Southern Belles, a Novel About Love, Purpose & Second Chances (9781310340970) (41 page)

“Okay, well I’m going to bed. CeCe’s going
to be dropped off in the morning, at nine, for the bridal party spa
day. Richie—that means you too so you need to get some sleep so you
don’t have dark circles. I do not need an entourage tomorrow,
please.”

“Honey, you really should talk about this to
someone.” My mother persisted.

“I’ve had the craziest night of my life and
you want me to regurgitate it all back up? Really?”

“Yes!” Richie chimed in.

“Honey, you can’t just let this go.” Grandma
Rose asserted.

“Oh my goodness—you too Grandma?” I asked as
they all just sat there waiting for the lights to dim and for some
popcorn. “Ughh, so the father of my baby and quite possibly the
only person I ever thought I loved who disappeared four years ago
came back tonight. My best friend happens to be engaged to him and
she’s happier than she’s ever been and has no clue that Christian
is my Skylar—and oh yeah, Lucy’s dad. I spoke with him for two
minutes in the hallway when I was coming out of the bathroom. He
said he needed to talk with me and said that he tried to find me
but never could. That’s all I know. I don’t know what happened four
years ago. Goodnight.”

“When are you going to talk with him?” My
mother asked.

“I’m going to talk with him tomorrow night
after the Bachelorette party. If we are done with the questions,
I’m going to bed.”

“Don’t be frustrated with us honey we just
care about you. This is Lucy’s dad and she deserves a right to know
him whether or not we are happy with him.” My mother said.

“That’s if he gets passed my shotgun first.”
My father piped up.

“Are you kidding me dad?” I said, shaking my
head.

“Nope.” My brothers laughed as my dad
responded.

“Thank you for loving me so much—all of
you—but right now I just need some sleep. I’ve got to sort this out
myself and I have no idea what I’m going to do.” I said before
trudging up the stairs.

I slumped down just inside my doorway to
hear the mumblings of my family talk about my predicament. Lucy was
tucked into her toddler bed beside mine, fast asleep. I sat and
listened for the next half hour or so before dosing asleep on the
floor.

Chapter 21: Oak & Main

“Honey, wake up. It’s eight o’clock in the morning.
You fell asleep on the floor.” I heard my mother’s voice. “I
brought you some coffee.” She said bending down.

“Thanks mom.” I said peeking one eye open
with my mouth open and lying in a puddle of drool.

“I won’t tell anyone about the slobber but
you should probably get yourself cleaned up before CeCe gets here.
Also, I made breakfast and you should probably eat something—today
might be more difficult than you’ve prepared yourself for.”

“Do I have to get up? I just want to go to
bed and wake up with everything like it was.”

“That would be nice if that could happen but
I’m afraid you’re going to have to face this today.” She said
placing the coffee within reach of one of my arms. “This should
help to at least pry you off the floor. I made it extra strong—just
for you my dear.”

“Ugh, thank you mom. Is Lucy up yet?”

“Yep, she’s downstairs with Aunt
Juanita.”

“What? I didn’t know she was coming this
weekend.”

“Yeah, she wasn’t until she heard about
Skylar.”

“Mom—really? Who else is down there? Please
tell me that we’re not having a family reunion all of a
sudden.”

“I’m glad you haven’t lost your sense of
humor with all of this. No, we are not having a family reunion down
there honey.” She took a seat on the floor next to me.

“Char, are you going to tell CeCe today?”
She asked concerned.

“Honestly, mom I don’t know. I want to but I
don’t want to hurt her. And what if I tell her and she’s angry with
me? What if I tell her and she still marries him? I don’t even know
how he feels about me—what if everyone finds out and no one ends up
happy? I’ve already hurt Eric.” I pushed the slobber away from my
mouth.

“Did you tell him last night? He looked
unusually unsettled when he brought Lu in.”

“Yeah, he knew something happened. He’s such
a good guy and I hurt him and I hate that I did that.”

“I think you know that you did the right
thing. I like Eric and I think he’s a wonderful young man. He’s
been so good to you and our Lucy but I never saw the spark between
you two that you spoke of when you talked about Skylar, that summer
morning. And I’m not saying that you need to go running after
Skylar—if anything that boy needs to come running after you for
taking off like he did. But I know you knew that Eric, as perfect
as he is, didn’t steal your heart like Skylar has since the moment
you first met him.”

“Mom, what do I do?” I asked pressing myself
off the floor.

“I can’t tell you what to do. I’m praying
that you make the right decision.”

“Can you pray that I’ll know what to do—that
it’ll be confirmed—a sign or something, please?”

“Char, you have the power to change your
fate. You’ll know what to do when the time comes.”

“I know you’ve said that to me since I was a
kid. I wish I were still a kid sometimes. I never realized how much
easier it was then. Being a grown-up sucks sometimes.”

“Yes, but the good always outweighs the bad.
None of us would want to live a life without Lucy. Life is a
blessing no matter the storm.”

“I know you’re right. It’s just hard right
now.”

“I know sweetie. It’s always darkest before
the dawn. I love you—you need to get ready now, sweetie.”

“Thanks mom. Oh and mom, can you please keep
the boys and dad off the front porch when they drop CeCe off
please? I don’t want them to say anything to CeCe or Skylar!”

“I’ll try but just remember your daddy loves
you. People do crazy things for the ones they love.”

“Mom—please don’t let him get too crazy. I
have to spend all day with CeCe.”

“Give your father more credit than that
Charlotte.” She said heading downstairs.

“Okay.”

I took a quick shower, blow-dried my hair
straight and brushed my teeth. I looked in my closet to find
something fitting—not too dressy but pretty—something that made me
stand out without saying ‘come get me’. I wanted Skylar to choose
me strictly for the girl he met on the beach four years ago—not for
my clothes or because he felt obligated with being Lucy’s dad. Not
for my book he seemed impressed with either. Oh crap—the book. I
had two days left until I had to have the final revisions to Mrs.
Kisielewski at the publishing house, if I wanted it published. This
wedding and the drama with Skylar had completely taken my mind off
of everything else. Up until the last three chapters, the book was
based on me and CeCe. The previous ending very much had a
different, less theatrical account. The last few days gave me
plenty of material to work with but how would the last chapter end,
I wondered. My whole life depended on this last chapter. I scanned
my closet again and reached for a white pique, just above-the-knee,
fitted dress. The scooped neckline, complete with twin pleats was
pristine with its thin black leather belt and shaping darts. It
showed off my slender waist and was a good combination of
femininity and elegance—perfect for a spa day with the sorority
sisters and CeCe’s snooty cousins. I threw on a pair of white
strappy sandals and headed down the stairs.

I dreaded what I would find downstairs. Who
knew what my father or brothers were up to—let alone, where my
Grandma Rose might be lurking.

“Hi Charlotte,” Aunt Juanita said in her
thick southern drawl.

“Hi Aunt Juanita, I heard you came to see
the unfolding drama which is my life at the moment.”

“No, I came to cheer you on sweetie. You
need some good, strong women to steer you in the right direction.
Besides, I came to see my baby.” She said, kissing the back of
Lucy’s head as she hopped up and down on Aunt Juanita’s lap.

“Hmm, is that right?” I said tilting my head
at her.

“That’s right dumpling.” She smiled.

“Well I’m still happy to see you anyway.” I
said, holding my coffee cup out to the side so I could reach down
to hug her without spilling coffee on her or Lucy.

“Eat some quiche before CeCe gets here.” My
mom said pushing a plate of it in my direction.

“Yum, you didn’t tell me you made quiche.
You purposely made that just for me—didn’t you? She knows quiche is
my favorite breakfast food.” I said picking up a forkful to quickly
shove in my mouth.

“I sure did; bacon, spinach and artichoke.”
My mom smiled.

“You should get the recipe from her—it’ll
snag just about any fellow out from his feet.” I said, scarfing it
down.

“Maybe you should you take some of that with
you to see Skylar?”

“I walked right into that one—didn’t I;
touché Aunt Juanita.”

“You did. Ahem.” She grinned from behind her
coffee cup.

“Oh my goodness it’s five minutes to nine.
Where are dad and the boys?” I asked, looking around.

“They are somewhere outside.” She looked
down at her coffee cup.

“Mom, they are not waiting outside are
they?”

Just then, the door opened and in walked
Grandma Rose, followed by Evi. “CeCe’s here and so is the
hunk.”

“Grandma!” I said mortified by the loudness
of her voice.

“Mom, don’t embarrass her.” Aunt Juanita
called out. “So he’s really good looking, huh?”

“Well the young guy is not too bad but I was
talking about the older one in the passenger’s seat.” She said
nodding her head.

“Oh my goodness, is my dad out there
Grandma?”

“Yes Charlotte. He and your brothers are
cleaning their guns. It’s a nice day outside to do that.”

“Are you kidding me? Mom!”

I headed towards the door in a panic. CeCe
and Skylar were getting out of the back seat of a brand new white
BMW convertible. James and Sidney were getting out of the front
seat. My father and brothers sat polishing their twenty-two’s, on
the front porch.

“Char—are you ready for some fun?” CeCe
asked, jumping around pointing to the car. “Do you like my new
ride? It’s a present from my mom and dad for our wedding.”

“You betcha I’m excited.” I smiled
nervously, looking at her and Skylar, who had a pretentious smile
across his face. “That’s a very nice wedding present.” I said,
thinking about their fondue pot I bought her a week ago for the
wedding present.

“Richard, meet my son-in-law to be,
Christian La Fleur and his father, Sidney.”

My father stood up and put his gun down to
shake Skylar’s hand. My heart started pounding as I prayed silently
that he wouldn’t say a word other than the congenial hello.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you sir.” Skylar
smiled, showing his beautiful perfect white teeth and
architecturally shaped jaw line. His face hadn’t changed. It was
still the same beautiful face I fell for several summers ago. He
looked like one of the Greek Gods we read about in middle school.
His piercing blue eyes and dimples that exploded up the sides of
his cheeks grew bigger as he smiled wider, keeping the attention of
all the women standing on the porch and peeking through the
windows.

“Dad, they’ve got to get going. You can give
him his hand back now.”

“I love your dad Char; Mr. Buchanan, you’re
so cool. Maybe we can come back and shoot the guns later—Christian
and his dad might like that.” CeCe insisted.

“Don’t tempt him. We wouldn’t get to the
Bachelorette party if we did that Ce. We should get going. Dad—give
him his hand back!”

“You’ve got a great handshake Mr. Buchanan.
CeCe has told me so many good things about your daughter and your
family.” Skylar smiled, with his hand in my father’s grip.

“We’ve got a great family here.” My father
said, looking him in the eye.

“Well, they are leaving dad. Richie, go get
the car please?”

“Well, it was nice to meet you guys. Feel
free to come back later if you want to shoot some guns. I’d be
happy to bring out the big ones.” My dad smiled as he released
Skylar’s hand.

“That might be fun. Thank you Mr. Buchanan.”
Skylar smiled once more, before saying goodbye to everyone else on
the porch.

“I love you babe. I’ll see you later.” CeCe
smiled at Skylar.

My family waited for his reply, watching his
every move.

He smiled at CeCe and then looked at me.
“Have fun girls. I’ll see you later.”

We jumped in the car shortly after they
left. I eyed my parents from the driver’s seat while CeCe was busy
talking Richie’s ear off. “Bye guys, I love you.”

“We love you too sweetie.” My mother smiled
as she leaned into my dad’s side.

We took off towards town for the spa. CeCe
talked about Skylar just about as much as she talked about all the
details of her dream wedding. The nausea was coming back. Richie
just kept digging for more information while I pretended to be
preoccupied with driving. She went over the details of the proposal
underneath the Eiffel Tower and how he really knew her and loved
her for her. She said that he reminded her of me because he
accepted her for herself and wasn’t interested in changing her. So,
I actually drew her closer to him? Fantastic, just what I wanted to
do, I thought to myself.

We got to the spa and were greeted by Bev,
Christine, and six other girls. I recognized all but one of them. I
knew Pinky, and two of the other sorority sisters CeCe went to
college with. The other two were cousins—of which I had met before.
The third girl had long, silky dark-brown hair and blue eyes. I had
never met her but she was beautiful and smiling widely at me. I saw
Christine walk up and put her arm around her.

“Charlotte, this is Emma, our daughter.”

“Hi Charlotte, it’s great to meet you.” She
smiled and extended her arms to hug me. A fresh scent of patchouli
intermingled with possibly lemongrass greeted me with her embrace.
“My brother still loves you.” She whispered into my ear as she
hugged me tightly.