Page 42 of The Holiday Hate-Off
Even though I lost my own mother in a different way, I lost her all the same. After she left, she used to call a few times a week. But she never asked for shared custody, and then she got remarried. All of us kids had gone to the wedding. And it was one of the last times we ever saw her.Her husband didn’t like kids, and it turned out she didn’t like them much either. Every now and then a random birthday or holiday card will arrive, and that’s the extent of our relationship with her.
I’ve tried to protect my siblings from the pain as much as possible, and God knows my grandparents stepped up, but fuck. That doesn’t make it easy.
Losing someone to death isn’t easy either. I’ve lost other people that way. My nonno. Friends. Work colleagues.
I push the thoughts down and try to shift back to the present.
My neighbor…cabbage…
“Well, she seems nice, anyway,” I say with a sigh.
Giovanni looks surprised by this, probably since I just made it very clear I’ve never met her.
“We’ve exchanged a couple of notes,” I explain.
“Notes?” He furrows his brow.
“Neighbor stuff.”
“Okay, champ. I think you’re just trying to shift the subject off a certain difficult woman.”
“Devil Woman,” I say.
“Sure. Speaking of devil women, Portia told me my taffy pulling debut will be next Saturday afternoon, before the lobster trap tree lighting. She figures she can gather a big crowd and then send them out to the harbor.”
He looks amused, not pissed, so I know he doesn’t mind too much.
“You got a thing for Portia?” I ask with interest. She’s friendly with our sister, Aria, so she hung out at our house a few times when we were younger. Even though I’ve seen her at least a dozen times over the past few years, I still remember her as a skinny goth teen.
He shrugs. “Nah. We just like giving each other shit. Besides, I’m pretty sure she’s into women. Both of us werechecking out Amanda Willis at the tree lighting in town square.”
“I mean, it’s Amanda Willis,” I say with a half-smile. “She’s a movie star.”
“Youweren’t checking her out,” he says pointedly.
No, because I hadn’t gone to the tree lighting. I’d just arrived back in town, and I’d spent that night in Aria’s apartment, poring over Hidden Italy’s books and trying to tap into the brilliance that seems to have seeped out of me.
“If I’d been there, I’m sure I would have been checking her out too,” I hedge.
“Or checking out Lucy.”
“She hates me,” I huff.
“You know, I really think she does. I have to say, you have your work cut out for you.”
“I’m not interested in dating anyone,” I say flatly. “I don’t even know how long I’m going to be here.”
He gives me a quizzical look. “Taking off on us already, brother?
“No. We’re gonna get the business right.”
He nods, a dimple forming in his cheek. “Well, hallelujah. Then you’re never going to leave. Anyway, if you want an in with that woman you’re totally not interested in, maybe you should tell her that Portia wouldn’t be opposed to some matchmaking from Eileen.”
“You want to set up Portia with an international celebrity?” I ask with a skeptical laugh. “I guess youdolike her.”
He grins. “Hey, if I can’t impress Amanda, I might as well make a play for my friend. Besides, maybe Portia will take it easy on me with the taffy crap if I can get her a sit-down with Amanda.”
“Yeah, good luck with that,” I mutter as my phone buzzes in my pocket. It buzzes again, and then again, texts coming through rapid-fire. It happens that way in Hideaway Harbor.Your phone won’t be able to find a single bar of service for hours, and suddenly the texts all arrive in a gush.
