancing at my brother, I knew it was a mistake even to entertain these thoughts. Adam was his best friend, more his sibling than me at the moment. To think anything different was a mistake, mainly when we lived in such very different worlds. At the end of this week, I’d go back to Texas, go back to my life of laundry, cleaning, and trying to wrangle Emilia. Adam would go back to the glistening lights of Hollywood, probably to whatever model or actress was warming his bed at the moment.

“So, Victoria,” Marta said as she passed me the salad bowl. “Your mom says you’re studying business?”

“Yes, ma’am,” I nodded. “I’m enrolled in online classes right now, but I’m hoping to start my MBA next year.”

“That’s exciting,” she beamed back. Something about Marta made my panic subside. She was genuine and warm, similar to my own mother in many ways, but without the disappointment that lurked underneath. “Do you know what type of business you’d like to go into?”

“My best friend and I have this dream of opening a daycare center,” I answered, trying not to shift under the weight of the whole table’s stares. “She’s studying to be an early childhood teacher, so between our skill sets, we should be a great team. And there’s a drastic need for quality childcare, especially in more rural areas. We’re hoping to fill that gap.”