Across the Sea

five

Leigh-Ann talked incessantly about that Vinnie and I didn't have much of a choice but to listen. When she got home an hour or so after me, she chattered like a boy out in the cold without his jacket.

I listened with varying degrees of interest. All I could think of was the other guy...and my sisters, I was always thinking of my sisters whether I wanted to or not.

I rifled through a letter from Daddy on the mantle, postmarked from last week as he dragged on and on about Jacqueline's wedding. It was just about the end of spring and already all they could talk about was Jackie's summer wedding. Of course, I was to attend. I was to fly home and resume my life in the shadows of my three elder sisters.

It sat like a bad taste in my mouth while Leigh did her pacing across our shared bedroom. She yammered on, talking about his hair and his smile and the incandescent way that light hit his eyes. I tried to focus, but there was simply too much going on in my head.

"What about his friend?" I interrupted, lost in a reverie of what it'd be like to be with a Brooklyn boy, a fella without the entitlement of the upper crust or the lofty inheritance to match.

My cousin narrowed her eyes at me, mid-rave. She was upset I couldn't possibly follow an hour long recounting of the way Vinnie's grin sparkled with the light of a thousand stars.

"What about his friend?" she echoed with a haughty tone.

"Well, did they say anything more about him? I'd like to see him again, and it would really save me the trouble of finding out if you knew more about him."

"Darlene," Leigh paused. Her head tilted on its axis, smiling pityingly at me in a manner that reminded me of how everyone looked at me. Fourth best Bradley sister. "Look, hon. He seems like a real nice guy, but I don't want you thinking he's gonna be anything more than a summer romance. He can't be. I want you to have all your fun here and all that, but I don't care one bit for that look in your eye."

She flung a careless finger at the letter in my hand, adding, "It ain't in my future, but your side of the family marries trust funds, sweetheart. Not flyboys."

I didn't know what to say to her. It was the truth. My mother had a whole line of eligible bachelors waiting for me when I decided to make my debut.

I knew that. It didn't stop me from going with her to the cinema the next day, though. I had always had a little more fight in me than my sisters. I wasn't the prettiest or the most elegant, but I was the most steel-willed if that was a commendation.

There was a flicker of rebellion that coursed through my veins and I never much liked the idea of marrying a Robert or a William.

I was dressed in a darling yellow ensemble, letting myself appreciate the look in his eyes as he and Vinnie met us at the door. Leigh-Ann's father answered, naturally, as we rushed down the stairs together in a fit of nervous giggles.

She poked at my side in excitement, taking him in as our eyes met for the second night in a row.

The night was fresh and breezy, and I made sure to bring a shawl for my shoulders. The street outside was more or less lit up, and on the doorstep stood Vinnie with Danny a few paces behind.

Wordlessly, he smiled as he took me in and I knew no amount of money in the world could describe how rich I felt in that moment. Those soft brown eyes were beginning to feel like a place I wanted to know well, but I caught myself before I slipped up.

I had to keep a bit of pride about me, I reminded myself. I couldn't go around falling in love with every guy who was kind to me. That was a road to too many broken hearts than I could bear.