Caching In (18 page)

Twenty minutes later the cab rolled up to Perry’s stucco covered home in Henderson. I pictured the outside much different than what I saw. When he first moved to Las Vegas, he rented a small apartment. I knew he upgraded when he started working full-time again, but he downplayed the size of the house. Seeing the rocks for the “lawn” already made me miss Wisconsin. Sure, trees still covered the area and plenty of greenery surrounded his home, but it wasn’t the same as a plush green lawn. I thanked the cab driver, handed him cash, and stood at the bottom of the driveway, my suitcase set down next to me. I didn’t tell Perry I decided to come.

The garage door was shut, so I hoped he was home. It was four in the afternoon, but already six by my clock, and my stomach didn’t disagree. Four long years passed since we saw each other last - despite the texts we shared weekly - and for some reason my body tingled with nerves. I picked up my suitcase and headed for the front door.

I gripped my suitcase in one hand while I rang the bell with the other. I hoped this didn’t turn out to be a mistake. Perry typically loved surprises, mostly if they benefited him and included a night out with beer and presents. I wasn’t sure how his sister dropping her suitcase on his doorstep and expecting a place to stay for a week would go over, even if a few days before he offered.

The lock clicked, the door opened, and Perry stood before me, his dark hair matted to his head, full of who knows how much hair product, his once clean - shaved look replaced by a full beard and mustache, which fit him very well. His eyes opened wide and he smiled, yelling my name as he opened the door and pulled me into his arms.

“What are you doing here, Ally?” He let go of me. “I thought you refused to come and,” he created air quotes, “waste your money on an airplane ride.”

I shook my head and let out a sigh. “I feel so alone.”

“Oh, sis, I’m so sorry. Come in, come in.” He picked up my suitcase and waved me in.

I walked in behind him, entering into a huge great room with wood floors varying in darks and lights. Ahead of me a staircase disappeared into a second level. I admired the archway from the great room into the kitchen, which welcomed me with deep blue walls and simple, gray tile floors. Oak cabinets filled the open room, and the granite counter tops made me curse my linoleum. “Perry, how can you afford this? Did you make it big on some TV show or movie I’m unaware of?” I ran my hand down the cool granite.

“I kind of have a roommate.”

My brother Perry with roommate? Never. Perry needed space. He wanted to be able to come and go as he pleased, not do any laundry, order take out every night, and entertain plenty of women. “Doesn’t a roommate cramp your style?”

Perry smirked, his eyes sparkling. “No. Not this time.”

Okay, something was up with my brother. I’d tackle him later for details. I needed food. “I’m starving. My internal clock thinks it’s six. Can we go eat?”

He set my suitcase down on the kitchen floor. “I actually don’t eat out too much anymore.” I grabbed a stool by his breakfast bar and sat down. “If you want a snack, I have some fruit in the refrigerator, and we’ll eat in about an hour and a half.”

“What? You don’t eat out anymore? What did you do with my brother?”

The door slammed in the entryway, and the clip clopping of shoes got louder as they approached the kitchen. “Perry! I’m home!” A tall woman with honey blond hair pranced into the kitchen, stopping when she saw me. “Are you Ally?” She looked at Perry. “Is this your sister?” She smiled.

Perry walked over to this mystery woman, put her arm around her and announced, “Ally, this is my girlfriend Shelly. Shelly, this is Ally.”

Holy shit.
Perry
had a
girlfriend
? My brother, the ladies’ man, the new-girl-every-month, the guy who could never be bothered to settle down because of his huge acting career that would come to play any minute? “Um, hi, Shelly. Nice to meet you.” I hopped off the stool and shook her hand, taking note of her long, perfectly painted fingernails, which matched the lavender tone of her blouse.

“I’m so glad you decided to come visit! Perry has told me so much about you. Where’s Seth? Did he come with you?”

How did this woman know so much about me, yet I’d never heard so much as a peep about her? Dumbfounded by this bomb Perry dropped on me, I struggled to find the response. “No. He didn’t come. We’re not together anymore.” Perry must have forgotten to tell her.

She sucked her lip in, pouting, as though she went through the breakup, not me. “I’m so sorry to hear that. Are you staying for a while?”

Perry’s attention stayed on Shelly, obviously smitten with this woman whose name I never even heard before. “About a week, if possible. I mean, if I could stay here.” I already put the plane ticket on my credit card. I didn’t want to add a hotel room to my debt.

Shelly grabbed my shoulders. “Yes! We have a spare bedroom and we’d
love
for you to stay! Right, Perry?”

“Of course, Ally. You can stay even longer if you want.”

When I stepped off the plane, I obviously entered a whole new dimension. “A week should be fine.” Of course with the oddness surrounding me, I was uncertain if I’d make it out of this
Twilight Zone
I apparently entered.

“Spectacular! I’ll get your room and bathroom all ready.” Not skipping a beat, or taking a breath, she turned to Perry. “Can you start dinner, honey? I’ll be downstairs in a bit!”

I was left in a trance as Shelly left the room with my suitcase, my brother beside me, seeming an entire different person than came out to Las Vegas four years ago.

----------

I tapped my fingers on the counter as I waited for Perry to fill me in on Shelly. Rare silence danced between us as he took spinach leaves out of the refrigerator, toss them in a bowl, and start cutting cucumbers, clearly avoiding the conversation.

“I guess I’ll start then,” I took the initiative. “Shelly. How come this is the first time I’m hearing of her? When did you start dating?”

Perry kept his eyes on the knife as he sliced through the cucumber. “About eight months ago.”

“Eight months!” My brother didn’t keep things from me that long. We texted all the time, and when I told him about Seth, he could’ve told me about Shelly. “Why did you keep this from me? Does mom know?”

He set the knife down. “No, she doesn’t. Please, don’t tell her. I’ll bring Shelly home for Thanksgiving. I can tell her then.”

I massaged the back of my neck as I realized I hadn’t even told her I lost my job yet. “You’re planning on waltzing in there on Thanksgiving with a long-term girlfriend in tow?” Maybe by then I finally would spill the beans to my mom about my job. “She won’t react well to that. You should tell her before that.”

“I know. It’s just, ever since Dad died, she’s been trying so hard to move on. I don’t want her to think I’m moving on when she’s not ready.”

“Ah!” I let out. “You’ve got no idea.”

He went back to cutting the cucumber. “What do you mean?”

“I mean mom’s out there dating, Perry. It’s been almost two years. She’s moving on. She’s managing.” And even though she and Perry were close, his life shouldn’t halt because the love of
her
life was gone. As much as Dad wanted Mom to be happy, Mom wished her kids happiness, too.

“Mom is
dating
?”

“Yes.” So, I told him. Mom was a big girl; she could deal with it. “In fact, she has a serious boyfriend named Paul.”

He stuck his tongue out. “I don’t want you telling me anything else.”

“Good. I don’t either, and I don’t ask. Being aware she’s in the dating game is plenty for me.” I reached over and snatched a cucumber slice. “Seems hiding relationships is a special skill in this family.”
And outside of it, too
, I thought as Seth entered my mind.

He scooped up the remaining cucumber slices and tossed them in the bowl, ignoring my comment. He maintained his silence as he grabbed cherry tomatoes and ran them under water.

“This house is fantastic.” His eyes jetted toward me and back to the sink. “Win the lottery or something?”

Perry shut off the water, and leaned against the sink, crossing his arms. “Stop it, Ally. No, I didn’t win the lottery. No, she’s not a sugar mama. No, I’m not involved in some underground drug ring. I’m bringing in a steady income, and Shelly makes a pretty good living as a sales rep.”

“A sales rep?” I couldn’t be hearing this correctly. I worked in the banking industry (definitely past tense because I planned on staying far away from banks in my job hunt) and barely afforded my tiny duplex in the Midwest of all places, and Perry’s live-in girlfriend worked on commission and helped pay for this house way too big for the two of them, which easily cost them upwards of three or four hundred thousand dollars.

“Yes. A sales rep. She’s an incredible saleswoman. How do you think she got me?”

A cocky grin filled his face and I couldn’t help but laugh. Perry always made me smile, even when I told him about Josh and how cheated on me. A situation I found myself in, leaving me with regret and devastation, and he made me laugh about it. Our sibling bond was strong, and I loved that.

“You’re going to love her, Ally.”

“That’s not what’s important, Perry. The question is, do
you
?” He smiled at me and that told me everything. “That’s great. It really is.”

He was right, too, there wasn’t much
not
to love. Shelly joined us for dinner, discussing her day, but asking plenty of questions about me. Her interest in my life made me a little sad I didn’t know about her until that day. I didn’t let on her existence was news to me. Instead, I asked about her family, learning she had one younger sister who worked as a Blackjack dealer and her mom and dad were self-employed selling some sort of weight loss supplement. Watching my brother move Shelly’s hair out of her eyes, rub her back while she laughed and shared stories with me, moved my heart. My brother deserved happiness. Didn’t I?

CHAPTER TWENTY

Retail therapy: the tried and true way to get over a breakup. After a restful sleep in quite possibly the most comfortable bed ever, I awoke to Shelly bringing me eggs and toast to my room. Perry needed to get to work, but her appointments didn’t start until the afternoon, so suggested we go shopping.

“You’re spoiling me,” I said to Shelly when we arrived at the first of many stores I was sure we’d patron that day. “Breakfast in bed, a day out shopping. I don’t deserve this.”

Shelly sifted through the clothes hanger by hanger, taking time to pull each top out and examining the fabric, and every detail down to the buttons. “Sure you do. You’re Perry’s sister and my favorite guy’s sister doesn’t deserve anything less.” She put the top up against her chest for my opinion. I shook my head, and she put it back. “You’ve been dealt some rough cards, too, from what Perry told me last night. You need time to indulge yourself.”

I supposed truth existed in her words; more than I ever would admit. Why
didn’t
I deserve time to myself, time to reflect and be taken care of? Lord knew Seth was getting himself taken care of by Alyssa. I could buy myself a sexy outfit, flaunt myself out on the town, and go back to Perry’s, draw myself a bubble bath, toss some One Direction on my iPhone, and entertain myself I guess. Man, who was I kidding? My life was a joke.

“I don’t need indulging, Shelly. I need therapy.”

Handing me her purse, she said, “Hold this. I’m going to try these on. Follow me.”

I did as told, taking a seat outside a bench of the dressing room. The dressing rooms were simply a line of rooms separated by linen for doors, and a wall that didn’t even reach the bottom. The store didn’t fit my style. Since I normally was a yoga pants and tank kind of girl, a posh boutique with flowery sun dresses, fancy blouses and expensive jewelry wasn’t up my alley. I humored Shelly, though, as one of my hosts and the fact she only wanted to cheer me up. Her thin figure brought a little insecurity to me as I felt through my shirt to the tiny pouch. I worked hard to be fit and healthy, but Shelly’s frame fit one of those who didn’t need to lift a finger and her weight stayed the same.

Shelly shut the curtain and started talking. “You don’t need therapy, Ally. You’re what, twenty-nine years old? You need to find what makes you happy and just do it. Perry said you hated your job. Think of getting fired as an opportunity.”

“For what? Having no money?”

The curtain flung open and Shelly appeared in a long, black shimmering gown. Her light hair rested on her shoulders, and her bright eyes shone even more against the dark dress. “No.” She put her hands on her hips. “To take
control
of your future. Set up a plan. If you don’t know what you want, you’ll never obtain it.”

I had no idea what I wanted. Losing my job at the bank was embarrassing and a detriment to my income, but worse things could have happened. However, if I couldn’t figure out what my skills qualified me for, and the bank was the only job I had for the past six years, what was I to do with myself? “You’re right, Shelly. The key is
knowing
what I want.”