I hold my hand out for Kelly and she takes it, kissing my knuckles. A royal greeting. “Are you Bronson’s friend?”
I nod, saying, “Yes. His old friend.” She measures me up, and it makes me stifle a chuckle, seeing a little Butcher in her blue-grey eyes, taking the new person in, assessing whether they are worthy of her company, of her uncle’s company.
“Just a friend,” she declares. “Not a girlfriend because I’m going to marry him when I’m bigger.”
I beam at her. “Wow. Can I come to the wedding?”
She ponders my question seriously. “Um, yes.”
“Let me get a moment with the princess, will you, sweetheart.” I hear from over my shoulder, turning to see Luca. “Pleasure to see you again, Shoshanna,” he says, taking my hand in his. “Your absence has been a great loss to this family. I hope you know . . . we all feel that way.”
Max scoffs from behind me, and I turn to glare at him like I used to do, but he rises from the lounge and walks over to us. Kelly’s face lights up when she sees him approach, immediately waving her arms out for him as Bronson passes her over to her dad.
Max lifts Kelly onto his shoulders, and she squeals, “Daddy Robot,” while pretending to steer him by his ears. They wander down the bank towards the canal.
“Ignore Maxipad. I’ll beat the shit out of him later,” Bronson says, taking my hand in his again, lifting it to his mouth and pressing his lips reverently to my knuckles just like Kelly had done.
I exhale a big breath, and Luca pats me on the shoulder before squeezing it lightly. “Max noticed your absence, too. He just has an eloquent way of saying it.” Heading in through the sliding door, he says, “Welcome home, Shoshanna.”
I look back at Max. I knew he’d be the one to hold a grudge, as he never liked me in the first place. In the corner of my eye, I see blonde hair bounding towards me. I compose myself to meet the girl that has moved into their hearts.
Into Bronson’s.
I smile at her in preparation to say a genuine hello when she engulfs me in her arms, humming her enjoyment.
“I am so glad you’re here.” She squeezes me with her surprisingly strong little arms. “This is so great. It’s meant to be, and I know there is history, but he’s worth it, and he loves you so much.” She pushes me out in front of her, her hazel eyes then widen as though she didn’t have control over her own mouth just then. “I should shut up. I’m sorry. I’m just nervous. Please forget, like,everythingI just said. Bronson doesn’t share this stuff with me, it’s not like we have been talking about you or anything.” She looks at Bronson, picking at her nail polish as though she can escape through the film. “I’m sorry.” He just laughs. “Frick,” she says, I think to herself. “Sorry. . . again. I’m, you’ll get used to me.”
I can’t help but smile at her, even though she might not be so eager to welcome me back if she knew ‘the history’ she speaks of. “You must be Cassidy. And. . .” I chuckle softly because her candid outburst is pure and totally endearing. “You are not at all what I expected when I heard Max got married.”
She giggles for a moment before taking a handful of her wavy blonde hair and pulling it down her slender shoulder. “I get that a lot.”
I nod, wanting to say something like, ‘it’s as if the wolf caught a deer,’ but I don’t want to offend her because she is clearly a wonderful presence in this house.
She brightens. “Let’s have a drink?”
Peering at Bronson and then down at our joined hands, I feel unwilling to let him go. He strokes my forefinger with his thumb, watching me attentively as he says, “I can’t take my eyes off you if I tried.”
His way of saying he’ll be close. “Well, you are such a perv,” I say, grinning at him.
Cassidy makes anawsound, drawing me back to her as she bounces a little towards the dining-room door. “This makes me sofrickinghappy. What do you drink? Mimosa?”
“I’ll have whatever you’re having,” I reply, twisting to follow her in, letting go of Bronson’s hand.
“Max said we’ll be alone a bit later. The guys have. . .” Her smile slips slightly, but she hides it well - the smooth motion practised. I know that kind of smile, and it makes me very aware that although she may appear sweet and wholesome, she is still Max’s wife, which means she is probably clever, cautious, and protective of everythingButcher.“Business,” she finally says. “It’ll be me and you tonight for a while.”
I wonder if she was told to babysit me while he is with his brothers and dad. She leads us into the kitchen, heads straight to the large chrome fridge, and begins making our drinks. I glance through the glass window at Bronson, noticing that he has joined Max and Kelly at the foot of the canal. Kelly is entertaining them, performing little spins between the two brothers, her blonde hair whirling through the wind. The men are conversing, but both dart their eyes up to us every so often.
I sigh, breathing out what feels a lot like loss. Looking at the boys I grew up with but haven’t seen for half my life, now fully grown men in every way, I feel like I’m in an alternate reality. The one I often dreamed of but didn’t come to fruition. When Bronson and I were only kids, and hoped for a future together, willing to let go of everything else to obtain it. I didn’t let it go for years. . . So why am I not reaching out for this picture, taking my second chance with him?
I lean my hip on the edge of the breakfast bar, watching Cassidy move around the elaborate kitchen with complete ease and confidence. “How did you and Max meet?” I ask.
“I stalked him.” She releases a nervous giggle. “Not really. I just forced him to love me, really. He had no choice.”
“It was quite an embarrassing thing to watch,” a woman says from behind me, forcing an immediate shiver to rush down the length of my spine. Cassidy freezes up ever so slightly, but then turns with a soft smile placed on her face.
“You didn’t have to watch,” Cassidy says as I turn around to find Victoria Butcher sashaying towards me, her red pencil dress moving with her as though glued on. Bronson’s mother stops within an arm’s length, tilting her head at me.
With her presence, she brings enough poisonous energy to literally surround us in the kitchen. I feel my blood start to bubble in my veins. If the boys were in here, she never would have said that to Cassidy, but we don’t need them here.