And again, my brothers came to my aid.
“She didn’t want to tell you anything about it, but Ava’s been trying to lose some weight,” Finn said.
I looked over at my brother and gave him a curious look.
“What?” my father asked.
“Yeah. She was wanting it to be a surprise for you. For the ball at the end of this year. But she’s been losing it a bit faster than she thought, and some of her clothes were too big,” Hunter said.
“And she figured since Cassie’s a bit stouter than her, that she could use some of her clothes. So Ava packed them up yesterday and took them with her,” Lorenzo said.
I tried to suck in my stomach as much as I could as my father’s eyes raked up and down my body. He got up and walked around me, studying me as I tried to alter my posture. I rolled my shoulders back and tucked in my hips. I drew in my stomach and tried to hide the excess weight I had in my arms. My mother’s eyes were sparkling with pride as my father looked down into my eyes, my gaze lifting to meet his so as to not show weakness or shame.
That would give me away in a heartbeat.
“I’m proud of you, Ava. You look splendid. What have you lost? Five, ten pounds?” he asked.
I breathed a sigh of relief as my brothers smiled off in the corner.
“She does look really good,” Finn said.
“She’ll need a new wardrobe, though,” Lorenzo said.
“Yes. Something a little more updated, maybe?” Hunter asked.
“That’s actually a wonderful idea. I just updated my wardrobe and I’ve never felt better,” my mother said.
“You’ve never looked better either, my love. Finally! My daughter shows a little bit of pride in her body. Did Cassie enjoy any of the clothes?” my father asked.
“A few of them. But Cassie’s much more… well-endowed… in some areas. A few fit, but I still have most of them,” I said.
“Ah, well. I’m glad she could use a couple of things. I have no idea where in the world her mother gets her fashion sense, but it’s horrendous. I’m not sure how her husband puts up with it,” my father said.
“I have to contact the tailor. We need to get Ava’s new measurements for her clothes,” my mother said.
“And I have work that needs to be accomplished. I’ve got another bid to put in for some land. That gas pipe isn’t going to build itself!”
I stood there with a lopsided smile on my face as my parents dashed out of the room. I sighed with relief as I hunched my shoulders and let my stomach roll out a bit. I looked over at my brothers as they grinned at me, then they escorted me over to the kitchen table.
“So, where were you really?” Hunter asked.
“How far did you get this time?” Lorenzo asked.
“Kettle,” I said. “I got as far as Kettle.”
“Ho
ly shit. You made it over an hour outside of the city,” Finn said. “What happened?”
“Did you guys get a massive storm here?” I asked.
“Nope, but you probably did in those mountains. They get them there all the damn time. It’s insane,” Finn said.
“You got caught in one, didn’t you?” Hunter asked.
“I did. It was bad, too. I thought I’d totaled the car,” I said.
“Wait, slow down. You were in an accident?” Lorenzo asked.