Page 78 of You Make Me Feel
A wobbly smile pulls at his mouth, and it guts me worsethan his tears did. Skyler shifts him onto my knee without asking, and I hold still, because any alternative would mean admitting I might not deserve to be trusted with him.
Hudson watches the whole exchange in unsettling quiet.
Around us, the rest of the kids have already moved on, chairs scraping, syrup smears in progress, a fight breaking out over who gets the sparkly unicorn cup. The normal kind of chaos that’s a constant here, but rarely enters into my world.
It takes them less than ten minutes to annihilate the food, then run off to watch television, or ruin Hudson’s stereo, leaving the grown-ups in the quiet aftermath of syrup, crumbs, and coffee.
Barney circles once, flops under the table, and sighs like he’s survived a battle.
And when they’re gone, it’s the adults turn. The rest of the family files in. West and Eden are deep in conversation about some kind of eco project she wants him to run at the resort. Asher has his arm protectively around Francie because she’s carrying precious cargo and even though he’s trying to keep it quiet he looks so pleased with himself it makes me smile.
And then Parker and Autumn sit down, Elijah finally asleep in Parker’s arms, as Autumn starts telling a story about one of the paintings that arrived yesterday, and how the artist called her ten times to make sure it would be placed in a west-facing position because that’s the only way it should be viewed.
I watch them, silently. Thinking about how easily they all fit together. Even Eden, who stayed away for so long looks at home and happy as West teases her about wanting to save the world.
And all I can think is that I’m sitting here with a ticking time bomb that could explode this all into smithereens.
It’s Skyler who breaks the quiet moment first, because subtlety has never been her strongest skill. She takes a slow sip of coffee, eyes looking at me over the rim of her mug like she’s assessing every inch of my face.
“So,” she says casually, “I bumped into Annette yesterday.”
Hudson’s brows knit. “Annette from housekeeping?”
“She came into the bar. I was there doing the books.” Skyler’s smile is teasing as she returns her gaze to me. “I heard you had her do a little favor for you.”
I stop chewing my pancake and freeze.
“What kind of favor?” Autumn asks, her face lighting up at the possibility of gossip. “Please don’t tell me you and Annette…” she trails off, grimacing at me.
“There’s nothing going on between me and Annette,” I say, trying in vain to think of a way to stop this conversation in its tracks.
“So what happened?” Autumn asks Skyler. “Come on, we never get any gossip about Zach.”
“Nothing happened.” I shoot a warning glance at Skyler. She shrugs. She’s a good person, I know that. But she enjoys blood in the water more than any shark I know.
“Annette said Zach had a woman in his room,” Skyler bursts out. And suddenly four voices join in at once, asking who, how, where.
“For fuck’s sake,” I mutter into my coffee.
“Language,” Hudson admonishes softly, even though there are no kids to hear.
“I knew it! I knew you were messaging a woman the other day. Who is she?” Autumn demands, clearly not letting go of this.
“Isn’t there some kind of Hippocratic Oath with housekeeping?” I ask. “What happens in the hotel stays in the hotel?”
Skyler lifts her hands, all mock innocence. “Annette was just a bit worried about you. Said something about a headache and you asking her to wake the woman up. And then she clammed up, but I’m invested and want to know everything.”
Eden leans forward, her face bright with mischief. “Come on, spill the beans. Did she sneak off before dawn? Was it a one-night stand or are you finally capable of a second date?”
“It was nobody. It was nothing. And it’s none of your business anyway.” I shake my head, my throat tight.
“Well that’s no fun,” Autumn says, folding her arms across her chest.
“Sorry to ruin your entertainment.”
Autumn huffs, like she knows I’m not sorry at all. “Dammit, was it a guest then?”
“Better not have been,” Hudson growls. “Guests are off limits.
