Nikos.
Nikos.
Nikos.
“The flowers are from Nikos.” I looked up at Dolly. “He’s managed to sort things out with his nightclub. He’ll be here tomorrow.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. More flowers are in the cabin. Come on, I’ve been waiting to show you.”
She grabbed me by the hand and whirled me around. We ran straight into Alex as the elevator doors opened and he stepped out.
He could tell right away that something was up. Dolly was positively glowing with delight. “Hannah is busy with Captain Bailey’s guests,” he said, “so I thought I’d see if anyone has any special requests for dinner.”
“We’re fine.” Dolly waved him away. “Ask the others.” As we waited for the doors to close, she saw him take in the flowers. “Have you ever seen so many? All for my Moti. From Nikos.”
His head shot around, the question in his eyes unanswered as the doors slid shut and obscured him from my view.
“It says he wants to make up for our last date. He’s arranged a private lunch for us tomorrow.” I put the card back in its envelope and moved the bouquet aside.
“I know what it says. I already read it.” Dolly flitted around the cabin. “I had to know the minute they started bringing them in. I’d given up, you know. Two more nights until the wedding. It’s not as if you got to spend much time with Nikos, but whatever you did, it worked. Oh, Moti.” She fell on me again, hugging me like her life depended on it.
To be fair, she believed it did. If Ma Anga was right, me getting together with Nikos was Dolly’s lifeline and she was grabbing on to it with both hands.
“Did you message him back? Did he say what time?”
“Ma…” I extracted myself from her arms. “I can’t.”
“Can’t what?” She looked puzzled. “I know you’re nervous,beti, but it will pass.Chalo, what are you going to wear? It’s too bad you can’t fit into any of Isabelle’s clothes. You know the dress she wore when—”
“Did you hear what I said? I’m not meeting Nikos for lunch. I’m going to message him right now.”
“Have you lost your mind?” Dolly snatched my phone away. “What’s gotten into you?”
I struggled for a moment. How could I explain to her the fresh imprint of Alex’s kisses? The way his words, his touch, his smile sank into my soul?
The chef’s gotten into me, Ma. Literally.
“What are you smiling about?” Dolly was starting to lose her patience. “Moti, what is going on with you?”
Normally, I would have dodged, avoided, or diverted any kind of conflict with Dolly, but I pressed on. “I can’t see Nikos because I’m seeing someone else.”
“Someone else?” She scoffed. “How is that even possible? Nikos was all you could think about when we left Chicago. You’re just getting cold feet. A chance like this, with a man like that—it’s not something that happens every day. You need to snap out of it or you’ll regret it for the rest of your life. Now, let’s go down to your room and pick out something to wow Nikos. I think—”
“For Christ’s sake, I’m not ten years old. I don’t need you to dress me. And I’m not sleeping there anymore. Captain Bailey asked me to move back here with you.”
“She did? But Rachel and Joseph still haven’t made up. I’m so tired of all their drama, tired of listening to Rachel go on and on about…” She paused and sat next to me. “You know what? Who cares? This is more important. You’re finally living up to all the dreams I have for you.” She drew me to her side, stroking my hair with a smile. “My beautifulbeti. You’ve made me so happy. I can’t even begin to tell you how proud I am of you.”
I blinked back the sudden tears threatening to spill over. All my life I’d tried to win Dolly over. I tried to be smarter, leaner, neater, quicker. To mold myself into what she wanted me to be. Most of the time, the voice in my head wasn’t even mine. It was Dolly’s. But Dolly herself always remained unreachable. Until now.
“Ma…” I took her hands and held them on either side of my face. “Do you see me?”
For a second, as I looked into my mother’s eyes, we connected. Then I saw the panic, the shutters coming down, the walls coming up and I was on the other side again. You’d think it would get easier, but it cut just as deep every time.
“It’s not about me, is it?” I let go with a sad smile. “It’s about what I do to make you happy.”
“Of course not.” She stood up in an instant. “I only want what’s best for you. You and Nikos are meant to be. I don’t understand why you can’t just—”
“Fine.” It was pointless fighting Dolly on it. She’d hold it over my head for eternity. If anything happened to her, I’d always have the niggling doubt that I could have prevented it. “I’ll do it. I’ll meet Nikos for lunch tomorrow, but after that, I’m done. No more living with the weight of Ma Anga’s predictions. Promise me, Ma.”
