Page 36

“Hey, Madison. We were just in the neighborhood,” Laura interjects politely, smiling like a politician.

Again, I am reminded that the apple doesn’t really fall too far from the tree.

I can only hope she inherits the better parts of Dad and that she doesn’t turn out to be a wretch like me.

“Rhue and I were debating if we should stop to say hi or not. Rhue didn’t want to disturb you, but I insisted.

It’s been a while since you and I have talked, ya’ know? ”

In an instant, Madison softens, and I am once again in awe of my kid sister.

Laura is surpassing me in a whole lot of categories by now.

She will do just fine later in life, I realize.

As horrible as it might sound, the accident could very well have been the best thing that happened to her.

The disability forced Laura to put behind all that superficial garbage that comes with being an Echeveria in high school.

She focused on bettering herself as a person, on honing new skills and sharpening different advantages in order to keep her edge.

The only other option was surrender, and Laura is anything but a quitter.

Therefore, the end result is this blossoming young woman in front of me, fierce and protective and as cunning as a fox. I like this version of her.

“Sorry, Laura, it’s been a tough couple of weeks.

” Madison sighs and offers an apologetic smile without even looking at me.

I know I’m the one responsible for the tough couple of weeks – even though the last time I saw her wasn’t absolute shit.

“And I wasn’t expecting anyone,” she adds, pointing thumbs at herself.

Kid Sis gives her a quick laugh. “Oh, that’s okay, we weren’t thinking of staying long. Just wanted to say hello. So…Hello!”

“Hello!” Madison chuckles. Well, at least they get along.

“And to ask if you wanna have brunch with us tomorrow,” Laura replies, and there goes the good humor, fizzling out like a tired balloon.

Madison gives me an awkward look. I am the last person she’d like to have brunch with, that much is obvious, but the deep longing in her blue eyes is just as obvious.

I am motivated to support Laura in this endeavor.

She can’t be the only one doing the heavy lifting.

“There’s a café not far from here,” I say.

“1872. Yeah,” Madison replies dryly.

Mr. Willis pops through the door, and the tension that has been building up between us dissipates, as if terrified of his good mood.

He’s all smiles and happy thoughts, mid-fifties but spry as a fifteen-year-old, wearing cargo shorts and a very old blue shirt that has seen its share of abuse, much like Madison’s.

They were obviously in the middle of another project, something artsy and father-and-daughter style, which is cute.

Then I am reminded that Madison’s mother left them a few years ago and hasn’t been in touch since.

For a moment, I wonder if there’s that big a difference between us, at this point.

“Hey, kids!” Mr. Willis greets us as he comes down the front steps. “How’s it going? How’s your dad?”

Naturally, the one question he doesn’t know that shouldn’t be asked.

“He’s good,” Laura takes over while Madison and I exchange heavy glances.

I wish I could tell her more with just my eyes, but she’s unable to read my mind.

The most I can accomplish with this strategy is just stare at her like a creep, and that’s not a good idea, either.

Dammit. “He’ll be back in town next week. ”

“Oh, okay. So, what brings you here?” Mr. Willis asks.

He’s still renting his shop space from Dad. Madison doesn’t like that. It’s obvious in how her gaze wanders away at the mention of my father. I do wonder what it is about Dad that makes her recoil in this fashion, though. They were intimate, and they were caught. They were both responsible.

“I was just asking Madison out to brunch with us tomorrow,” Laura replies, pulling Madison and me back into the conversation.

My heart it racing, thudding maniacally as I try not to look at her—the woman I blamed for tearing my family apart because I couldn’t bring myself to admit the hard truth.

My family has been torn apart for a long, long time.

She was just the last straw on an already exhausted camel’s back.

“That’s nice of you, Laura!” Mr. Willis exclaims and gives Madison a wondering look.

“Will you? Just so I know how to plan the Sunday, that’s all.

” He glances back at my sister and me. “We’ve started reconditioning an old bookcase I found in one of those auctioned storage units downtown.

Hence our Raggedy Ann look. It’ll take a few days, but Maddie came over to help with as much as she can before heading back to school. ”

I smile softly. “That’s kind of her. You’re definitely a lucky man to have Madison in your life, sir. If Madison doesn’t have time to brunch with us, it’s okay.” I am getting cold feet, and I sound like it, too.

Both Laura and Madison pick up on that and stab me with their frowns, while I stand in the middle of the sidewalk, wondering how the fuck I ended up in this complicated predicament.

I have the answer, of course. I just don’t like it.

Personal responsibility wasn’t my thing for a long time.

It’s hard to grow into it now, though I know I have to, for my own damn sake.

“But Laura and I would be honored if you’d brunch with us,” I add, then clear my throat and offer a shy half-smile, hoping this will wash at least one of my many sins away.

But Kid sis was right. The Echeveria name has pressure here, and Mr. Willis is the first to remark upon the fact.

“Honey, just my two cents, but you should accept the invitation. It’s the polite thing to do, plus, it’s brunch.

A couple of hours that I can spend adding a second coat of varnish to this thing,” he says, pointing at the antique desk.

“Are you sure?” Madison asks him, as if hoping for a different answer.

“Yeah. Of course I’m sure,” he chuckles.

The man has no idea of the history between us. Maybe that’s for the better. He seems like such a good and gentle soul. Telling him about that time I walked in on my father pounding Madison on my parents’ bed would besmirch this inherent sweetness of his. Poor fella.

“Okay,” Madison replies as she looks to Laura and me. “I guess brunch won’t kill anyone.”

“We won’t stay too long,” Laura assures her.

“I’ve got some charity stuff to work on, as well, but I figure we deserve a break, what with you and Rhue toiling through Cornell, not to mention my own career and education-related plights.

” She laughs lightly. “Anyway, we’ll leave you, now.

Rhue and I will pick you up tomorrow at eleven, is that cool? ”

Madison nods slowly.

“Thank you,” I tell her and offer a slight bow of the head. Mr. Willis pats me on the shoulder and heads back inside.

“You be good, kids,” he says before disappearing through the dark foyer.

Madison changes back to her thorny self in an instant. “I’ll see you both tomorrow,” she says. “Emphasis on both.”

“Pinkie promise!” Laura replies, and Madison goes after her father, shutting the front door with a heavy thud. “Whew. That wasn’t too bad.”

“You’re gonna be a third wheel tomorrow,” I grumble.

“That was the whole point,” Laura says. “I was never going to let you two brunch on your own. No, I will be acting as the mediator while you two take out your laundry and put this whole nastiness behind you.”

“Dad will get mad if he hears we’re palling around with her.”

Laura’s eyes turn fearful for a moment, but she is quick to find her resolve. “It’s okay. In the event that someone tells him, he’ll forgive us.”

“Your manny, maybe?” I reply.

We both look back to see him standing at the street corner, pretending to be on the phone. He’s trying so hard not to make eye contact with us, it’s almost amusing.

“He won’t,” Laura says. “He has been surprisingly discreet since that Italian restaurant episode. We had a talk back then about trust and confidentiality.”

“Madison hates me,” I tell my sister. I don’t tell her that as much as I’m done with fighting, I’m pretty sure a part of me still hates Madison, too.

“She has every reason,” Laura sighs deeply. “But hate is not forever. You can mend hate with a little bit of kindness and a whole lot of redemptive action.”

“Fuck me, you’re all grown up,” I notice, raising an eyebrow.

She purses her lips for a second and sucks in a breath. “I kinda had to.”

That is the truth of this world. Each of us has had to grow up a bit faster than most. Yes, Laura and I come from financial privilege, but we have our own demons to battle—some worse than others.

Madison got herself dragged into our family nightmares; I suppose, in that sense, at least, fate dealt her a shitty hand, too.

At the end of the day, we are three souls in need of peace, already tired by what life has thrown at us thus far.

Making my peace with Madison feels organic. Necessary.

I can only hope that tomorrow’s brunch will yield something good, because I am terrible at handling rejections of any kind. That much I have proven rather extensively.