Page 19 of Merrily Yours
Fuck.
Frustrated, I close out of the app and allow myself to drift into a fitful nap.
Louie’s is full tonight. I was informed that they are hosting a Christmas Eve Eve party, which I didn’t know was a thing.
We all left the house together about an hour ago and are now occupying a corner booth. Louie has decided he wants to start making specialty cocktails so we have three sitting in the middle of the table, everyone afraid to touch them. Instead, my brothers and I all have a beer, Anders has a coke, and Bex is sipping a Shirley Temple with extra cherries.
“C’mon, one of you has to try one!” Bex encourages. “I would but…” She rubs her belly and shrugs.
I look over and see Ben and Jules touching their noses—that fucking twin telepathy at work again. “Nose goes,” Ben says, eyeing me.
Fine, I’ll bite.
“Which one should I try first? The homemade Wassail, Christmas punch, or Santa’s Snowball?” I ponder.
Jules grimaces. “What the fuck is Santa’s Snowball?”
“Louie said something about Amaretto and ice cream? Maybe brandy? He rattled off so many ingredients, I stopped paying attention,” Anders admits.
“I’ll try that one first…” I take a sip, acting as though I’m at a wine tasting. The liquid swirls in the glass before meeting my tongue anddamn—that’s phenomenal.
“Holy shit, that’s good! It just tastes like vanilla ice cream,” I say.
Bex’s eyebrows lift. “Dangerous.”
She’s not wrong.
Another hour later and I’ve finished all three of Louie’s specialty cocktails with the help of Ben and Jules, once they realized I wasn’t fucking with them about how good they were.
“Let’s get more!” Ben says as he downs the dregs of the Christmas punch. Bex and I are each sitting on the outside of the booth, so we slide out and head toward the bar to get another round.
“So, I think we’ve talked Ben into coming home… What about you and Anders?” I ask. I’m definitely feeling tipsy but not completely smashed. I’m on my way there, though.
Bex shrugs her shoulders, looking away. “We’re not quite done in—” Her eyes widen incrementally as she rapidly looks back and forth between me and the entrance. “I swear I had no idea, I’m so sorry,” she leans in and frantically whispers.
“What are you?—”
“Luce!” Bex exclaims, and my ears start ringing. “I didn’t know you were in town tonight!”
Luci. Fuck.
Last I checked she was teaching yoga at a wellness center in Hawaii.
Bex opens her arms, welcoming in one of her best friends. They sway back and forth a few times before Luci pulls back and looks at my sister with eyes full of love. I face toward the bar because I can only take so much torture, seeing her again.
I overhear Luci say, “Oh my goodness, look at that belly! I can’t believe I’m going to be an auntie again!”
“I’ve missed you, Luce. El will be so excited to see you,” Bex adds.
“I’m excited to see her,” Luci states. “And the rest of your crazy crew.”
Taking that as my cue, I inhale deeply before turning to face my biggest regret.
“Hey, Luce, it’s good to see you.” I dip my chin in acknowledgement.
“Likewise, Gabriel.” Her skin is tan, even in December, and her blue eyes are shining. Her golden blonde hair is streaked with lighter highlights. She’s definitely been somewhere sunny, then. But why is she here?
“What’s with the surprise appearance?” I ask and immediately hear how annoyed I sound, though that’s not my intention.
