Page 20 of The Family Guest

Tanya shrugged. “Not really. Papa is never around at Christmas and it’s usually so cold in London.” A cloud of sadness fell over her. “And lonely.”

The poor girl! My heart ached at the thought of her spending Christmas alone. “Then, of course you can come with us.”

“Oh my goodness! Really?” Her face lit up like a Christmas tree.

“Absolutely. You’re not just a houseguest. You’re part of the family now…but right now, let’s focus on the gala. I only have an hour before I need to start making dinner.”

“Sure.” She glanced down at the coaster-covered table. “Where is it taking place?”

“In our backyard. It’s the first time I’m hosting a gala there. I did a financial analysis, without Matt’s help I should add. By not spending money on a ridiculously expensive hotel ballroom, we’ll be able to raise so much more money for all the poor abused children who need art to enhance their lives.”

“That’s brilliant.” Then a pause. “Natalie, what kind of childhood did you have?”

I was so taken aback by her question, at first I didn’t answer. I took a sip of my wine and tried to slow the words racing around my head. Choose one. “Ordinary.”

She looked surprised. “I thought for sure you grew up in a big, beautiful house and had a fairy-tale childhood.”

“Hardly.” To stop myself from going further—I’d already said too much—I gulped down more of my wine. “Tanya, dear, let’s change the subject.”

“No problem.” She returned to her wine.

I was grateful she didn’t prod further. I had too much at stake. Matt had no idea what I’d gone through. Nor did his snooty Nob Hill parents. If they knew, God only knows how differently my life would have turned out.

Tanya set down her mug. “So, where do all these abused kids live?”

“All over. Many are in foster care, having been taken away from their abusive parents or abandoned by them.”

“That’s so sad.” She bit her lip. “You know, sometimes I feel like I’ve been abandoned.”

I looked at her pointedly. “How so?”

“Well, you know, my mother died. And my father travels for work all the time. Poor me never gets to see him. I wish Papa could be more of a stay-at-home dad like Matt. And I wish I had a mum in my life like you.” Tears began to fill her eyes. “Sometimes I’ve felt so alone and neglected I could die.”

Her words sucker-punched me. How often had I felt that way in my life! Especially in my youth.

“You poor thing. Here, let me give you a hug.” I shifted and wrapped her thin body in my arms. She sniffled and reciprocally looped her arms around me.

“You and Matt have already given me so much. For the first time in my life, I feel like I do have a family. Will and Paige are so lucky to have you as parents.”

They are, I thought to myself. But, by the way they often behaved, you’d never think they knew that.

“Natalie, can I tell you something else?” She paused. “And you promise you won’t be mad at me?”

Hesitantly, I said yes.

“Sometimes I think my father should go to prison.”

A brow lifted. “Why do you say that?”

“Because abandoning a child is a crime,” she said to my face and then quickly added, “At least in England.”

A chill ran through me. “Yes, it is here too.” I took a glug of my wine. “Honey, I know you don’t really mean that. C’mon, let’s get back to work.”

“Thanks for understanding, Natalie.” To my relief, she instantly went back to being her cheerful, eager-to-please self. “What do you want me to do?”

Still a bit unnerved by her words, I handed her a black Sharpie. “Why don’t you number the tables—I mean, the coasters—while I work on the seating arrangement.”

I reached down for the printout, sitting on the chair next to me, that listed all the guests that were coming. Three hundred in total. That meant thirty tables with ten settings each. Deciding who to put with whom was always the biggest challenge of organizing these events. While some had purchased a ten-thousand-dollar table to share with their friends, many had bought individual tickets, and trust me, not everyone liked each other or shared the same views. I had to be particularly mindful of keeping like-minded people together in this politically polarized world.