Unraveling Sarah Cresley by Marisa Maichel (best summer books .txt) 📕

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Uh..." She screeched suddenly.

"How excellent! What's she like?"

"She's sweet, and clever, and funny. She has a lot of good qualities."

"Is she beautiful?"

"The most beautiful girl I've ever seen." She squealed and clapped.

"How close are you? How did you meet? How long have you been dating?'

"We've been dating for over a month now, and we're very close. We tell each other everything. I met her my freshman year of high school. She went to the other middle school in our district."

"Very good. When can I meet her?"

"Right now, actually," Uncle Soren said. "She's here."

We led my mother to the library. Janna was showing Sarah the Loki scrolls from ancient Denmark. Sarah seemed intrigued. (Because really, how many male gods do you see getting pregnant?)

Mother immediately went over to them, smiling. Janna noticed her and stood up. Sarah noticed and turned around.

"Hello," she said, grasping Sarah's hand. "It's so nice to finally meet you. What's your name, dear one?"

"Sarah Cresley," Sarah said, looking confused.

"A lovely name. How long have you known Reese?"

"Reese and I met our freshman year of high school. I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I don't know who you are."

"Of course, where are my manners? I'm Marina Santorino, Reese's mother."

"It's nice to meet you, Ms. Santorino."

"Call me Marina, my dear. Tell me about your family. What do your parents do for a living? Do you have any siblings?"

"My mother is a realtor, and I have one younger sister named Sabine. My father passed away last year."

"Oh, I'm very sorry for your loss!"

They seemed to be getting along beautifully. Sarah had to be nervous, but it didn't show. She answered each of my mother's questions, and she didn't flinch once. I was proud of her.

"What did your father do before he died?"

"He was a banker."

My father and I looked at each other. Realtors made money based on the houses they sold, and bankers usually made quite a bit of money. I thought back to one of the conversations Alicia and Sarah had had. Did they lose their money due to Alicia's alcoholism?

My mother continued to question Sarah about her life. How old was her sister? What was her favorite color? To my relief, she never asked any more personal questions. Then my mother told Sarah about herself. It turned out that she briefly married after my father, but they divorced two years ago. His name had been Edward Babin.

My father appeared at my side. He gazed at my mother sadly. Mother glanced at him, then turned her attention back to Sarah. She asked her what Becket, Sarah's father, was like. Sarah said that Becket was well-liked in the community, that he and her mother loved each other, and he called Sarah and Sabine his princesses. He had nicknamed Sarah Belle, and Sabine was nicknamed Bean.

I leaned against Father. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and kissed my scalp.

"Go get some lunch," he said. "I will watch them." I raised an eyebrow. "Trust me, Reese." No, I didn't trust him. He looked hurt.

Soon, though, we all heard Sarah's stomach growl, and my mother wrapped up the conversation.

"Want to get lunch, Sarah?" I asked.

"Yeah," she said. "It was nice to meet you, Marina."

"You too, sweetheart." Mother ignored Father as she brushed past him. He still gazed at her mournfully.

~~~~~~~~~~

Claudia made steak and fried potatoes for Sarah. She gave her a glass of iced tea. Mother briefly said that she didn't know how humans could stand eating "that stuff", then walked out.

"Aren't you hungry?" Sarah asked when she noticed that I wasn't eating.

"Not particularly for steak and potatoes," I replied. She raised an eyebrow. She suspected. Or she knew, but was in denial. She kept eating. I rubbed her back. When she finished eating, a servant took her plate away. Sarah smiled at me. I smiled back.

"You should smile more often," she said.

"Seeing you smile makes me smile," I told her. She reddened and looked at the table. Then I noticed Mother and Father in front of us. They sat at the table as well.

"Did you enjoy your meal, Sarah?" Father asked.

"I did. Thank you."

"No need to thank us. You are our guest, a decent meal is the least we can provide for you." Sarah's cheeks pinked even more. Then Mother spoke up.

"What are your meals usually like, Sarah?"

"Nothing like this. It's usually precooked or frozen."

Mother looked suitably horrified at this, until I explained what Sarah meant by frozen. Mother looked relieved. She really seemed to like Sarah; adore her, even. I took my girlfriend by the hand and led her into the den, where we sat on the couch. My parents joined us. My parents. It felt good to finally be able to say that.

Sarah leaned against me. Father tried to get Mother to lean against him, but she forcefully pushed him away.

"Don't touch me," she growled. "You lost your right to touch me when you screwed up." Sarah looked uncomfortable, so I showed her a picture of a kitten to distract her.

"She's cute," she said. "What breed is she?"

"She's a Devon Rex," I explained. "Speak of the devil." Shadowfang jumped up onto the back of the couch. He climbed onto my shoulders.

"Whose cat is that?" Mother asked.

"He's ours," I said. "Louis found him in the woods one day, and decided to keep him. Mother, this is Shadowfang. Shadowfang, this is my mother, Marina Santorino." He didn't even glance at her. He yawned instead. Sarah petted him, and he licked her fingers.

"His tongue is like sandpaper!" she said excitedly. Shadowfang looked proud of himself. Mother chuckled at my girl's silliness. She was looking at Sarah- at both of us- with awe and love.

"Sarah, may I brush your hair?" Mother asked.

"Um, okay, sure." Sarah said. "I'll be right back."

"Where is she going?" Mother asked me.

"I don't know," I told her. Sarah came back with a boar-bristle brush and a few hair ties.

Mother took out Sarah's bun and began brushing. "Your hair is so curly," she said with admiration coloring her voice.

"Yeah. Sometimes I wish it was neater," Sarah said.

"Nonsense. Your hair is beautiful. Most women would kill to have hair like this." Shadowfang put his front paws on Sarah's lap. He sniffed her shirt, then rubbed his cheek against her.

"Why do cats do that?" Sarah asked.

"It's a way of scent-marking," Father explained. "They have scent glands in their cheeks, and it's a way of marking a place or person as safe. Of course, sometimes it also means that they like you."

"Do you like me, Shadowfang?" Sarah asked. He nuzzled her hand in response. "He says yes."

Mother continued to brush and braid Sarah's hair, twisting it into a complicated updo. I started to smell Alexander. Father did, too. His eyes started to turn red. Mother could also smell him, but she made no movement.

My father's archrival stood in the doorway, arms crossed over his chest and leaning against the frame, a smug grin on his face, which promptly fell when he saw my mother. Mother looked up and stopped braiding Sarah's hair.

"Who invited you?" Father snapped.

"Eilief," Alexander said. "Marina."

"Alexander." She looked sick. She turned her head away and hugged herself.

"Marina, please look at me." His voice was full of pain and desperation.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I destroyed our relationship and hurt you. I betrayed you. I can't forgive myself for that."

"That was not your fault! It was his!" He pointed at my father. Father looked ashamed of himself. Sarah looked uncomfortable.

"Sarah, would you like to see the gardens?" I asked.

"Sure," she said. I quickly led her away as my parents and Alexander continued to fight.

~~~~~~~~~

I carefully plucked a dead freesia and handed it to Sarah. She smelled it.

"It's still got the scent," she stated. During the fight, it had begun to snow, and was now falling down gently and slowly.

"So it does," I said, taking in a whiff. "Do you like freesias?"

"I do. I like the smell, mostly, but they've got pretty petals, too." One more flower to add to her wedding bouquet. She picked off the dead petals one by one, repeating the "he loves me madly, deeply, passionately" mantra. Yes, I do.

I led her on a walk around the ailanthuses. She commented on their beauty, and I told her that she should see them in the springtime. We reached my favorite spot, a white marble bench surrounded by rosebushes and pine trees. The rosebushes had been planted a hundred years ago, and they still bloomed pink flowers. Sarah sat on the bench and I sat beside her. She looked around, her eyes pausing on a statue of Cupid and Psyche.

She looked at me. I looked at her. Then I leaned forward and grazed her lips. She grabbed my shoulders and tried to pull me close. I kissed her. She kissed back. We kissed for a long time, only pausing so she could breathe. Her breath smelled like oranges and mint. I could taste everything she'd eaten. It tasted amazing. I pulled on her lip with my own. A growl emitted from her throat and she stopped kissing long enough to whisper that she loved me. I told her that I loved her the most.

My belly twisted and tightened, and I was dealing with tension. I needed her. I would have had sex with her again, but I couldn't. I needed to watch our sex lives- it could hurt the baby she was carrying. We'd already risked its life at least twice. And she wanted to, not necessarily keep it, but she was willing to give birth to it. Not that she had much choice now. She'd already agreed to give the baby to Alexander, and he would kill her if she backed out. I hated his guts for that. I was thankful that she didn't appear to know about his threat.

We kissed for a long time, and then Sarah said that she was hungry. I took her back to the dining room, where Claudia had set out a bowl of fruit. Sarah took an orange and began to peel it. I took it from her and slid my nail into the rind, breaking it cleanly. I finished peeling it, and gave it back to her. She frowned at me and took a wedge.

"I wasn't going to eat it," I stated.

"Whatever. Can I take a nap after this?"

"Absolutely. Just tell me when you're ready, and I'll take you back to your room."

After she polished off the orange, I led her back to her bedroom. I ordered the servants not to bother her, and for Janna to stand guard at her door. They seemed to get along well. I went back into the den.

Father and Alexander were literally in each other's faces, screaming and growling at each other. Mother was sobbing into her hands.

"ENOUGH!" I cried. They all stopped and looked at me in shock. "Seriously, stop fighting. This is supposed to be a happy time." Then I turned on my heel and started to walk away in the most irritable manner possible.

"Reese, wait," Father said. I turned around. "I'm sorry that this has affected you. Come hunt with me."

"Reese can hunt?" Mother asked, amazed.

"Father recently taught me how," I explained. Father led me out roughly, grabbing me by the shirt and yanking me outside. He threw me onto the ground. He took a deep breath, and I thought he was going to yell at me.

"I'm sorry."

"I beg your pardon?" I replied.

"I'm sorry. You're right. I have to stay away from both of them, or I'll lose myself and do something unforgivable. And I'm sorry for dragging you out like a dog just now."

I stood up and brushed snow off of my jeans. "What the hell's the matter with you, Father?"

"Watch your mouth. And you know how I feel right now. Guilty, awful, terrible, angry, furious, upset, sad, guilty. I love your mother. I always will. But she's not mine. I realize that. I haven't yet found my soulmate. Maybe I will,