Mr. Holt

Brunch

I pick out a sweater and a skirt with tall boots to wear since there's a fall chill in the air. Then I walk the massive boat to find Alexander.

A woman aged about sixty is standing in the middle of the room, and she eyes me as I walk in.

"You must be Savannah," she says and walks over to me.

"I am. You must be Carol, Alexander's stepmom," I say.

"Well, you are pretty. I'll give him that much. Who's your family? Where are you from?" Carol says.

"Um, I grew up on Long Island. My dad owns... I mean, he owned a tire sales shop. My mom was a hairdresser," I say, wondering why it matters. Is it the 1800s?

"Owned? Did he lose his business?" Carol says, looking me up and down.

"Um, no, Ma'am. He died last year."

"Oh... I am sorry."

A man about the same age, maybe a little older than the woman, approaches. "Well, well! Who do we have here?!"

"This is Alexander's plus one, Savannah," Carol says.

The man extends his hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Savannah. If you're a strong enough woman to put up with my son, I like you already."

I just smile because I have yet to learn what they're talking about and they're a lot to take in after just meeting their son 48 hours ago.

Alexander walks up, fortunately, because I'm feeling very overwhelmed alone with his family. "Dad, Carol, no need to scare her away already."

"I won't scare her away, son. You're perfectly capable of doing that on your own," his dad says.

His sister comes over with a bright smile. "Savannah, come. You can sit by me."

She links her arm around mine and pulls me away from Alexander. As I'm walking away, I glance over my shoulder at him and he nods at me to let me know it's okay.

She takes me around the table to sit, but Alexander stays on the other side. The look I give him tells him to get his butt around the table to sit with me now. But he subtly shakes his head as if to tell me it's going to be fine.

He sits down directly across from me and then a pretty and young woman maybe a little older than me sits next to him and whispers something in his ear. I feel on edge, wondering who she is. But in all reality, I have no true claim on him. He isn't my husband or fiance. Hell, is he even my boyfriend? No.

"Savannah, have you met Jamie?" Carol says.

"I have not," I say, looking across the table at her sitting very closely to Alexander. I try to ignore it, figuring his family is trying to test me.

"Jamie was Alexander's childhood sweetheart," Carol says. "His mother always wanted them to get married."

Alexander's eyes narrow and he furrows his brow, subtly shaking his head as if to tell me to ignore them.

I look next to me at his sister, now wondering if she pulled me away from him so that woman could sit there instead. 

The food is served, but I don't eat much. I mostly watch Jamie cling to Alexander as she laughs with his sister.

"So, Savannah," Jamie says. "How long have you known Alexander?"

With a bite of food in my mouth, which I think she planned, I say, "Not long."

"Oh really? Because Xander and I go way back. I've known him since we were kids," she says, smiling and clinging to his arm.

I smile and sip my wine. Alexander can tell I'm uncomfortable because he just stares at me. A few times, he leans his elbow on the table and rests his face in his palm, rubbing his face and hair.

"What's your family do?" she says.

"My parents died, but my dad was a tire salesman and my mom was a hairdresser."

"Oh," she sneers. "My daddy is an executive. That's how I know Xander."

I nod but say nothing.

"Is he paying you to be here?" Alexander's dad says.

"Um, what?" I reply.

"Oh, it's just that with the stipulations on his inheritance, he can't seem to keep a girlfriend interested too long. That's all," he says.

"God damnit! Why are you people this way!" Alexander yells, slamming his fists on the table.

"Well, also his temper," his dad says, sipping his wine.

"Definitely his temper," Jamie says, running her finger down his chest.

Alexander angrily pushes back from the table and walks outside to the deck.

After giving him a moment, I walk out there to him.

"Are you okay?"

"Fuck them! Fuck all of them!" He yells, pointing inside.

I widen my eyes but wrap my arms around him, hugging him tightly. I'm not sure why I hug him. I just feel like this guy needs to be loved. No one in that room loves him.

It takes a moment, but he encloses his arms around me and his head drops onto mine with a sigh.

"C'mon," I say. "Let's go back in."

He kisses the top of my forehead.

"What were they talking about?" I ask. "I mean, you paying me to be here?"

"Don't worry about it. I don't want to burden you with my problems."

"Burden me, please."

"No."

"I'll burden you with mine if you burden me," I say.

"Deal."

"So? What was your dad referencing?"

"In order to inherit my mother's money, I have to get married."

"That doesn't sound so bad," I say with a wink and a kiss on his cheek.

He smiles. "Well, that's not the worst part."

"Okay. Tell me the rest."

"There's some kind of contract saying that whoever I marry doesn't get any of her money when I die. It all goes to my father."

"Oh. See? Still not too bad. C'mon. Let's go back in. You can't scare me away." I take his hand and lead him back inside.

"Who are you?" he says as we walk.

"Just a girl raised by a poor tire salesman."

We take our seats and Jamie says, "So, Xander."

"What?"

"How did you meet Savannah? If she's the real deal, how did you meet?"

"I was getting coffee and I spilled my drink on her," he says.

His sister laughs.

"On purpose? Did you just think she's pretty and not know how to talk to her? Because that I'll believe."

I laugh. "Was it on purpose?"

"No. But I did want to meet you."

"At least you had the courage to talk to me," Jamie says.

"I didn't really have the choice, did I?" he says.

"Interesting you had the choice and you chose her."

I get up from the table and walk to my cabin without waiting for Alexander.

"Savannah!" he hollers as I walk down the hall and to the stairs to my cabin. "Savannah!"

I say nothing and go into my cabin. He knocks. "Savannah."

"I want to be alone."

"Savannah, please. Ignore them. They're assholes."