Page 30 of Unbalanced

I glare up at Camille.

“I’m sorry, but it’s true. All evening she’s just been…” Camille sighs. “I’m not sure what the right word is, but she certainly doesn’t seem comfortable.”

I don’t respond to her comment.

“My cousin Malcolm is eyeing you,” I say.

“Yes, he’s been undressing me all evening with his eyes,” she says bluntly.

“If you want to explore him or anyone else, feel free.”

She glances down at me.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I want to be alone this evening.”

“Alright,” she says.

Malcolm, or even Wesley and Harold, will entertain Camille for the evening. Being here on my birthday saddens and angers me as memories of my childhood play on repeat.

Taking me up on my offer, Camille sashays over to the far side of the room. When Malcolm looks at me in question, I lift my drink to them. He smiles and wraps his arm around Camille’s waist. He truly does have a one-track mind.

I sit back in the chair and try to let the soft jazz music and the chatter of the guests relax me. Yet…I search every corner for a pair of soft gray-blue eyes. Camille moves on to talk to some other guests, and I decide to find Rob and Emily.

Mom stops me in the hallway.

“Alden…have you seen your brother?”

“I was just on my way to find him and see if he wants a cigar. Why, what’s wrong?”

“I love your brother. The two of you are my whole world, but…sometimes Rob worries me, and…”

I gently touch her shoulder.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to say it. I know what you mean. I’ll find him and make sure everything is okay.”

“Thank you, Alden.”

“Oh, and Mom…if you see Camille with someone other than me tonight, I’m fine with it.”

Mom shakes her head.

“I don’t know why you won’t marry her. She’s lovely. Then you can stop all this…whatever you call it.” She waves her hand like she’s trying to find the right words. “Don’t you want to have a family someday?”

“Maybe one day, but not today, and not with her.”

She lets out a long, dramatic sigh.

“You and your brother are both hopeless,” Mom huffs and walks away.

Maybe we are, but I’m nothing like Rob. I do not want or expect exclusivity. Any woman I entertain, including Camille, knows that she is free to do whatever she wants with whomever she wants.

With that, I am on the hunt.

The family estate is vast, but I know it like the back of my hand. It was necessary in my childhood to move quietly down the halls and to know the best hiding spots. When my father was sober, he paraded lines of women into the house the moment my mother left. And when he wasn’t sober, he was a mean SOB.

I check the likely places first, but when I can’t find them, I get creative and head outside. My feet make no sound as I round the side of the house on the stone path. It leads to an extravagant garden and pond. Beyond that is the family mausoleum, where my father fell to his death.