Page 67 of Roses, Pearls, and Hot Summer Nights
“No, you won’t,” a female voice answered, laced with the sound of Louisiana. I only ever heard a true southern accenton television, so I grinned to hear one in real life. I recognized Rosalind, from them pointing her out earlier. She’d replaced her white sundress with a pink halter dress, but she remained barefoot, as I had seen her before. I wondered if she preferred no shoes in her house, and glanced down at my own in instant worry.
“You’re welcome here. Kit is nervous around new people, but the boys are glad you’re here. Frankly, I’m not sure they would’ve come home if she hadn’t agreed to join us, which I think their granny knew, too. So Alatheia is here to help your mom and keep your boys happy. PIs won’t get anywhere near this house. We all know that.” She stepped into the room, offering me an elegant hand. “I’m Rosalind Lent, and this is Stephen.”
I hardly noticed the man behind her, but in his defense, Rosalind had a lot of presence. Stephen looked exactly like Julian, while Jeremy clearly favored Rosalind. I couldn’t help but be mildly amused, since they called Kit Dad, but none of them looked like him.Genetics, I thought mildly,are weird.
She embraced me gently, and her perfume sweetened the air around us. “Are you bruised anywhere else or just your face? I love your pearls, by the way. They remind me of something I once wore.” She let go of me to kiss her mother-in-law on the cheek. “Message received, Dina. Are you comfortable, Alatheia? Can we get you anything? We keep that house in a constant state of readiness for Dina and any guests she brings, so I hope you found everything comfortable enough.”
“Whoa.” Jeremy stopped abruptly as soon as he entered the room. “Why didn’t anyone tell me she was here already? I wouldn’t ever leave her here to face all of you alone.”
Kit audibly groaned then went to serve himself a drink. “We’re not scary. Alatheia has been fine without you.”
Jeremy put his arm around me, giving me a gentle squeeze of welcome. “At the very least, she’s pretending to be. I think we all know that none of you are fine, or at least that would be the last adjective I picked. Can I get you something to drink?”
“Just water, please,” I managed, but my tongue felt thick and clumsy. I hated talking in crowds, particularly if every ear in the room was listening.
He released me, moving toward the bar. “One water, coming up.”
Eric nodded, approving my choice. “Stick to water, too, Jeremy. It’s early for you all to start getting into trouble already.”
Jeremy didn’t comment. Instead, he poured two glasses of water, handing me one before adding, “Come sit next to me.”
I followed him to the unoccupied couch as Julian entered eating an apple. He widened his eyes when he spotted us. “Granny, you are here so early, and you brought Alatheia. Why wouldn’t you tell us she was already here in the big house?”
“Why are you eating?” his mother asked in return then shook her head. “We’re eating in a half an hour.”
He grinned. “Yes, butwhatare we eating, because I’m not into the whole vegan thing you’re doing.”
Dina caught her breath, cringing slightly. “Oh.”
“Gwenyth Paltrow does vegan. I saw it online, and it’s good for you. Still, we have a guest. I wasn’t told about any food allergies.” She paused. “Do you have any food allergies, Alatheia?”
I shook my head. “No, Mrs. Lent.” I couldn’t help but thinkthank goodness I don’t. With my family in charge of my diet, I’d be dead. They probably would’ve given me a peanut, just to make sure they did the job right. I caught my breath, surprised at my own dark turn of thoughts.It isn’t that bad, is it?
“You’re not gluten free or a vegetarian or vegan? As Jules just pointed out, we can actually accommodate most dietary restrictions pretty easily.”
I shook my head. “No. I can eat anything. I’m not picky.”Just grateful to be fed, truthfully.
“We’re having steak, then. Would you prefer a soda to water? We even have the kind with sugar in the back of the garage,” Rosalind said. “I’m not vegan this week.”
Julian sat down on my other side with a huff. “She hides the good stuff. I’ll still eat my dinner, Mom. I could eat all day.”
“He’s not kidding.” Jeremy smiled at me, his eyes going a bit hot as he scanned my outfit. “You look pretty. Where did you get that necklace?”
I touched it and smiled automatically. She said it brought strength, so maybe the charm worked. More likely it worked the power of suggestion, but I would take whatever strength I could borrow. I nodded toward his Granny. “Mrs. Lent—sorry, Dina—loaned it to me.”
Rosalind perched next to Daniel before giving a vague wave of one hand. The Lent women really mastered the hand wave. “That makes it easier to tell you not to call us Mr. Mrs. or Dr. Just use our first names. It’s easier.”
She was sitting awfully close to Daniel, I noticed, sipping my water and glancing at her shoes. Wasn’t she married to Kit?None of my business.I was going to keep my mind off questions like that while smushed between her two sons. Seemed a way safer bet, anyway.
“Yes, ma’am. I mean Rosalind. Thank you.”
Stephen offered me his hand. “I didn’t officially say hello. It’s nice to meet you, Alatheia.”
“Nice to meet you.”
Handshakes out of the way, I wondered if I could breathe again.
“Alatheia is living with her aunt and uncle, the Samuelses. In Granny’s building.” Jeremey squeezed my arm.
