“I want the wedding to be fun for Xeni. She’s having a tough time of it. And she has to deal with her own family.”
“I get it. One day off from the stress is what you need.”
“Exactly what we need.”
“See if you can get Joe-Joe to work a double tomorrow and we’ll make it happen.”
“Thank you.”
“Hell, Palila would love to be a flower girl and this one will do anything Liz tells her,” he said motioning to Honeysuckle, who was still snoozing away. “I’m sure she’ll jump in as ring bearer.”
“I don’t even know if Xeni likes dogs. I should probably ask her.”
“Probably. You’re good?”
“Yeah, I think. I’m alright.”
“What Maya said… Is she really good looking?”
“I’ve been trying not to think about it, given the circumstances, but yeah. She’s a stunner. An absolute stunner.”
“Well then you have to marry her.”
“Seems like the smart thing to do.”
* * *
Xeni sat in the car, staring at her phone again. She and Mason had given themselves permission to enjoy the next twenty-four hours, before the reality of what they were doing would hit them with a force that Xeni knew she wasn’t prepared for. The only way that was going to happen was if Xeni bit the bullet and called her mother. The line rang and rang. Xeni let out a deep breath and prepared herself to leave a voicemail when her mom answered.
“Hey sweetie,” she said with an upbeat calm that immediately set Xeni on edge. She knew what was coming, but she hoped her mother wouldn’t pull this shit right now. Not with her, not about this.
“I’m calling you back.”
“Good. I was worried. How did things go with the lawyers?” Still calm. Still cool. Too casual.
“Are we really doing this?”
“Doing what?”
“I know Daddy told you. I know. I just want to know when you were going to tell me.”
“Tell you what? What did Daddy tell me?” Xeni closed her eyes, her jaw clenching. She knew by her tone that her mother really had decided to play stupid. She didn’t do it very often, only when she knew she was dead wrong and wanted to be right.
“So you weren’t going to tell me that Sable was my mother.”
“Oh that?” she said. “No. I wasn’t going to tell you that. And Sable wasn’t supposed to tell you that. Is that what the lawyers told you? Laying all our business out there when our sister’s not here to explain herself. Let me tell you something, when Sable needed my help, I stepped up and I did more than just help. I did the one thing she didn’t want to do.” She was starting to shout. Xeni began to shut down. She didn’t have to force the numbness. It took over on its own.
“What was that? What didn’t she want to do?” Xeni asked. Her voice felt dead in her throat.
“I am your mother!”
“Why are you yelling at me?”
“I’m not yelling at you,” she yelled. “My selfish little sister put her career before her family and then wanted to take that family back whenever it damn well suited her. She had no right to tell you. She had no right to tell youlike this. And of course she waited until she was gone. Just like Sable. Always trying to have things her way, any way. I raised you right and now she wants to take that away from me when I don’t get a say.”
The rest of Xeni’s questions died on the tip of her tongue. She couldn’t talk to her mother about this. Not now.
“I should go.”
