Rum Punch Regrets (14 page)

Abby was thoroughly confused now.

“If these are all your boxes, why do you have this picture in there?” she said as she handed him the picture of her father.

Ben looked at the picture, then back at Abby. It seemed that it was his turn to be confused now.

“Well, Abby, I don’t know about you, but I like to keep pictures of my parents around to look at every now and then.”

The words hit Abby like a ton of bricks
. Parents. His parents. My father. Not my mother.
She felt the room spin as she grabbed for the countertop.

Abby started to say something, but instead reached for the paper bag from the day before, the one that held the book she had found. She pulled it out and showed it to Ben.

“This book. This is the one I found yesterday.”

Ben’s face twisted with bewilderment. “Okay. It’s
The Great Gatsby
.”

“Is this yours?”

Ben stared at the book and nodded. “My dad gave me that, Abby.” His face showed a glimmer of understanding. “Oh, is that why you thought I stole your sister’s book? Don’t think I’m well-rounded enough to --”

Abby’s palms were sweating as she cut him off.

“Ben, I need to ask you something. Are you positive, absolutely 100%, that the man in that picture is your father?”

Ben looked both concerned and nervous when he nodded his head affirmatively in response to her question.

Abby took a deep breath, and with the threat of tears about to plummet to the floor from her eyes and her food about to come back up, she made her way into the bathroom to throw up. She stayed in the bathroom long enough to splash water on her face, gather her composure and brush her teeth. Once she had gathered herself back together, she returned to the living area.

Ben had been sitting on the couch holding the pictures and stood up when she came out. “You okay?”

How do I tell him this?
Abby wondered.
How do I tell Leigh? How do I . . . Wait. Leigh.
Abby felt like the coincidences were piling up a little too high here.
Slow down. Just take it a step at a time.

Abby sat down on the couch and looked into Ben’s concerned face, struggling to find her own strength to try to get out the words that even she didn’t want to hear.

“Ben, this man in the picture. The one that you say is your father.”

Ben nodded, suddenly looking a little pale himself.

Abby’s mouth was dry, and her tongue was sticking to the roof of her mouth. “I’m thrown by this, because I know him, too.”

“You know my dad?” Ben’s face was registering confusion. It was twisted in the way Abby’s tummy was twisting up inside her right now.

Abby nodded. “I do. I know him well, or at least I used to.”

Abby’s head was racing as she realized the impact her words would have once they were said out loud. She had closed her eyes in an attempt to keep her tears back and quiet her thoughts. Realizing it was useless, she opened her eyes again and turned to face Ben.

“He’s my dad, too,” she whispered, slowly and solemnly, as if they were in church on Christmas Eve. “Ben, this is my father, Stanley George.”

The quiet was thick and strong in the room. You could hear the proverbial pin drop, it was so silent. Ben was staring at Abby, and she held his gaze, feeling like they needed to feed off each other’s strength, even if it was fleeting.

“Ben, the book. My dad gave the same book to me and to Leigh when we were kids. It was a tradition . . . ”

“ . . . in his family.” Ben finished.

Abby wasn’t sure if she was feeling sick again or if it was getting hot, all she could tell was that her upper lip was starting to perspire like it did when she was nervous. She looked down at Ben’s hands and noticed his nervous habit was in full effect. For that matter, so was hers.

Ben was staring at his hands while Abby stood up and paced the kitchen.

Abby’s thoughts were racing on top of one another.
Ben. Ben’s my brother. Holy crap. I have a brother?

As if realizing the same thing, Ben cast an intense look Abby’s way.

“You’re my sister.”

Abby nodded. “Well, I think I’m your half-sister?”

Ben nodded too. “How do we . . . ”

“Deal with this?” Abby finished. “I don’t know. I feel like this explains a lot but like it also explains nothing. Does that make sense?”

Ben was dumbfounded. “Yeah. Except the part that we have the same dad. So Leigh? She’s also my sister?”

Abby nodded. “As far as I know . . . not trying to be cryptic, but damn. This is kind of a big deal.”

The next few minutes felt like hours as the duo sat in silence, processing their discovery. Abby could only watch the cats as they rolled on the cold tile floor of the kitchen, begging for attention or for a petting from her. It was soothing to see them wrapping up with each other and taking care of each other, much like the way she felt she and Ben needed to do now.

She cleared her throat and wiped her silent tears away from her cheeks. Abby felt the need for a change of location suddenly. It was as if the walls of the pool house were closing in on her. She needed out for some air and space, but she wanted Ben there, too. As she looked in his direction, she realized his shell-shocked reaction could only mean he needed the same thing as well.

They looked at each other, silently standing up in unison as Abby led them to the main house to search out Maria.

#

When Maria rounded the corner into the kitchen, she stopped in her tracks, her face showing surprise at the sight that greeted her.

At the center island, seated next to each other, drinking beer, were Abby and Ben. And the looks on their faces suggested that something had transpired.

“I take it you two aren’t here to check on Ziggy?”

The pair shook their heads in unison.

“Should I make tea or should I grab a beer as well?” she asked the twosome quizzically.

“Depends,” Abby responded drily. “Did you know Ben was my half-brother?”

Maria let out a slow long breath and grabbed a stool across from them. Then, deciding otherwise, she went to the fridge and grabbed a beer for herself. She popped the cap and took a long drink, then she stiffened up and went to the stool again, sitting down.

“How did you find out?” she asked.

Ben was the first to answer. “She saw a picture -- ”

“The book, actually, yesterday,” Abby interrupted.

“-- of my parents,” Ben interrupted right back. “Then she said that my dad was her dad, too. Do you think it’s true, Maria?”

Maria seemed ready for this and answered him straightforwardly.

“I know it is, Ben. You and Abby are brother and sister.”

Armed with confirmation of what they had only thought might be true, they now both nodded, still stunned from the events.

“I think the person you need to speak with -- ” Maria began but never finished.

“Let me guess,” Abby responded. “Leigh.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe this.”

It was Maria’s turn to cut her off. “Abby, she knew she was taking a risk at having you two find out the truth.” Maria shrugged her shoulders. “As for you having to room with Ben? A fluke. We got last-minute reservations that made it impossible for her to say no in order to bring money in.”

Abby shook her head. “No, Maria. Leigh knew and that’s not acceptable. My father cheated on my mother. With Ben’s mom . . . ”

“What are you implying?” Ben countered defiantly.

“I don’t know, Ben,” Abby’s voice was shaking and she was trying to keep from cracking. “This is really confusing. I feel bad for you and your mom. I’m just floored.” She leaned over and grabbed his hand. “You and I are kind of innocent victims in this whole thing. Unless you knew, too?”

Ben started to respond defensively, but slowed when he saw Abby’s grin.

“That’s a joke?” he asked.

“Well, we should try to find the funny, don’t you think?” she replied.

Maria smiled at the duo. “I have no doubt you’ll be fine, but the person you need to speak to in order to iron all of this out is Leigh. I would think she could help with figuring out the best plan of attack here.” She looked at Ben. “I’m sure you’ll want to call your mom now?”

“Yes,” he replied. “I think I should. But I feel like I need to digest this a little more before I ask her any questions. I’m guessing she probably had her reasons why she decided not to share this news with me, at least not yet?”

His last statement became a question, which was directed to Abby.

“Well, I’d love to hop on the phone and rip Leigh a new one, but I think I need to calm down a little bit myself.” She stared at her beer bottle, playing with its label. “She’s always been secretive and very mysterious, but in the end she has always had good reason to be.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I guess I need to accept that she had her reasons for doing all of this.”

Abby looked around the kitchen and let the weight of her trip so far settle in.

“When I agreed to come here, I was under the impression of one thing: that I was coming to help Leigh with a few repairs on her house. Then I find out the house is an inn, and we all know the rest of the story from here.” Abby was playing with her fingers nervously. “I kind of doubt the inn is even what she says it is. There are so many lies, Maria!”

Maria was thoughtful. She leaned across the table and took Abby’s hand in hers.

“No matter what you may think, Leigh has her reasons. I told you, everything has a reason, and the same goes here. When you do decide to talk to her, take it easy on her. She’s had to be the only one dealing with this for many years.” She looked at Ben next and took his hand. “She’s wanted to tell the both of you for some time, but a promise she made was to not ever let the secret out, unless it came out all by itself.”

Ben and Abby both picked up their beers and took long drinks in unison. It made sense to both of them now: the bickering, the back and forth, the feeling of being around a sibling, yet not really. Abby was both excited about the fact of getting to know Ben as her brother and angry with her sister.

Abby thought back to when she had first met Ben: how his eyes had blazed a small hint of green when irritated, just like hers did. And Maria, knowing the little family saying of “I love you but sometimes I just don’t like you.” She knew it had to be more than just a coincidence. And there was something in Maria’s actions and the way she laughed that made Abby feel like they had known each other for quite some time, or at least that she was buried somewhere in Abby’s memory bank.

“Maria, I feel like I’ve met you before. Have I?” Abby asked.

Maria was smiling at her now, almost apologetically.

“Yes, girl. Many moons ago. I worked with your sister in the States a long time ago. When she was putting together the deal down here for the house through the real estate agent, she called me. She wanted me to come and help run the inn in her absence. Leigh placed a lot of trust in me and has always taken care of me and Ziggy. She is always trying to make decisions in everyone’s best interests, but until you speak with her, I don’t want to go further into detail. You need to speak to the source. I’m not sure if it’ll require a phone call or something in person, but do what you need to in order to put this behind you and move on.”

They all sat in silence for a good five minutes until Maria, once again, was the first to break it.

“It’s not the end of the world. You’ve not lost anything. You’ve both gained. Ben, you have a family. One you didn’t know about, but a new family that you get to discover. And Abby, you have a little brother, right here in front of you. And he’s been through a lot the last year. Maybe it was time that you had each other so you could find strength in numbers.”

Abby and Ben looked at each other, both waiting for the other one to speak.

Ben opened his mouth to speak and stopped himself. Abby noticed and put her hand on his shoulder.

“I think from here on out we can say ‘open communication’ and know it’s true.”

“Well,” he began, “I was young when my dad . . . our dad passed away. I have questions about him.”

Abby nodded in agreement. “Of course. I was young, too, but I can tell you what I know. That he was a kind, generous and loving man.” She got this far and started to cry. “And had a secret life that he kept from his family.”

“Abby, don’t assume, remember? Wait until you talk to Leigh before either one of you goes placing blame on your dad, or Ben’s mum, or Leigh. No one is to blame here. Sometimes,” Maria continued, “circumstances arise and it’s best to move forward without fully revealing the truth. Not saying it’s fair, but that sometimes it has to be done that way. Now, I’m going to make a deal with you guys as the dust settles here. Okay?”

Abby and Ben waited for Maria to lay down her rules.

“One. First and foremost, you two have got to be good to each other. Okay? Two. Talk to each other about how you’re feeling and ask each other questions so you can know the other person sitting here with you now. No need to gang up on Leigh. Her ways may not be the most acceptable at times, but she only did as she was told.”

She makes sense,
Abby thought.
Until I decide to pick up the phone and confront Leigh about this, there is no need to jump to any kind of conclusions about her or my father. But I’d still like some answers.

Abby glanced over at Ben and could see he was wrestling with his own demons. He smiled at her, and for the first time since she had been there, Abby truly felt that everything was going to be all right.

“Okay, Maria, I accept your conditions,” Abby said. Ben nodded his head in agreement.

“Good. Now, I’m going to start dinner for the house. Why don’t you two just sit here for a minute and take a breath -- after the day’s events I think we all need to. Plus, I really don’t want to let you out of my sight for a little longer until I know you won’t be rushing off to do anything dumb.”

Abby giggled, wondering what Maria considered “dumb.”
Calling Leigh and giving her hell? Or maybe Ben and I just need to get completely hammered and then wake up tomorrow likes it’s a do-over for our relationship?
Either way, Abby had to admit it felt good to have a partner in crime right there beside her.