Page 1 of The Drop

Chapter One

Brooke

My face hurts from smiling at everyone.

I would’ve thought I’d have this down by now; I’ve been doing it since I was little. Dress the part, show up, smile at all my mom’s country club “friends,” act like I care what college their kids have gotten into or the new job in the city they’ve got, and keep the information for later as my Mom is going to grill me for it when I get home and finally while everyone tells me what a great time they had, I hated every second of it.

Since going to college, I haven’t had the time to attend these parties, which has been a blessing, but I couldn’t avoid this one.

Brooke and Josh’s moving home party. Now, am I moving home? No.

I’m moving to a college closer to home with my boyfriend, Josh, which is only one hour away, but that minor detail doesn’t matter as long as our moms can throw an extravagant party centred around the image of family.

So, here I am in the Hayle family’s backyard sipping cocktails in the sunshine. Sounds like fun, but Josh has been gone for most of the party, talking to his new baseball team while he’s left me in the trenches alone.

To be honest, there are probably worse parties to be at; they’ve spared no expense in hiring a bar and tables are dotted around the yard, floating flowers in the pool below the patio area we are all standing on, the string of lights hanging above us will flick on as soon as the sun is setting. The house itself sits on the outskirts of an affluent neighbourhood in Beacon Valley.

I sneak a look over towards his teammates again and spot his brunette curls immediately; he’s laughing at a joke from one of the guys, slapping him on the back before he moves off towards the house. I so badly want to follow him, but I’m stuck with a group of women.

“Josh said the apartment has a view of the river,” one of Josh’s aunts gushes as I stand with a smile fixed on my face,nodding because, truthfully, I hadn’t even seen the apartment he got for the two of us.

Josh and his mom went to view it while I had exams, and then they put down a deposit before I could even suggest waiting.

Is that normal? My best friend Cami didn't seem to think so; she said I should have refused to move in until I saw it in person. But when I told Josh that, he just laughed, thinking I was joking, and I couldn't be bothered to tell him I wasn't.

He did it for us, I have to remind myself. He said he didn’t want me to stress while studying, and it made sense, but I still wish I had known I had a river view before his aunt, who I had met once, did.

“Brooke, sweetie,” Josh’s mom’s voice calls from behind me. “Would you go find Josh? It’s time for his speech.”

I turn towards her as she puts her hands on my shoulder and silently steers me away, her jet-black hair pinned up to perfection, and her dress immaculate and tailored perfectly to her body. “Sure, no problem. I think I saw him head inside.” I smile at her politely and make my way through the crowd of over a hundred.

That's ridiculous. Josh’s entire team, friends, and family… but hey, like I said, no one stops our moms’ and a party.

I walk up the steps connecting the patio area to the main house and slip through the glass doors. I feel the cool, conditioned air on my skin as I transition from the warm end of summer air. The house is all stone, marble, and grandness, precisely like the family that lives in it.

The lounge off from the yard doors is full of family pictures of Josh and his parents’ achievements, and a lot of event pictures taken by professional photographers.

I can’t help but think of the hallway in my own house, which is all art and bare of any personal family touch. Sometimes, now that I’ve moved out, I think others wouldn’t be able to tell anyone lives there with the way my mom keeps it so bare.

After my dad died, she took all our photos down, saying it hurt too much to see him every day. I had thought that after a few months, they would go back up, but she never brought them back out. I took a framed photo of my dad and put it on the dresser in my room, so I at least could have something to look at when I wanted to. It’s been five years since he passed away, andI don’t go a day without thinking of him; he was my best friend and biggest supporter.

While my mom is uptight and cold, my dad was warm and carefree. Complete opposites ,a marriage born out of a business deal my grandparents arranged for the family business that my mother ended up taking over, anyway.

I hear voices from the kitchen. I head in that direction down the hallway, and the words I hear halt my movement.

“You’re going to be the most expensive son-in-law.” I hear my mother laugh, and I tense.

“We made that deal right after Daniel died; I just don’t think it’s necessary anymore.” I hear Josh say. He’s talking about my dad, and I feel an icy chill go down my spine.

“I know, but it’s a fair deal for all you’ve done, Josh.” My mom answers him with a sugar-coated voice. I imagine she puts a hand on his arm to drive the point home that she cares. “If you had broken up with Brooke, then who knows where she would be right now?”

“I know, but we are both happy now. You don’t need to keep paying me to stay with her.” I hear Josh laugh softly. “I’mabout to go out there in front of everyone and get down on one knee. I think that says enough about my commitment.”

The wave of dizziness and confusion hits me like a truck, and I put my hand against the cool wall to steady myself and process what I've just heard.

My mom’s been paying my boyfriend to not break up with me.

They’re still talking, but I don’t want to hear anything else. Slipping off my heels, I bend down carefully to pick them up before tiptoeing back down the hallway the way I came. I move towards the stairs and run into Josh’s mom and freeze.

---