Page 43 of Lie with Me
“CJ has friends.Trust me.” The way she says ‘trust me’ turns the tables on the conversation, leaving my sisters curious, and Tara and I snickering. I know exactly what she’s getting at, the privy information about our threesome with Slade. Tara is so bold sometimes she astounds me.
After a little more casual conversation (interrogation is more like it), we move into the dining room to eat.
The table is decked out like always with my mother’s best holiday china, a huge turkey that could feed twenty, and all the trimmings. She even lights Christmas tree pillar candles for added décor. I hear Tara inhale an impressed breath as we sit down next to each other.
“This is the most beautiful Christmas dinner I have ever seen. It looks like it belongs in a magazine,” she whispers.
I just smile and place my hand on her thigh. “My mom likes to go all out.”
“Mine does, too, but this is incredible.”
Richard says grace, and then we all dig in. I beam throughout dinner as I watch Tara charm the pants off every single one of my family members, feeling my mother’s eyes on me every now and again. I try to avoid looking at her by keeping up with the conversation, but her keen stare is impossible to ignore. I know she has an opinion about Tara, and I guarantee by the end of the night that I’ll hear what it is.
Dinner comes and goes, and I find myself sad the time is moving so fast. Sometimes, I get so wrapped up in work, I don’t realize how much I miss them.
Everyone helps to clear the table and then moves back into the great room where we will have dessert. My mom likes to put out a buffet and let us pick at it throughout the night. I take in the turkey platter for Richard since he is physically challenged at the moment. It still has half an uncarved bird on it. I see leftovers for a year. I place the large silver platter on the kitchen island as my mom rinses the dishes in the sink. I give her a quick peck on the cheek before I head into the great room. It appears Tara, Cara, and Camille have become quite comfortable with each other, and I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing for me.
“Christopher,” my mother calls, using that paternal tone.
I stop dead in my tracks and turn on my heel.
“Yes?” I lean against the island directly across from her.
She wipes her hands on a dishtowel and turns to look at me with an astute gaze.
“I like Tara,” she says.
“I’m glad. I like her too,” I reply noncommittally.
“She’s very young.”
Bingo. I knew this was going somewhere.
“She’s younger, yes.”
“You must care about her very much if you brought her home to meet us.”
I open my mouth to respond but then think twice. I don’t want to give my mother—or Tara—the wrong impression.
“Mom. I do like Tara, a lot, but don’t read too much into her being here.”
My mother snorts and actually gets in my face. “Christopher John, you can lie to yourself, but you can never lie to me. I know you. You’ve only brought home three girls in your entire life. Your high school sweetheart, that bitch who dumped you, and Tara. You seem very happy with her, and she seems very happy with you. I just don’t want to see you break that poor girl’s heart because your lives are in two different places.”
I huff, crossing my arms. “I hear what you’re saying, trust me. But Tara and I went into this with our eyes open, okay? And the last thing I would ever do is make her promises I can’t keep or hurt her intentionally in any way.”
“Good.” She smiles satisfied, patting my chest with both hands. “I love that you’re here.”
I smile back at her. “Me too.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Now, take this into the great room for me.” She hands me a bowl of sugar and a small pitcher of cream for the coffee.
“Yes, ma’am.”
In the great room, Richard is watching television, and I think Tara, Cara, and Camille are plotting my death by the way they are huddled together, staring at me next to the glamorously decorated Christmas tree.
I set the sugar and milk down on the table and take a seat at the baby grand piano in the corner of the large room. Its location is optimal for spying and watching my back all at the same time.
Tara comes to sit next to me a few minutes later, all bright smiles and shiny eyes.
