Contretemps

Chapter Ten

Sunday

7:04 a.m.

Alex stepped onto the sand, watching the sunrise, coffee in hand. She had woken up early, her wife still in bed, and had gone up to make a pot of coffee so that she could come out here and just watch the early morning waves and just think, just be.

She moved to a lounger now and sat, swinging her legs onto the footing, wearing a baby blue Adidas tracksuit, a white tank beneath. She lowered her sunglasses from the top of her head onto her eyes and looked out at the water, sipping.

She hadn't slept well, nor had she slept much. Her mind, her dreams, her brain had been filled with all of the current events, the current state of the Cabot family.

She needed this small breather. Alone. Her time to think about everything.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, crossing one ankle over the other in her off-white slipper boots. They would be caked with damp sand, but she didn't care in the slightest. A gentle wash one time in the washing machine and a roll in the dryer back home and they would be fine all over again.

Even with the turn of events, she somehow felt at peace, calm, like everything would eventually work out. With her wife and her family by her side, she felt she could do anything.

Her mother had been an interesting human over all of these years. First, when Alex had come out in college, she refused to accept it. Then, when Olivia had come along, even more so. She just didn't want her daughter to be gay. Didn't want her to be in love with another woman. But it had happened.

Finally, over the first couple of years of she and the brunette being together, she had grown to accept it. Had grown to see that Olivia loved her more than words could express and Alex, in turn, loved the brunette with all of her being, her love.

They had made a family, had grown a family, and had prospered. Not in the conventional way that her mother would have expected, but they were wives, had raised three kids, and their lives had become ones that Cathy Cabot could finally see as love, as acceptance, as a unity.

She loved her mother. Had always loved her mother. But when they had been at odds, they had really been at odds. There was no in between, no compromise in the way of who her mother thought she should be, be with. But as the twenty-some years took shape, she had been more accepting with Olivia as her daughter-in-law and what they had created as a family.

On the opposite end, there had never been any doubt with her father. Bill Cabot had always been open, only wanting to see his daughter happy. Whatever Alex did in her life, he was always there to support her in any way that he could.

She smiled and wiped the tears below the rim of her sunglasses with her fingers before taking a sip and watching a dinghy in the distance pulling in its reel of fresh catchings.

And now, twenty-four years later, with a marriage and a family to show for it, Alex couldn't have been happier.

She took a deep breath and willed the emotions away. She was so emotional, though. Her mind was spinning with thoughts of her mother.

Making her last requests, again, after all these years, was something to ponder, to think about, as she sat and looked out at the early morning waves.

She knew about everything her brother had said, what they had talked about. The beach house would go to them, Jonathan and herself. Isabel and her love of jewelry. That was naturally going to happen. The stocks and investments would be split between Alex and Jonathan and his family. The beach house was son and daughter's, although Jonathan always said that she and her brunette wife could have it and they always knew that they would eventually retire there. The V.W. bug that was restored fourteen years prior would go to Theo. The champagne Rover to Grace. The Lladro collection and fine bone China to Kimberly and the sterling silver flatware and Waterford collection to Katie. The villa in Mallorca would go to Casey and Jonathan, as well. Her parents had already given millions to Alex and Olivia for the townhouse on the Upper East Side, so that had been established years ago

It had been set into stone, put in their wills, almost a decade prior. She knew that. But she supposed the talk of it again, the talk without including her, was the part that stung.

She absolutely understood why.

But she had grown in the past years. Had become a more mature, stable, understanding person.

Olivia had made her like that.

The kids had made her like that.

Life had made her like that.

She smiled again, thinking of her wife.

Olivia had never been anything less than there and by her side. The kids had grown into their own individuals and saw the struggles that their mothers faced, the prejudice and judgement that followed their way of life. It had never been lost on them.

And that was what made their three children so open, so accepting, so much the people that would never accept anything than less. Anything less than love. Anything less than cohesiveness in a world that seemed to not tolerate those things as much as they did.

Alex closed her eyes, smelling her wife's perfume before she even knew it was her.

"Babe?"

Alex smiled before reopening her eyes and looking to her left.

Her wife was standing there, her own black Adidas track suit on, black flip flops to match, her hood over her head, her aviators on.

"Hey, Liv," Alex said softly. "Come join me."

She watched as the brunette headed around the foot and to the other lounger and sat, her own cup of Joe in her hands.

"You're up earlier than normal," Alex smiled. "And you've got that perfume on that I gave you last Valentine's day." Alex reached her right hand out and Olivia took it with her left, her coffee in her right.

"I am...and I do...but the bed...you weren't there." Olivia looked at her now. " I wanted to see if you were OK."

Alex smiled again, squeezing her wife's hand. "I'm good, Liv. " She leaned to the right and kissed her knuckles quickly before resuming her position in the lounger. "I'm just fine." She leaned back and rested against the head, smiling.

"OK," Olivia said softly.

Alex turned now and eyed her wife. "Am I afraid? Yes. Am I happy that you're here with me? Absolutely. That's what makes all of this OK, Babe."

Olivia studied her now. "I know you're afraid, Al. I can see it in your face...I'm afraid, too."

Alex nodded slowly. "I know."

Olivia smiled broadly then. "The perfume...good thing you got me two bottles, one for home and one for here, of that...what is it? Chloe…"

"Fleur de parfum." Alex smiled. "It suits you well and…" she squeezed her wife's hand tighter, "...turns me on whenever you wear it."

"Well...I guess I need to bathe in it, then…" Olivia giggled.

"The hint you have on is intoxicating as it is," Alex offered.

"Good to know," Olivia said softly.

They sat, just enjoying the coffee, just enjoying the peace, the sound of the waves just feet from them.

"The kids are leaving at noon and my brother is leaving soon after." Alex closed her eyes.

"Are we still planning to leave tomorrow morning?"

Alex opened her eyes then and looked at the water. "That's the goal."

"You wanna stay longer? I can call Haven House and tell them we'll be a couple more days."

Alex finally let go of her wife's hand and cradled her mug. "No, Babe. I think my mother is finally stable and…"

And what, Al?"

"And if anything happens, Gwinnie will call us." Alex looked at her wife again. "Right?"

"I know she will. Gwinnie's good like that." Olivia smiled.

"Let's just enjoy the day with my mother, see the kids and Johnny off...have a nice dinner tonight…"

"Oh, yeah? You cooking?" Olivia asked.

"I was planning on it, Babe."

"What are you gonna cook, Al?" Olivia smiled and closed her eyes, leaning her head back on the head rest.

Alex only watched her, smiling. "Stuffed peppers. With ground beef, half with cauliflower rice for you, oh my low-carb Queen, and half with regular rice. Potatoes wedged in the sides. All roasted to perfection. A nice bottle of wine. Maybe a couple of cocktails beforehand, that you can be in charge of. Some crusty bread. Gwinnie needs a break. She's been cooking since we've been here."

Mmmmm, yes she has. Amazing food, Babe."

"But it's my turn to show my appreciation." Alex offered.

"And my time, too. I'll help, Al."

Sounds good, Liv. Let's do it."

11:02 a.m.

Olivia felt her phone vibrate in her back pocket. They had just eaten brunch made by the kids. Scrambled eggs, country potatoes, bagels, sausage and bacon, and were just sitting around the table sipping the remainder of their coffees and talking.

She saw Casey on the screen and slid her thumb across the glass to answer, standing and moving into the kitchen area. "Hey, Case."

"Hey, Liv. How are things there?" Casey's raspy voice asked.

"Cathy's still doing OK. The kids are here but are leaving at noon and Jonathan's heading home then, too. How have you been?" Olivia turned and leaned with her backside against the kitchen sink.

"Kim had that two-day volleyball tournament, all day Friday and all day yesterday. Katie's flute recital is at three today."

Olivia smiled. "Yeah, Jonathan told us about it. He said he needed to be there by three."

"I just feel like...like I should have been there for Jonathan. That I should have at least been there for a day or so." Casey sounded defeated and more than stressed.

"Case. It's OK. Cathy seems to have recovered. Doctors only expect the best from here on out. That's...that's what they told us." Olivia watched as Alex brought a few stacked dishes towards her. The brunette stepped aside to give her access to the basin. She watched the blonde as she placed them into the soapy water and then looked at her. "You had your girls' activities, Babe. Don't worry about it. Your husband has been fine." Olivia smiled at Alex.

"Casey?" Alex mouthed.

Olivia nodded.

"Well, after today, things should slow down here. It's just been a busy time. Kim needed someone there during the games."

"Did they win?"

"Yeah. By a landslide. Undefeated in her college tournament," Casey answered.

"That's awesome, Casey. We're proud of her."

"Well, I won't keep you. Tell John to call me?"

Olivia smiled. "I will." The brunette looked toward the table now, Theo and his uncle in an intense game of pinochle. "Talk soon, Case?" Olivia raised her eyebrows and looked at her wife again.

"OK, Liv. Talk soon."

The call disconnected and Olivia placed her phone in the jacket pocket of her tracksuit.

"How's Case doing?" Alex asked, moving closer.

"She had the tournament with Kim and the flute recital is today at three. She feels really guilty." Olivia wrinkled her nose.

Alex slithered her arms around her then. "But everything is OK, so she shouldn't." Alex leaned in.

Olivia pressed her mouth to her wife's and they kissed assuredly, simply.

They pulled away and Alex smiled at her. "Our turn to do the dishes."

"Let's see our babies off...then get started." Olivia smiled.

"Sounds like a plan."

12:07 p.m.

Olivia had said her goodbyes to their children and was now standing with her arms wrapped around Grace and Isabel's shoulders.

Alex had both hands on their son's cheeks, her thumbs stroking over the bristled hair there. "Be good, Theo. Be safe." She kissed him and then moved to hug him tightly.

Olivia could see the strength in the hug.

They pulled away and the kids moved to their grandmother, standing off to the side.

"I love you, Grandma," Isabel said shakily.

"Oh, Isabel, Grace...I love you, too." Cathy Cabot took them both into a hug and then they moved away. She looked at Theo and smiled. "My first grand baby."

Theo moved up to her and she placed her palms on his cheeks, much like Alex had done.

"I love you, Theodore Donovan Benson-Cabot. You were my first grandchild. I love you with all of my heart."

Olivia could see the emotion in their son's face. She watched as he swallowed hard before moving into his grandmother.

"I love you, too, Grandma. So much," he claimed softly, his deep voice prominent.

They pulled away and the kids moved in a group together.

"You kids drive safely…" Cathy said calmly.

"We will," Theo answered.

"Call us when you get back and make sure you feed Joy right when you get there," Olivia smiled.

"Absolutely," Grace managed.

"Give her kitty love from both of us," Alex declared.

"We will, Mom," Isabel smiled.

With that, the three grand kids were moving, out of the room and towards the stairs that would lead them to the bottom floor and their car that would take them back to the big city.

3:03 p.m.

Olivia entered the kitchen, wearing a pair of faded jeans and a black, V-neck t-shirt, her feet bare. She looked up to find her wife at the kitchen table, smiling. Cathy Cabot's hair was in a wet clump on the top of her head, wrapped with what looked like Saran wrap, her hands outstretched to her daughter on the table.

Alex looked up and smiled at her. "My mom wants red. I tried to opt for a more neutral color, like maybe a mauve, but she insisted."

Olivia moved to the Keurig machine now and reached into the cupboard, smiling, and reaching for a pod of French roast. "If she wants fire engine red, Al, then that's what she wants." Olivia took a mug from the cupboard, as well, and placed it beneath the spout, clamping the K-cup into it, and then pressing the power button. She turned and folded her arms, her backside against the counter, and just watched mother and daughter.

Gwinnie entered now, a bundle of sheets in her arms. "These smell like strong cologne."

Olivia smiled and shook her head. "Theo likes his cologne."

Alex answered, "Always has." She looked up from painting a pinkie finger. "Always has. Like his Mama."

"I'm reclaiming my bedroom," Gwinnie said before disappearing into the laundry room just off of the kitchen.

"As you should, Gwinn. It's your room, after all. Thank you for letting Theo have it," Alex smiled.

Olivia's coffee finished brewing and she pulled the cup from the base before moving to the refrigerator and pouring a little milk into it and placing the jug back. She took the mug and moved toward the table where her wife and mother-in-law were sitting. She pulled up a chair opposite Cathy.

"My mother wanted her nails and toes done. With her toes already painted, she just needs her nails and the finishing touches of her hair."

Olivia smiled and took a sip. "Is it the same hair color that you've always bought, Al?"

Alex looked at her and smirked. "Same one, Liv. Clairol, Nice and Easy, #10, extra light blonde."

Olivia took another sip and smiled. "That's what I thought." She eyed her wife who seemed so at peace, so satisfied, so in the moment.

"I asked Alex what she used about...what was it, Alex, twenty years ago?"

"About that, Mom," Alex answered. "Maybe more."

"And from then on, I've been using the same color."

Olivia looked at her wife again and smirked. "It's a great color."

"And you, Dear? Do you dye your hair?" Cathy looked at Olivia.

"I'd like to say this is natural but, yes, I do dye my hair. Monthly. Either myself, or my guy at the salon."

"What's the color?" Cathy asked.

Olivia smiled. "Perfect 10. Light chocolate brown. Nice and Easy."

"Perfect ten. Of course it is, Olivia. Sounds just about right." Cathy smiled at her.

"You thinking of going brunette, Mom?" Alex giggled, finishing the last nail on her mother's hands.

"No, Dear." She looked at Olivia. "But Olivia has such a beautiful hue to her hair. It's almost tempting."

Olivia wiggled her eyebrows at her wife and smirked.

"Well, Mom, I think you look beautiful as a blonde and always have." Alex smiled at her mother.

And Olivia felt the bond, the connection, the sting in her eyes watching the motherly, daughterly love. She had never really connected with her own mother. Had never gotten to the point that they did each other's hair or nails. But watching the love between Alex and her mother was satisfying enough.

Olivia swiped at a tear now and took a small, deep breath. Her wife noticed and narrowed her eyes at her, furrowing her brow. Olivia only shook her head.

Alex returned her gaze to her mother. "Johnny's gonna film Grace's flute recital so we can watch it tomorrow."

"That'd be lovely, Dear." Cathy smiled at her daughter.

"And Alex is gonna make stuffed peppers with potatoes." Olivia winked at her wife.

"Olivia is on the cocktails." Alex smiled.

"All about it, Babe." Olivia winked back.

"So it should be an amazing evening." Alex looked back at her mother.

"I can't wait, Dear. Sounds perfect." Cathy's eyes crinkled.

"Wooo, hooo, Gwinnie!" Olivia chirped. "Look at you!" Gwinnie had just come up from getting ready for the evening and the brunette spun the elderly housekeeper around in a twirl, their hands above her head.

Gwinnie had dressed up in a blue, silk dress, her hair up, black heels on, her make-up impeccable.

Olivia looked at her wife who was taking the pan of peppers from the oven. "Doesn't she look amazing, Al?" The brunette took a sip from her glass of the pitcher of Long Island Iced Teas she had made.

Alex only smiled, removing her oven mitts and placing them on the counter.

Her wife was one to talk. Olivia had showered and changed into a strapless, purple and black maxi dress, her hair down, black gladiator sandals on. The blonde had chosen a tan, tank maxi, her hair in a ponytail, brown flip flops to match, glasses on.

"She looks amazing." Alex smiled and moved up to their housekeeper, taking her into a hug before looking her face over. "Nice lip color."

"I bought it from Rouge...they matched my skin tones to them and sent it to me."

"Very nice," Alex oozed.

Olivia held a glass out to the older woman before lifting her own. "A toast to you and your beauty."

Gwinnie clinked glasses and took a sip. "Speaking of beauty, Olivia, you've really firmed up over the past year. Your figure is...incredible. If only I had those boobs and that butt and that small waist."

Olivia began giggling and held her glass up once more. "Here's to that!"

"Here's to that," Alex smirked at her wife. She looked back at her mother. "Doesn't Gwinnie look beautiful, Mom?" Alex asked her mother who was sitting at the table, a drink in her hand.

"She looks beautiful, Alex. I always tell her that." Cathy smiled sweetly.

Alex moved to the table now and stood next to her mother. "Do you wanna watch a movie or some Mannix or Law and Order after dinner?"

Cathy looked up at Alex, wrapping her arm around her waist and pulling her close by her hip. "I want to get the screen and projector out and look at some slides...some old photos."

Alex only smiled down at her mother. "Sounds like a plan, Mom. We can do that."

A/N: Thank you for all the reviews on the last chapter. I hope you enjoyed this one and I look forward to hearing from you. Even just a couple of words.