AllFreeNovel
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Pushing his sleeves higher up his arms, Tommy straightens in his seat. “Oh, can I?”
Joan lifts her hand in a flutter. “Go ahead. Let’s put the record straight once and for all,” she says as she picks up her champagne glass and drinks while Tommy informs the family that none of them are in the will and all of Aunty Joan’s estate is going to charity when she dies. I don’t get a chance to see anyone’s reaction, though, because Delaney is quick to take that moment of stunned silence to slip from the room, and I don’t waste any time in following her.
“Delaney,” I call out, rushing to catch up with her. “Are you OK?”
“I’m humiliated,” she sniffs, hitting the button for the elevator that will take us to our cabin. “Tonystolethat from our cabin andhumiliatedme with it. Why? What’d I ever do to him?”
“I don’t know, baby.” The elevator arrives, and I wrap my arms around her as we step inside, enveloped in jaunty Christmas music as we make the climb to our floor. “Maybe he’s jealous of how close you and your aunt are? Or maybe he resents you for leaving and starting your own life without them? He comes across as a bit of a curmudgeon to me, so maybe he just enjoys being a dick.”
“Probably,” she sniffs as the doors open and we’re presented with our floor. “God, I hate that tonight was ruined because of this. We were supposed to have a nice meal and feel all Christmassy after we gave each other our books.”
“Hey, none of that was your fault, OK? Tony did that all by himself. There were probably a hundred different ways he could have handled that, and he chose to do it in the most selfish and dramatic way possible. That’snoton you.”
“I know, I just…I just hate feeling like this.”
“I know, gorgeous,” I say as I let us into our cabin then just draw her into my arms, holding her tight as she cries. “Silver lining is that we were going to tell them soon anyway. My only real regret tonight is not sticking around to see the look on Tony’s face when he realized your aunt won’t be leaving him any money.”
“You’re right. That would have been kind of funny. He’s got himself mortgaged to the hilt thinking he’s going to inherit. So, I guess it kind of serves him right for spending money he doesn’t have.” She smiles for a millisecond before she frowns. “Actually, that makes me feel sad too. This whole thing does. I feel bad for Aunty Joan. It must feel awful knowing people are looking at you for what you can give them when you die.”
“I have a feeling your Aunty Joan knew exactly what was going on in everyone’s head. I think she took great delight in bursting their greed bubbles tonight.”
She leans into my shoulder with a sigh. “I kind of hope she does pay male strippers to do her housework once we go back home. I think that would be hilarious.”
“Me too, gorgeous. Me too.” I press a kiss to the top of her head, enjoying just holding her like this, quiet and still. I get to thinking about our future, about creating Christmas traditions of our own once we have kids. I’d enjoy reading them stories by the fireplace on Christmas Eve and knowing that no matter what path they choose in life, Delaney and I will always have their backs. They’ll be none of this expectation, taking over, or put-downs that we’ve seen inside our own families. No, Delaney and I will start fresh with a clean slate. Together, we’ve got this.
I’m just about to communicate all of this to her when there’s a knock at our door.
“Tell them to go away,” she says, making me smile because I remember issuing a similar request only a few days ago.
“It might be your aunty or Tommy,” I say. “We still like them, right?”
“I suppose,” she pouts, leaning against the back of the couch as I get up to answer the door. Joan bursts in with two staff members carrying a small Christmas tree and a Santa sack. Joan also has a pink sparkly Santa hat on her head. She looks very festive with her white hair poking out and her painted lips slashing across her face in a bright smile.
“Ho, ho, ho!” she says, her smile wide as the staff set the tree and the bag of gifts to the side of the room. “Normally Santa likes to wait until you’re sleeping to deliver gifts, but I thought you could do with a pick me up a little sooner. No peeking until the morning though.” She waggles a finger at us both before turning her smiling face to me. “And if you could give us a quiet moment, Nathaniel, I’d like to have a chat with my niece.”
“Oh, of course. I…I’ll go take a walk,” I say, pointing out the door the staff just exited.
“Wonderful,” she says, her hands clasped together. “But don’t go too far. I’d like to speak to you too.”
“Me?”
“You did say you’re in love with my niece, didn’t you?”
“I am, I—”
“Then I want to talk to you.” She smiles and tilts her head, and I’m not sure what to think.
“I guess I’ll be back in fifteen minutes?”
“Make it ten,” she says. “And Nate?”
“Yes?” I pause in the doorway and meet her eyes. “I watch Law & Order too.”
DELANEY
“Oh, what a mess that turned out to be,” Aunty Joan says as she lowers herself onto the couch next to me with a groan before she turns my way, smiles, and sighs.
“I’m so sorry, Aunty Joan. I—”
