“You’re awfully chipper about dinner tonight,” I say, with a sort of question lingering through my words.
“Uh,” he laughs, running the sleeve of his arm across his forehead. “Do you have any idea how much drama is going to take place tonight? And I have front row seats! Yeah, not missingthatfor the world.”
“Drama?”
“Yeah, you both have a date and it isn’t each other,” he laughs, a gut rolling laugh.
“How the hell did you—?”
“You two are so fucking loud on the phone. You think the walls are soundproof? What did you think was going to happen when you made me move into the room between you two?” he asks, continuing to laugh.Such an ass.
“You’re about to move into the basement,” I tell him, sliding back into the truck. “Plus, I can’t count Ari as a date. I told you, things are just…”
“Fucking weird,” he finishes my sentence. “You want to be with a woman who you don’t fuck, just so you can be closer to her heart. Does this sound strange when you hear it coming from my mouth? Because it’s weird as hell coming from you. You are aware this is the weirdest thing I’ve ever heard of, right?”
“I wouldn’t expect you to understand,” I tell him. “Ari and I just get each other and our relationship is something we both desperately need. It’s healing.”
“So then why aren’t you with Charlotte if you and Ari are just friends?” AJ adds in.
“I wasn’t the one who broke things off and now she’s with someone else, so it is what it is and we’re both where we need to be, I guess, plus I never said Ari and I are just friends.” In truth, I don’t know what Ari and I are.
“Neither one of you are where you should be,” he says, climbing into his truck. “You may think I know nothing, but you and Charlotte are supposed to be together. I know that much. No one said you can’t be with the person you love and have a friend who owns your wife’s heart at the same time.” AJ finishes his thought and then steps back out of the truck. “Holy shit, your life is so fucking confusing. Dude...I don’t even know.” And with his last bit of insightful information, he shakes his head and hops back into his truck.Thank you for the talk, AJ.
Charlotte is putting the garnishes on the turkey and I’m stirring up the gravy as Olive and Lana both shout from the living room. “Someone is here!”
“Ooh, Oh, Oh!” AJ shouts, running down the hall into the living room. Sometimes, I swear he’s an eight-year-old trapped in a man’s body. I know he’s just playing along with the girls, but part of him is teasing both Charlotte and me. My chest tightens and my palms are a bit sweaty. Whether it’s Lance or Ari coming in, both are making me feel uneasy right now. This wasn’t a great idea, for either of us.
Plus if this situation is difficult for AJ to understand, it is probably confusing the hell out of the girls. We have waited a while before bringing either of these two into this house but we don’t have a typical situation. Actually, I wonder how much Lance even knows about Charlotte’s living situation.
“Someone else is here, too!” Olive yells. Oh great, they’re both here. They’re both going to walk up the driveway at the same time and they’re both going to wonder who the hell each other is.
I lean back to look out into the living room, seeing AJ manning the door. He opens it and gives them a wave. “Hi there! Come on in, the party is just getting started!” Why does he sound like the biggest tool ever right now? With the way he’s talking, he should be wearing a cardigan, Dockers, and penny loafers, rather than a nearly see-through white t-shirt with paint stains and torn jeans.
“Hi,” Ari’s voice wafts through the house. “I’m Ari, you must be—AJ?” she asks with question, unsure, but assuming, as well.
“That, I am,” he says. “You must beAri,”he says in a teasing voice dripping with sarcasm.
I wipe my hands off on the dish rag and place the wooden spoon down on a napkin. “Hey hon,” I say, walking toward Ari. “I see you’ve met AJ. Feel free to ignore him; he’s in a particularly obnoxious mood today.”
“Hon,” I hear Charlotte’s voice quietly echo through the kitchen. I don’t think she intended for me to hear that, but I did.Irritation noticed.
“How was work?” I ask Ari.
“Good, we did well today. You know, with Mother’s Day in a few days, things have been a little crazy.” Mother’s Day—the day I have hidden Olive and myself from in a dark room as we watch movies from the minute we wake up until the minute we go to bed. I have done my best to avoid her knowing much about Mother’s Day. I don’t think it’s necessary, seeing as it would probably cause her unnecessary sadness. She’s aware it’s a holiday but she knows it as the day we watch movies together all day. Movies without commercials, I should add.
Ari moves her hand out from behind her back and reaches out with a small bunch of blue jasmines. “Olive, I heard these are your favorite?” she says, leaning down to hand them to her.
Olive runs over to Ari and carefully takes the flowers from her hand. “These are my favorite. My mom’s, too. That must be why you drew them on the back of daddy’s letter,” she giggles.
“It is,” Ari says softly.
Olive looks up to me and back at Ari. “Daddy said you knew her?”
A tight-lipped smile touches Ari’s mouth, illuminating her deep dimples. “I did know her. She was a beautiful and incredible woman and you look just like her.” Ari touches her fingertip to Olive’s nose.
“Daddy says that, too,” Olive giggles.
“Hi, I’m Charlotte.” Charlotte steps out from behind me and offers her hand to Ari. “I—I’ve heard so much about—you. You—,” she laughs uneasily. “It’s nice to—this is nice.” Her voice sounds friendly enough, although unsure, as she introduces herself.
