Fixer-Upper (Spinning Hills Romance 3) (10 page)

Marissa and her dad exchanged a look. Most people held the opinion that Hispanics were hot-blooded, excitable, and had too much energy for their own good. Meeting her parents usually dispelled them of that idea. Her father was calm, gentle, and had a good head on his tough shoulders. The calm and gentle part he got from his own dad, who’d passed on twenty years before. Marissa had only been six, but she remembered her
abuelo
as a gentle soul and a consummate dreamer. Her father’s good sense and strong sense of self came from Abuela Rosa.

Marissa’s mom was another story. She was a short, blond, green-eyed, continuously rolling ball of energy. As a corporate recruiter, that energy had plenty of outlets, but it was also too-often channeled into apprehension and needless worrying over her kids. Although they occasionally became exasperated with her and let her know, they didn’t mind it much because their father had a way of calming her down and putting things into perspective for her.

“Thanks, Mom. I think it’ll be everything I’ve ever wanted and more.” She squeezed her mom’s hand.

Her mother gasped and yanked her hand up. “You’re engaged!” she cried out. “Roberto, look, she’s engaged. Look at that big, beautiful ring!” But one moment she was ecstatic, and the next she was whispering, “Oh Lord. I’m so happy for you, Marissa, but I think it’s best we keep this from Melinda for now.”

“Congratulations, honey.” Her dad hugged her tight. “I want to hear all about it over a glass of white wine,” he said before turning to his wife and placing both of his hands on her shoulders. “Michelle, Marissa’s good news should not make Melinda feel bad. If it does, then there’s something wrong there that she’ll need to address if she’s going to grow up.”

Her mom swallowed and looked up at her husband. “I know you’re right, but she’s going through a hard time and she’s not herself right now.”

Marissa had been thinking the same exact thing and she’d even put her ring away. Twice. But then she remembered all those years when Melinda’s life had been charmed. Her sister was beautiful, with a pleasing, nonthreatening air, and school had come easily to her. It had made teachers love her, made boys fall head over heels, and given her more than enough friends—and a few jealous frenemies. Marissa’s life had been wonderful, but not perfect, and yet she’d never once envied her sister or begrudged her good fortune.

Right now, the idea of making her sister feel worse stressed her out, probably even more so than her mother, but Marissa agreed with her dad. Coddling Melinda was a terrible plan of action. The past six years had changed Melinda. She hadn’t had the instant success she’d been so sure of, and it turned out she didn’t have a good work ethic, either. Things had always come easily to her, and the moment things became harder, Melinda started blaming life, luck, her coworkers, and even her family.

Marissa snuck her arm around her mother’s shoulders. “I know how you feel, Mom. Trust me, I’ve been stressing out about how she’ll take it, too. It’s why I didn’t say anything yesterday when I called, but Dad’s right. Hiding other people’s good news from her won’t do her any good. It would be like telling her it’s okay to begrudge others their good fortune just because things aren’t going her way.”

Her mother took a deep breath. “Okay, then. Let’s go inside. But don’t say anything unless she notices the ring.”

“Michelle . . .” Roberto warned. “That’s unfair to both of your daughters. It implies that we think Melinda is too mean to be happy for her sister. If Melinda was the one who’d just gotten engaged, you’d be shouting it to the four winds, and Melinda knows that. Look at how excited you were when you thought she and Johnny were destined to be Spinning Hills’ newest sweethearts.”

Marissa’s stomach dropped, and she sent up a fast and fervent prayer that Melinda wouldn’t figure out that Marissa had been the girl Johnny had met at the masquerade party last year.

Her mother’s face hardened. “And Johnny’s to blame for the funk she’s been in these past two days. Jobs haven’t panned out, her career hasn’t panned out, and she thought at least her love life was finally looking up. It all sounded so romantic—I still can’t wrap my head around it. What was he thinking? I loved that boy like he was my own, fed him nearly every Sunday night for all those years, and Rosa said she was so sure . . .”

Marissa closed her eyes, feeling bad for Johnny as her mother went on and on. The whole thing really had gotten out of hand. Why was he such a magnet for girl trouble?

Her father opened the door, leading his muttering wife inside, and Marissa followed. Melinda was sitting on the sofa, watching television in a pretty nightgown, and petting Jolly, Marissa’s cat. Her hair and makeup were perfect, and Marissa wondered why she was still in her nightgown.

“Melinda, come here.” Her father motioned to her sister with one hand, while placing his other on Marissa’s shoulder. “Your sister has some great news to share. Go on, honey,” he said, looking down at her with an encouraging smile.

Melinda turned around. Marissa pasted a smile on her face and awkwardly lifted her hand to show her sister her ring.

Melinda’s eyes flickered between Roberto and Michelle before resting on Marissa. “Wow. Look at that. Congratulations!” She stood up and walked over, a smile on her face. She took a good look at the ring before hugging Marissa and saying, “You are one lucky girl, and Brian is one smart guy.” Her tone was sincere and she smiled a small smile, one meant to convey that although she was sad, she could still be happy for her sister.

“And Melinda has some good news, too!” Michelle Medina put in. “She has an appointment with an admissions advisor at Wright State University tomorrow. Roberto, bring the wine. Let’s toast our beautiful, smart daughters. I’ve already got dinner ready for today, but we should have dinner tomorrow night at Huffy’s so Marty can join us, Melinda can tell us all about her appointment, and Marissa can fill us in on her new job!”

 

Later on, as Marissa was unpacking her clothes for the rest of the week, Melinda came in her room, sat on the corner of the bed, and smiled that small smile again. “So, you’re going to marry the guy you had a crush on all through high school. How funny is that?”

Marissa sighed. “I wish I could’ve seen the future when I was fifteen. It would’ve saved me a lot of ridiculous heartache.”

“What, Ruby didn’t tell you you’d be marrying Brian Golden that time she read your fortune behind Abuela’s back?” Melinda’s smile became real.

“No.” Marissa chuckled. “She said something about me needing to find a balance, and I couldn’t pay attention after that. I was so disappointed. I’d been waiting for ages for her to read my fortune, and I wanted to be told something special. Do you remember what she said to you?”

“She said I had to get out of myself.” Melinda shook her head. “I tried to float above my body for weeks after that, thinking maybe I could do some astral traveling and see New York and Los Angeles.”

Marissa laughed at the mental picture her sister created. “Maybe that’s why Abuela didn’t want her reading our fortune.”

Melinda nodded. “Remember the time you tried to perform CPR on a dead goldfish?”

Marissa wrinkled her nose. “How can I forget? It’s Mom’s favorite Marissa story. I wish she’d stop telling it. I had a boyfriend who wouldn’t kiss me for a week when she told him. And she forgets she went nuts when it happened. She was sure I’d get salmonella or something.”

Melinda wrinkled her nose, too. “Well, it
was
disgusting.”

“I was only six!”

Melinda smiled. “I know . . . but I always thought that’s what Ruby meant about you needing to find a balance. You slept with the fishbowl in our room for a week, and you kept getting up to check on the other fish. It’s when I demanded my own room. You wouldn’t let me get any sleep.”

Marissa was quiet, remembering how sad she’d been the day the fish had died.

“Johnny brought you a new fish, remember?” Melinda asked.

Of course she remembered. She’d never forgotten how solemn he’d looked when he handed her the sandwich bag full of water and one little fish. Her heart did the little squeeze it was apt to do when she thought of Johnny. But she continued to unpack as if her thoughts weren’t spinning hard and fast. Melinda had found a way to bring up Johnny, and she’d be bringing up the masquerade party next. What if she asked her outright whether she was the girl Johnny had met that night? The whole thing felt too strange and unfamiliar. She hadn’t attracted male attention—or any kind of attention, really—until she was in college, and now she was engaged to Brian Golden
and
was Johnny Amador’s mystery girl? It was crazy.

Marissa tossed a shirt onto the bed, sat down next to her sister, and squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry I haven’t asked how you’re feeling about that whole scene Saturday night. I didn’t know if I should bring it up.”

Melinda considered her for a long moment. “You can tell me if it was you he was talking about, you know. I mean, we were wearing very similar clothes, and it would explain some of the things he told Abuela and Marty. And it’s not like I liked him or anything. I was just enjoying being the girl a popular guy had been going on and on about.”

Though Marissa knew those last words were true, Melinda’s mouth and jaw were set in such a way that made Marissa feel sure the news would, in fact, upset her sister. Admitting she was the girl would actually help
no one
. A simple version of the truth would have to do, so she wouldn’t mess up later or sound like she was overexplaining.

“I can see how you’d think that, but I’m not the girl Johnny’s been talking about.” And she truly wasn’t. He’d built that girl up in his mind to be someone else entirely. “I spent that night catching up with my friend Isabella, remember? Until I left to find you.” She hesitated. “And I didn’t want to say anything because everyone’s so mad at Johnny . . . but it turns out he and I are working at the same school.” Melinda’s eyes widened at that, and Marissa rushed on. “We talked about you, the masquerade party, and even the girl. The whole thing started ’cause he found your invitation. I think the moment he saw your name, his mind started making everything fit. We all do that sometimes, I think. Force things to fit because they’re convenient or would make a good story.”

Melinda began picking at a loose thread on the bedspread. She wasn’t convinced, but Marissa could say no more without falling into the Shakespearean trap of protesting too much.

“So,” Marissa began. “Tell me about Wright State.”

Her sister shrugged. “I’ve decided I’m going back to LA. I hate it here.”

When had communicating with her sister become so anxiety-ridden? She remembered a time when she’d treated Melinda like her very own live doll, and Melinda had reveled in it. She’d do her hair, help her pick out outfits, and experiment with makeup.

Maybe Marissa had been a huge part of the problem. Melinda wasn’t a doll. And she was now an adult. An adult who hadn’t been able to keep a steady job during the last six years and who’d been living off of their parents. They never said anything, but Marty and Marissa both knew.

Los Angeles was expensive. Her parents both still worked and made a decent living, but supporting Melinda had to be making a huge dent. They’d talked for years about traveling, and yet they hadn’t taken one trip. And their father, a longtime mailman, could have retired three years ago, but he hadn’t.

Marissa chose her next words carefully because Melinda seemed to be super-sensitive these days. “You know me, I always think people should do what they want, as long as it doesn’t affect others, and I’ve always thought you’d be great on screen. But I thought you said LA was very expensive and you’d run out of money. Have you been applying for jobs out there?”

Melinda stiffened. “Yes, I’m looking, but you guys don’t understand. It’s hard to hold down a job and audition for roles at the same time because you never know when you’re going to get a call. My friend Sahara has gotten a few commercials and guest spots that have paid her enough to live on for months at a time, but she lives at her parents’ house and doesn’t have to constantly struggle to make ends meet. You have no idea what it’s like, and Dad said he can’t help me anymore. He gave me one year and that went by fast. Do you know how many people tell me how lucky I am that I at least have an agent? And now I’m screwed because I’m all the way over here, and Dad just doesn’t get it. One good role or modeling contract and I’d have paid them back. I would’ve paid off their mortgage and bought them enough plane tickets to see the world.”

Marissa didn’t know what to say. She hadn’t known her father had put his foot down, but she was glad he had. And she knew how much her sister loved them all and would give them the world if she could. “I know you’d pay them back if you could, Melinda, but don’t you see you’re asking Mom and Dad to risk their future on you?”

Melinda stood up again. “I
know
I can make it. The problem is, none of you believe in me. You all say you do, but you don’t!” With that, she stormed out.

Marissa plunked down on the bed and stared at the wall, wondering where she’d gone wrong in the conversation. A short time later, Brian called, and Marissa sat back and listened to him vent about a public relations nightmare he’d had to spin for one of his more prominent clients. His work was interesting, fast-paced, and exciting, but it was often high-stress. Luckily, she had something to tell him about her own day that was guaranteed to make him smile. But she didn’t get quite the reaction she’d been hoping for.

“Johnny never was one to think things through. I mean, five puppies, seriously?” Brian’s laugh boomed into her ear.

“I didn’t tell you so you’d make fun of him, I told you because I thought it would make you smile. He did it for the kids, you know,” she said, feeling the need to defend Johnny because she’d agreed with and encouraged him.