Page 35 of Arranged Scars
“My mother invited us to dinner tomorrow night,” he says simply like this is a totally normal conversation. He doesn’t ask why I’ve been lying down there in the pool for the last hour. Which is fine by me.
I wipe my face and look away. My cheeks are wet with tears. “That’s fine. I can do that.”
“My whole family will be there.”
“That’s good, right? I mean, we have to put on a show.”
“Make them think we’re happily married,” he agrees, his expression cold and uncaring.
“Anything else you need?”
He shakes his head slowly. “Nothing for now.” His eyes stray to the pool. “Do you miss it?”
For a second, I think he means Shane and the knife. But no, of course he means the water. “I’m looking forward to going for a swim.”
The heartof the Whelan family is a gorgeous penthouse apartment across from Central Park. It’s the sort of place that costs tens of millions at least. The interior is three floors,multiple bedrooms, beautiful old furniture, and obscenely rare art on the walls. A thick carpet swallows our footsteps and makes the sprawling place feel claustrophobic.
At least until we enter the living and dining area.
Noise and light surprise me. There’s a big table covered with food. Several people are sitting around it. I recognize Casey from our conversation. She’s leaning against a small woman with thick blonde hair and a pretty face. They’re laughing about something and the blonde woman has a little boy in her lap, maybe three years old, squirming and trying to escape. He looks like an adorable little terror.
For a second, I’m overwhelmed. There are at least ten people in here. I’m used to big families, but this is different. Dinners at my house were always quiet and tense with lots of business talk while my mother fluttered around and made sure all the boys were happy. I was usually ignored and forgotten at best. Those nights were terrible and stressful, but this place doesn’t feel that way at all. The people here seem strangely happy.
“Don’t worry, I’ll introduce you,” Finn says quietly, and I feel a sudden pulse of gratitude. I almost expected him to throw me to the wolves.
Instead, he starts with the girls at the table. The blonde is Alina, married to Seamus, and her son’s name is Niko. Casey hugs me so tight I feel like I might burst. “You weresopretty at the wedding,” she gushes.
Finn presents me to Cormac, a glaring terror of a man, and Declan, the boss of the family. Seamus is last and he seems the most agreeable of the group. He pulls me into a hug. “Welcometo the family,” he says happily. “I was starting to think Finn was going to break the Whelan arranged marriage tradition.”
“Lucky me, here we are.” Finn glares at Seamus.
Next, I meet Bianca, Cormac’s wife. She’s in the kitchen with two little girls, Nora and Brianna, while Finn’s mother, Siobhan, works on dinner. “She won’t let me help,” Bianca says, nudging me lightly with her elbow. “But she’ll get tired and realize she’s only got two hands sooner or later.”
“I can hear you,” Siobhan says, brandishing a spoon. “And you need to focus on those kids.”
“It’s really nice to formally meet you, Mrs. Whelan.” I shake her hand lightly. She gives me a warm smile. Her hair’s a light auburn mixed with gray. There are smile lines around her mouth and eyes. She’s got a warm and comforting presence, totally at odds with my own mother. I feel awkward and very out of place, but Siobhan immediately starts talking to me like I’ve been a part of the family forever.
To his credit, Finn doesn’t abandon me. He pours everyone a drink and sticks by my side. I sip a crisp white and chat about growing up in the city with Finn’s mother and Bianca. Other people come and go, completely comfortable with each other. I get the sense they have dinner like this all the time.
“Has he driven you insane yet?” Bianca asks happily, bouncing little Brianna on her knee. “I mean, you’ve been married to Finn for what, two weeks now?”
“Not even, and yes, pretty much.”
“I’m shocked you lasted this long.”
“Well, I’d run, but—” I give him a sly smile. “I’m not exactly allowed to.”
Bianca grimaces. “Shit. Sorry. That was stupid of me. You’d think I’d know better, since I went through it too.”
“They all did,” Siobhan says, tasting a pink sauce with a spoon. She adds more salt. “What you’re doing isn’t unique, at least not in this family.”
“She’s fine,” Finn grumbles, looking unhappy for the first time ever. “Do we have to talk about this?”
“What, and pretend like your marriage isn’t an arranged sham?” Bianca laughs and grins at me. “We might as well be honest for once.”
It’s honestly refreshing. I can’t help but laugh at the annoyed glower on Finn’s face, and soon I’m sitting at the table with the other women while the men lurk nearby talking about whatever it is they talk about. I listen to stories about early motherhood, both the good and the bad, and soon Siobhan serves dinner.
I’m next to Finn and Casey. She talks my ear off the whole time, somehow splitting her attention between me and the kids sitting at the end of the table. She effortlessly corrals them into eating, which is both messy and hilarious. I find myself relaxing more than I thought I would. There’s laughter, jokes, some mild bickering between the boys, but all in all, it’s the most normal family meal I’ve ever been to.
