Free Web NovelChapter 133: Sister Talk: Hannah
I arranged for Lori to come over the next day for lunch. I was grateful not just for the company, but also because I was dying for answers. When did she start talking to Freddy and Edward again? Was she content with it or was there tension she was also working through? It just didn’t feel like a conversation to have on the phone.
I fluttered about the kitchen as Geoffrey prepared lunch. I could tell I was wearing on his nerves, but I was just trying to stay busy. There was nothing for me to do other than wait for Lori to arrive. My art piece was drying still, and I just didn’t have the direction or motivation to start anything new. I tried not to think about how fleeting my passion for pottery had been, and how, once this lunch was done with Lori, I wouldn’t have anything to do.
I couldn’t be just mere days back from vacation and be that stir-crazy!
Thankfully, Lori arrived early. I greeted her at the door with a hug. I couldn’t believe it had been a couple of weeks since I had last seen her. We hadn’t gone that long without seeing each other since I started living with Roman. We walked together into the dining room and settled in with sparkling water with berries and the whole lunch banquet Geoffrey had prepared for us.
First thing was first, I had to address the outfit Lori was wearing. She was wearing an adorable vintage lady’s suit, complete with an ascot and pearls. Something told me it had to do with hers and Lauren’s interior design business.
"So, is there something business related you would like to share?" I asked with a smile.
Lori gave a little squeal as she swayed side to side from happiness. "Oh my gosh, yes! Lauren and I had a meeting this morning with some investors. They signed with us! In the coming months, hopefully, we will have an official interior design business and, to follow that, potentially our own furniture and décor line. We go to look at office spaces tomorrow."
My jaw dropped. "That’s amazing! Oh my god. If you’d told me, I would have gotten champagne for you!"
"It’s never too late," she winked.
I chuckled and hurried to the kitchen to pull a bottle from the fridge. Sometimes it amazed me how well stocked that house always was. Everything was at our fingertips.
Joining her back in the dining room, I popped the bottle open and poured us each a flute. I knew that I had wanted a break from drinking after vacation, but I thought I needed it to calm my nerves to lead up to the conversation about our brothers. Plus, I wanted to celebrate with her on such a phenomenal achievement.
"I’m so happy for you," I smiled at her as we sat our drinks down. "I always had a feeling you were going to rule the world."
"Oh, stop," she giggled, batting it away with her hand. "How about you? What have you been up to?"
I shrugged and toyed with my fruit with my fork. "I took up pottery for a couple weeks. I like it and I think I’ll do it on the side, but I don’t think it’s my calling. Now I’m just in a sort of limbo, trying to decide what to do next."
I hated the way my own voice sounded; it was laced with a false sort of security and confidence. The dribbling of a bored housewife who wanted to make people believe that she didn’t have the good life. I wasn’t jaded enough to believe that I wasn’t remarkably privileged; I did have the good life. It just wasn’t fulfilling at that moment.
"Well, if pottery ever becomes your passion, let me know. You can always be a designer when we launch our décor line," Lori smiled at me. I mirrored her expression and nodded, but didn’t like the sound of it. I didn’t want to be a third wheel to her and Lauren. She reached across the table and patted my mind. "I’m sure you’ll find something. It takes time."
"I know," I said with another weak expression to try and convince her I was okay. I was okay. Boredom wasn’t a real problem. I cleared my throat and sat up straight. "I guess we should just rip the band-aid off. I want to know about Freddy and Edward." fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
Lori deflated for a moment but then sighed and sat up straight. "There’s no place else to start but from the top. I bumped into them when at lunch with Lauren downtown. I had forgotten that it was one of those high-end pubs they like so much." There was a pause as she busied herself by taking a bite of the salmon Geoffrey had prepared. I could tell by her excessive chewing and the way her eyes shifted about, she was stressing over what was to come next in her story.
"They came up to us and tried to talk. Of course, I wanted nothing to do with them. They left their numbers and left. When I tried to make cruel jokes about it, but Lauren put me in my place. She said hurt feelings are fair. That they have to own up to that, but what I do with them is my responsibility. That if I couldn’t even try forgiveness on, then it said a lot about me." Lori was quiet again. I could see the shame and guilt in her expression and had to fight the urge to round the table and hold her.
"For a bit, I’ll admit, I was mad. I felt like she was trying to mother me and that was the last thing I needed." She sucked in a big breath and then met my eyes. "After storming off and having myself a cry, I realized she was right. I don’t want to be like father or how I expect them to act. I want to be better. And most of all, I want a little taste of normalcy. Family is a big part of that."
She took a breath. "So... I called them. We’ve been talking and that’s it. It seems like they’ve really been making changes; they’ve been attentive, concerned, and chatty. Just feel like completely different people than they used to be, you know? It really seems like dad was a poison and they had to get away from him to even realize they were being poisoned. They suggested the dinner to me, and I told them I would only go if you did, because if it’s family they want, we should all be willing to try."
It was my turn to think and take a breather. It made a lot of sense and it sounded easy, but it felt heavy.
I think we all wanted a little taste of family and a true new beginning, but they had really wounded our trust. It was really going to boil down to whether or not we could separate them as they were now from the people they had been when under the influence of our father. I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to do that, but I knew I would at least need to try.
After a couple of minutes to really think over my thoughts and feelings, my eyes lifted to Lori. "For you, I’ll try. I want to promise you that. I’ll go to the dinner and I’ll work hard on forgiving them. I just don’t promise that I can separate them from the people they were just months ago. I can sense they’ve changed, too, but I’m worried it’s just for their own benefit. I mean, last time I let my guard down with them a bit, they asked for money just days into talking. I don’t want them to be trying to running a long game on us just to hurt us more."
Lori gave my hand a comforting squeeze and held my gaze. "We will look out for one another and run everything by Lauren and Roman. I don’t know if we will ever be able to trust them fully, but there’s only one way to know for sure."
I nodded and took another drink of my champagne. "You’re right. I think it’s best we try, so we know whether or not, for a fact, if it’s something we can do."
I wasn’t sure if it was the way my voice wobbled or the tears threatening to collect in my eyes, but Lori squeezed my hand extra hard then. "Remember, Hannah, they aren’t dad. Even if they may be jerks, they aren’t going to hurt you."
I wasn’t proud, and maybe I was even a little embarrassed, but a couple of tears fell from my eyes.
My little sister had managed to identify a major component that was bothering me, that I hadn’t been able to.
She was right. They reminded me of my father so much, I was scared of them.
