going on,” I blurted. So much for beating around the bush! William looked at me for just a moment. I could tell he was thinking about how to answer. Maybe my bluntness would work in my favor for a change.
“Miss Alexandria, I’m afraid that I am not privy to exactly what your grandmother wishes to say today.”
Hmm, he didn’t say that he didn’t know what this was about; just that he didn’t know “exactly what she’d say.” I’d have to go about this a different way.
“Why couldn’t she tell me over the phone? I have a lot to do, and a visit with B isn’t helping my schedule.”
“Miss Alexandria.” He gave me a stern glance. “You know she doesn’t like to be called B. Besides, she is your grandmother. It’s natural for her to want to see her only granddaughter.” I could tell that even he didn’t believe that this was a social visit.
“Maybe. But if it’s just a social visit, why does it have to be today?”
“Your grandmother is accustomed to having things done on her time table. Please relax. We will be at Sera Haven soon.”
William turned his attention to the road, and I could tell he was done sharing. Ugh, I hate surprises. Even as a kid I would find and unwrap my Christmas presents and then wrap them back up before Christmas day.
Why would B want to see me? I barely knew her. One memory that stands out is my mother’s funeral. I was five and overwhelmed. My world had just stopped, and all I could do was cling to my father. Remembering that day even now was painful.
B had arrived with William and her entourage of body guards, of course. My father stiffened next to me, and even at that young age I could tell he was angry. After the funeral, B asked Dennis and me to stand with William because she wanted to speak with my father.
Then the two of them sparred. Their mutual hatred was evident in the way they looked at each other and in their hard gestures. I remember overhearing B say that it was my father’s selfish stupidity that had killed my mother. B had been almost screaming then, and my father just stood there and let her verbally attack him. She’d yelled that she could have protected Mom if Dad hadn’t advised her to disregard B’s warnings. How could Dad have protected my mother from a car accident? Even now as an adult the exchange made no sense.
“We’re here, Miss.” William’s gentle voice drew me out of the memory.
Pulling in at B’s home, Sera Haven, is an event. The gatehouse is bigger than my garage and staffed 24/7. She rotates her guards every few years, but some of the guys have been with B since I was little. Ex-military men, I guessed, who, I’m sure, were paid well. I often wondered if they were bored here. I mean, how much action could they see guarding one eccentric old lady?
I recognized Ben behind the glass and waved when William rolled down the tinted window. He looked delicious, as always. I’ve had a crush on him since I was fifteen, and he doesn’t disappoint as he gets older. He still has dark, lush curls, broad shoulders, and I’d bet my lunch that under his shirt was a set of beautiful washboard abs, just begging for someone to drag her fingernail across.
“Ben, you look great, I’ve got to start working out with you guys.”
“Thank you, Miss Alexandria. You look great, as well.” He winked, always the rascal. William rolled up the power window and pulled through the gate, effectively cutting off any more harmless flirting.
Sera Haven has a perfectly manicured lawn and a long drive framed by live oak trees that are as big around as my kitchen table. I’ve seen old photographs of the home I live in now looking similarly manicured to within an inch of its life. It’s hard to imagine the work that went into keeping up this place. Luckily my mother and father preferred the informality and natural beauty of indigenous plants chaotically woven together with roses and gardenias. Less formal and more of an enchanted forest look.
My
“Miss Alexandria, I’m afraid that I am not privy to exactly what your grandmother wishes to say today.”
Hmm, he didn’t say that he didn’t know what this was about; just that he didn’t know “exactly what she’d say.” I’d have to go about this a different way.
“Why couldn’t she tell me over the phone? I have a lot to do, and a visit with B isn’t helping my schedule.”
“Miss Alexandria.” He gave me a stern glance. “You know she doesn’t like to be called B. Besides, she is your grandmother. It’s natural for her to want to see her only granddaughter.” I could tell that even he didn’t believe that this was a social visit.
“Maybe. But if it’s just a social visit, why does it have to be today?”
“Your grandmother is accustomed to having things done on her time table. Please relax. We will be at Sera Haven soon.”
William turned his attention to the road, and I could tell he was done sharing. Ugh, I hate surprises. Even as a kid I would find and unwrap my Christmas presents and then wrap them back up before Christmas day.
Why would B want to see me? I barely knew her. One memory that stands out is my mother’s funeral. I was five and overwhelmed. My world had just stopped, and all I could do was cling to my father. Remembering that day even now was painful.
B had arrived with William and her entourage of body guards, of course. My father stiffened next to me, and even at that young age I could tell he was angry. After the funeral, B asked Dennis and me to stand with William because she wanted to speak with my father.
Then the two of them sparred. Their mutual hatred was evident in the way they looked at each other and in their hard gestures. I remember overhearing B say that it was my father’s selfish stupidity that had killed my mother. B had been almost screaming then, and my father just stood there and let her verbally attack him. She’d yelled that she could have protected Mom if Dad hadn’t advised her to disregard B’s warnings. How could Dad have protected my mother from a car accident? Even now as an adult the exchange made no sense.
“We’re here, Miss.” William’s gentle voice drew me out of the memory.
Pulling in at B’s home, Sera Haven, is an event. The gatehouse is bigger than my garage and staffed 24/7. She rotates her guards every few years, but some of the guys have been with B since I was little. Ex-military men, I guessed, who, I’m sure, were paid well. I often wondered if they were bored here. I mean, how much action could they see guarding one eccentric old lady?
I recognized Ben behind the glass and waved when William rolled down the tinted window. He looked delicious, as always. I’ve had a crush on him since I was fifteen, and he doesn’t disappoint as he gets older. He still has dark, lush curls, broad shoulders, and I’d bet my lunch that under his shirt was a set of beautiful washboard abs, just begging for someone to drag her fingernail across.
“Ben, you look great, I’ve got to start working out with you guys.”
“Thank you, Miss Alexandria. You look great, as well.” He winked, always the rascal. William rolled up the power window and pulled through the gate, effectively cutting off any more harmless flirting.
Sera Haven has a perfectly manicured lawn and a long drive framed by live oak trees that are as big around as my kitchen table. I’ve seen old photographs of the home I live in now looking similarly manicured to within an inch of its life. It’s hard to imagine the work that went into keeping up this place. Luckily my mother and father preferred the informality and natural beauty of indigenous plants chaotically woven together with roses and gardenias. Less formal and more of an enchanted forest look.
My
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