The week following the Edward L.L. Moore scandal proved to be difficult, to say the least. It was all hands-on deck, and Liza spent her time running interference between Diana and Charles. The press was hounding Empirical for information, and Charles had decided to take a tight-lipped stance. She'd spent half her day on Monday with Diana crafting a press release, only to have the legal department tear it apart, sending them back to the drawing board. It had been well past regular quitting time when they finally had finished. Charles had gone to pick the girls up from Pauline, and was spending his evening with them, so Liza trudged home alone, collapsing onto the couch.
By Friday, things had calmed down slightly. The media was still abuzz over the scandal, but some of the heat was thankfully off of Empirical. The press release had quashed some of the phone calls and much to Liza's surprise, Zane had stepped up and volunteered to go on GMA and give an interview on behalf of the company. Kelsey had scoffed, saying he was doing it just to get some free press, but Liza had been quite surprised when she watched the playback of the interview. Zane, in his Armani suit, with his professionally whitened smile, had condemned Moore and his behavior, which was a far cry from his stance a week ago. She felt even more gratitude towards Zane when she saw how the interview had boosted Charles' spirit.
He'd been working overtime all week, leaving the house early and coming home later than usual, heading straight for his scotch glass, his eyes tired, his body weary. Liza had spent Sunday with him, but he had been distant, spending most of his day holed up in his office. She'd spent the next two evening with Maggie, getting only brief responses from the texts she sent him. By Wednesday she had had enough, and so had Bianca and Nicole. The girls could tell that something was wrong and were going on week two of barely seeing their father. When Nicole had a nervous breakdown over a broken toy Liza had scooped them up and trekked back uptown with the two moody girls. A pit stop at their favorite cupcake shop had boosted their spirits, and by the time the trio had reached the Empirical offices the sugar had kicked in and they were positively giddy. The look on their father's face when he glimpsed them through the window of his office reassured Liza that she had made the right decision. She loved that about him; most men his age would groan when faced with the prospect of spending an extended period of time with their preteen kids, but Charles embraced it wholeheartedly. She was pretty sure David would have preferred to skip raising Caitlin from the ages of 8 until 18.
Charles had thanked her much later that evening when they were alone, worshipping her body until they were both spent, sweaty and satiated. She'd curled into the crook of his arm that night, listening to him fall asleep, his breathing slow and steady. She loved watching him sleep, so peaceful and at ease. His worries disappeared, his body and mind clear of the struggle, the weight on his shoulders. She only wished she could keep that weight off of him when he woke.
Friday night, Liza and Kelsey left work, headed back to Williamsburg to collect Lauren and Maggie and head out for dinner and drinks. The week had ended on a high note – after picking Marriage Vacation as "Book of the Summer", Reese Witherspoon's production company, Hello Sunshine, had reached out to Kelsey, and it looked like they were interested in forming some sort of incubator deal with Millennial. It had actually been Liza's idea, brought up at the lunch meeting today. The company would get a first look at all of Millennial projects, and Millennial would get an influx of cash and a lot of good press. They even wanted to turn Marriage Vacation into a miniseries. It was just what the company needed after all the bad Moore press.
Liza sat on the edge of the couch in Josh's apartment, waiting for Lauren and Kelsey. She hadn't seen Josh since before she left for her vacation. It seemed like a lifetime ago, but in reality, it had only been two weeks. Getting up, she wandered into the kitchen for a glass of water, absentmindedly reaching for the cupboard where he kept glasses. It had been months since they had split up, but she still remembered where everything was, like it was yesterday.
"Liza?"
"Shit! Jesus, you scared me." Turning, she saw Josh standing in the doorway, smirking at the scared expression on her face.
"What're you doing here?"
"Just waiting for Kelsey and Lauren. We're celebrating."
He tossed his keys into a tray by the door and brushed past her, pulling a beer from the fridge. "Anything good?" He asked, before falling back onto the couch.
"Just a good end to a bad week."
"Hmph." He took a swig of his beer, sighing as he pulled the bottle from his lips. "How was your, uh, vacation?"
"It was great, actually. We had a lot of fun." She couldn't help but put emphasis on "we" and saw the twinge of annoyance on his face. "Listen, we never talked after my birthday, Josh. I want to make sure we're on the same page."
"Oh, your boyfriend made sure of that. Really thinks a lot of himself, doesn't he?"
"Oh, just stop it, will you?" She stalked over to him, yanking the beer from his hand and sitting down next to him. "How many times do we need to have this conversation, Josh? I love you and you will always be my friend, always be in my life, but my relationship with Charles isn't going away anytime soon. You need to accept that, and the sooner you do, the sooner we can move past all of this bullshit. You know, you'd really like him if you actually got to know him."
"Okay, we are ready to go!" Kelsey and Lauren appeared, made up for a night out. "Everything okay out here?" Kelsey asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Yeah." Liza stood, handing the beer back to Josh. "It's all good. Let's go." She threw open the door, not bothering to look back at the man she once loved.
"What was all that about?" Kelsey asked as they climbed down the stairs, pushing open the door to the street.
"Nothing, really. I'm just sick of his attitude."
"You need to give him time, Liza. He's not over you."
"It's been almost 6 months. It's time. Hey!" She called, seeing Maggie leaning up against an idling SUV. "I thought we were picking you up."
Maggie smirked, pushing herself away from the vehicle. "I think your plans might have changed. Look who I ran into at the apartment." She rapped on the door, and the windows on the passenger side of the car rolled down. Two little brunette heads popped out of the backseat window.
"Liza! We came to take you away!" Bianca giggled, her purple sunglasses sliding down her nose.
"Yeah, Liza, we're kidnapping you!"
Laughing, Liza looked back at Maggie, who shrugged. Charles stepped out of the car and around the front bumper. He was wearing aviators, which she thought looked incredibly sexy with his dark jeans and black t shirt, and he was grinning widely.
"Sorry to interrupt your plans, ladies, but do you mind if I steal my girl away for the weekend? Last minute surprise trip to Pound Ridge. If you're up for it, of course."
Liza looked back at the three women, who were all smiling at Charles. Even Maggie and Lauren could appreciate how hot he looked tonight.
"Take her." Kelsey said, laughing. "She would have spent the whole night mooning over you anyways."
"I would not!"
Charles laughed, stepping up onto the sidewalk and wrapping an arm around Liza's shoulders. "You don't really have a choice. Maggie already packed you a bag." He glanced at Maggie, grinning. Liza loved that they got along, but they were a bit too conspiratorial when it came to her for her liking. "Listen, you all should come up on Monday," he added, addressing Lauren, Kelsey and Maggie. "We'll do a Labor Day picnic. My last hurrah at the house."
"What?" Liza turned her face up to him, confused, her brow furrowed. Charles reached behind him, pressing a button inside the car door to roll up the window that Bianca and Nicole were hanging out of. "Pauline is officially buying out my interest in the property. Her dad is paying for it, I guess. We sign all the paperwork next week." It really was what he wanted. He loved the house, but it had always been his wife's dream, not his. He wanted to build a future with the woman standing in front of him, not dwell on the past. "It's alright, baby, it really is," He added at the look of concern on her face.
"Okay, okay. Let's get a move on, then." She leaned up and pecked him on the cheek before climbing in the front seat. She rolled down the window again, leaning her head out to talk to her girlfriends on the sidewalk. "Text me about Monday. It'd be fun, I promise." She flashed them a final, slightly wistful smile before tucking herself back into the air-conditioned car. Charles reached over with one hand and grabbed hers, intertwining his fingers with hers.
"You should know, I lost the coin toss before we left, so we're listening to the 'Best of Disney' playlist that the girls picked out. So," he flashed her a grin as they pulled out onto the street, "you may want to get out while you still can."
She squeezed his hand and leaned over, kissing him gently on the cheek. "Not a chance."
Four hours, twenty "are we there yet?'s", and a late-night dinner of smore's on the patio and the girls were finally tucked into bed, tuckered out from running around the lawn catching fireflies well past their regular bedtime.
"I'm never giving them sugar again." Charles sighed, closing the door to their bedroom quietly as Liza watched amused, leaning against the wall.
"Uh-huh. I'm sure." She pushed away from the wall, wrapping an arm around his waist as he passed by her and basking in the heat coming from his body. The house was very well air conditioned and she had been shivering, but she had her own personal space heater, and she planned on keeping him nice and close tonight.
They passed the door to the library and Liza had a sudden flashback to the last time she was here, when she had fled that room after being slapped across the face by Pauline. How quickly things had changed. Pauline was still cool towards her but had kept the outward hostility to a minimum. Charles had told her earlier, as the girls ran circles around each other on the lawn, that the divorce papers would be signed next week, and everything would be final after that. They hadn't brought up the subject of marriage, but Liza couldn't help but feel a little grateful that that barrier was out of their way. Just in case.
"Let me carry our bags up here, and then let's have a little nightcap." He kissed her temple and jogged down the steps to pick up their two overnight bags from the floor at the base of the stairs. He paused at the door to the master bedroom, frowning, and turned to open a door opposite it, into an equally large guest bedroom. "It's a little weird, isn't it?" He asked, running his hand through his hair. "Like it's not my bedroom, anymore." He shook his head, trying to clear his head. "Is it okay if we stay in here?"
Liza crossed the wood floor to the doorway, wrapping her arms around his waist. "It's fine, baby. I don't care where we sleep, as long as you're in the bed with me."
"Mmmmm," He sighed as he leaned down to kiss her. "I like the sound of that." He stepped backwards and into the room, reaching past Liza to push the door close and lock it securely. He didn't need his children walked into this room anytime in the immediate future.
Liza pulled back just a bit, enough to tantalize him with the feel of her lips on his as she spoke. "What about your drink? I thought you wanted a nightcap."
Charles chuckled, a low, deep laugh that made Liza smile. "I can think of a few better ways to spend the next few minutes than drinking scotch."
"A few minutes? You can do better than that, Charles Brooks."
His breath hitched as she spoke, caught off guard by her comment and her sudden movement, pushing him back towards the bed, just enough so that he fell gently onto the soft comforter. He smiled, leaning back, as Liza stepped out of her shoes and pulled her blouse over her head. She stood there, smiling down at him in a black bra and blue jeans, her hair down and tumbling around her shoulders and he felt a now familiar rush of affection for the woman standing before him. He loved her, every inch of her, every fiber of her being. The room crackled with electricity as they stared at each other as she slowly flicked open her jeans and shimmied out of them, naked except for her underwear.
"Your turn." She said, a little breathless. Leaning over to pull his shirt over his head as his hands skimmed the outside of her thighs, fiddling with the hem of her underwear. "Not yet." She swatted his hand away and pushed his chest back so that he was laying back on the bed. He could feel himself growing more and more aroused for her as she deftly flicked open his belt and undid the fly on his jeans. He arched his hips up and she slid the jeans off of his legs and onto the floor with the rest of their clothes. "Much better."
Charles sat up and placed his hands on her hips, turning her around so her back was to him. Liza shivered as she felt his breath on her back as he kissed her spine, her lower back as he slipped one finger around her panties and slid them down her legs, letting them fall to her feet. She gasped as he felt his lips on her ass, one hand squeezing one cheek as his teeth sank gently into the other. His free hand climbed up her back and unclasped her bra, freeing her from her final piece of clothing.
"God, Liza, you're so beautiful," he whispered as he turned her around and kissed her stomach, his stubble scratching the bare skin, causing her to giggle. "What's so funny?"
"You're tickling me." His eyes twinkled, and he ran his unshaved face across her taunt stomach, causing her to giggle some more. "Charles! Stop!" She teased, pushing him back down onto the bed and climbing atop him. As she moved, she pulled his briefs down his thighs and felt him kick them onto the floor somewhere at the foot of the bed. She ran her hands from his stomach to his shoulders, digging her nails into him slightly. He reached up to grab her hips, to center her over him, his fingers digging into her skin as he guided her down onto him.
Liza tossed her head back lazily as she felt the heat pool in her body, somewhere behind and just below her bellybutton. She braced herself with one hand on his chest, the other running through her hair as they settled into a slow, steady rhythm. She smiled lazily as she saw his mouth form an O of utter astonishment, his brow knitted with the concentration of a man taking in every ounce of pleasure and committing it to memory.
The pair of them lost themselves in each other, in the tide of hard and soft sensations, bringing each other to the brink of release.
"God, Liza," he groaned quietly, reaching up to cup her breast with one hand. "You're fucking gorgeous." She responded by leaning down to kiss him slowly, softly, as she brought them over the brink, lost in the moment.
They were woken way too early by the sound of hungry children pounding on the door to the guest room, demanding a) snuggles and b) breakfast. Liza was thankful that they had had the foresight to slip on their pajamas before falling fully asleep, and that she had gathered their discarded clothing and tossed it into a pile on an end chair. The last things those two girls needed was to be traumatized by seeing Dad's boxer brief's and her underwear laying in a pile on the floor.
She'd barely sat up in bed before Charles got the door open and Bianca and Nicole flung their little bodies onto the bed. Bianca climbed right into Liza's lap and snuggled up against her and Liza felt awash with affection for the little girl. She adored both of them but had a particular attachment to Bianca and her precocious demeanor. They lay there for a few minutes listening to the girls gab on about what they dreamt about and what they wanted to do this weekend.
Charles watched, a small smile on his face, as Bianca curled herself up on Liza's lap and Liza began to run her hand absentmindedly through the tangle of Bianca's bedhead. He loved how close the girls were getting on with her. Nicole was still a little distant, but Bianca, well, she just adored Liza. How he had gotten so lucky as to find a woman who accepted his kids into her heart so fully, he had no idea. She treated the girls as if they were her own ad it made his heart so full that it actually ached. She made the choice to love the girls when she didn't have to, and for that, he would love her always.
"Are you sure you don't mind?"
Sighing, Liza put a hand up to Charles' chest as she opened the drivers side door to the SUV. "Absolutely not. My answer is the same as it was the first time you asked me and the 5 times you've asked in the last half an hour. Babe, it's fine." She rolled her eyes as she leaned in for a kiss.
When they finally made their way down to the kitchen for breakfast, all they could scrounge up was some frozen waffles. Charles, the typical guy, had completely forgotten that the house hadn't been occupied for weeks and that there was next to nothing in the kitchen stores that was edible. So, Liza had suggested, as they scraped butter over not too crispy waffles, that she make a trip into town to buy groceries and that she take the girls with her. It would give her some more one on one time with the girls and would give Charles the opportunity to clear out the remainder of his personal belongings from the house without the girls peppering him with questions.
She climbed into the SUV and leaned through the window to give him a kiss as the girls giggled in the background. She hooked her phone up to the Bluetooth and called Caitlin as she pulled out onto the road and invited her to the house for their Labor Day picnic. She'd only been in class for a week, so the workload wasn't too heavy, and she hadn't seen the girls since they finished their summer camp at MOMA. Liza hadn't hosted a holiday party since before she and David got divorced, and the prospect of hosting even a small little get together excited her. She'd suggested to Charles this morning that they invite Diana and Enzo and Charles' cousin, Anna and her family.
15 minutes later she pulled up outside the grocery store, which was mercifully quiet for a Saturday morning. She grabbed a cart and the trio started to make their way down an aisle of breakfast cereal, where Bianca was immediately mesmerized by her options. She noticed Nicole, out of the side of her eye, standing back, a little hesitant.
"Why don't you go pick out a box of cereal, Nicole? You can get whatever kind you want. This is a special weekend," She rested a hand on Nicole's shoulder, squeezing encouragingly.
"Mommy doesn't let us have sugary cereal. She says it goes straight to your thighs." Nicole smacked the side of her pencil thin legs.
"Oh, honey, don't you worry about that. Anyways, you're with Daddy this weekend, and he says you can have whatever cereal you want, okay? Besides," she leaned down and whispered conspiratorially in Nicole's ear, "He loves Capt'N Crunch." Nicole giggled and went to join her sister, each of them selecting a box. Bianca jumped on the end of the cart as they rounded the next aisle while Nicole, smiling shyly, took over pushing the cart.
"Do you love my Daddy?" She asked abruptly, as Liza loaded a few packs of hamburger and hot dog buns into the rapidly filling cart.
"I do, "she nodded with a smile. "Very much."
"Are you guys gonna get married someday?"
"Uh, I don't know. Maybe. Can you keep a secret?" Nicole nodded; her eyes wide. "I'd love to marry your Daddy someday."
"He and Mommy were married, but not anymore. Were you ever married Liza?"
"I was. I was married to Caitlin's dad for a long time."
"What happened?"
Liza took a deep breath as they stopped to grab some fruits and veggies. How do you explain divorce to a preteen? "Well, we didn't make each other happy anymore. And you shouldn't spend time with people who don't make you happy, even if you love them. So, we decided to not be married anymore."
Nicole nodded in a slow, wise fashion that made Liza laugh. "You make Daddy happy. I can tell. He loves you. I hope you get married. I love Mommy but I think it'd be cool to have you as a Mom too." Liza stopped in the middle of the aisle and bent down to hug Nicole.
"Oh, kiddo, I'd love that too."
The next two days passed in complete bliss. Saturday afternoon, after the unloading of the massive grocery haul, was spent in the pool or lounging next to it. Liza had cursed out Maggie when she realized she only had a skimpy two piece, but Charles appreciated the gesture, filing away a mental note to buy Maggie a fantastic Christmas present. Liza had spent more the afternoon lounging poolside and reading, or watching Charles swim with the girls, his torso muscular and tan and glistening with water. After the girls had fallen asleep in the tent that they had pitched on the lawn the two had returned to the pool, quietly slipping into the water to join their bodies together in the cool water. The last thing Liza remembered that night was climbing back into the tent with the girls, she and Charles on either side of the catatonic children. He'd reached over and taken her hand in his, a sleepy, content look on his face as he drifted into a peaceful slumber. It was a picture-perfect moment.
Monday morning came fast and furious with the girls waking at the crack of dawn, excited at the prospect of seeing their cousins and breaking in the slip n' slide that Liza had impulsively purchased at the grocery store. They'd roused Charles and Liza from a peaceful sleep, pouncing onto the bed and jumping up and down until the two adults begrudgingly slide from their warm bedsheets to begin party preparations.
They'd invited about 10-15 people, and Liza had smartly prepped all of the food the night before, delighting in using the chef quality kitchen. Charles had sat on a stool at the island and watched her, amused, as she pranced around the kitchen chopping up veggies and throwing together salads. He'd helped when she allowed him to, but mostly he just watched her work. She was having a blast playing hostess, and the party hadn't even started yet. He learned something new about her every day. With her expert planning all they had to do was set up things outside, so they were ready to go by mid-morning. When Charles announced that all the work was done, the girls ran full speed up to their room to don their swimsuits. Liza decided they should do the same.
"The casual look looks good on you, mister." Liza teased Charles as he stepped out of the bathroom, wearing navy blue swim trunks and a grey t-shirt, his feet bare and his aviators perched on his head. He posed, pretending to toss his hair back like a model strutting down the runway. Liza giggled as she stepped up to him, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"You look pretty sexy in those little shorts," He whispered into her ear as he tucked his hands into the back pocket of her jean shorts. "Those legs should be illegal." He thought she looked like a summer goddess. Her skin was still sun-kissed from the trip to Greece, and her long legs were on full display in her denim shorts. He could see a hint of her blue bikini through her white t-shirt. Her hair was wavy and pulled up into a loose ponytail and she smelled like sunscreen and coconut scented shampoo.
The doorbell rang, followed instantly by the girls thundering footsteps down the hall, shouting as they ran past the closed bedroom door. Charles chuckled and shook his head, planting a quick last kiss on Liza's forehead before they went to greet their guests.
Charles's cousin Anna and her family were the first to arrive, the children immediately inciting chaos in the house as they stripped to their swimsuits and demanded that Anna's husband and Charles set up the slip n'slide and sprinkler.
"I don't know how you handle all three of them, Anna, honestly," Liza said to Anna as they headed into the house to pull some drinks and snacks out of the fridge. "I only had one and I thought I would go crazy with her at times."
"Oh, I'm used to the insanity by now. Besides, "she grinned as she pulled out a pitcher of lemonade, "school starts in two days. So, thank god for that."
Liza laughed lightly, always glad to know that she wasn't the only one that felt that way. She really liked Anna and wanted to get to know her better. She had a feeling they would be fast friends.
"How old is your daughter?"
"She'll be 20 in October. Just started her sophomore year at Vassar."
"Impressive!"
"Yeah, she's pretty great. You'll get to meet her in a bit. She and her roommate Rose are coming down for the afternoon. Have you ever met Charles's friends Bob and Julia? She's their daughter."
"I have. That's a small world. If you didn't work for Chucky you probably would have met him anyways."
Smiling, Liza regaled Anna with the story of their first dinner with Bob and Julia. How they had been planning on setting her and Charles up on a blind date, how they thought they were perfect for one another.
"Seems that fate was in your favor, then. It was meant to be!"
"I think so. We're doing really good. I'm happy. I hope he is too."
Anna watched as Liza looked absentmindedly out the kitchen window, where Charles was hooking up a garden hose to the sprinkler. The tall brunette had a happy, blissed out in love look on her face, but it was mixed with something else, something that Anna couldn't quite put her finger on. Not sadness or worry, but maybe apprehensiveness.
"Everything okay, Liza?"
Liza shook her head, pulling herself out of the moment. "Yeah, yeah. I, just…."
"You can talk to me, Liza."
"I just feel like I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop, you know? Like I shouldn't be this lucky, be this happy. Like I don't deserve him. Don't deserve the life we're building together."
Anna paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to word what she wanted to say to Liza. "You shouldn't feel guilty for doing what you did. From what I understand, you did it for your daughter. You can't feel guilty about doing whatever it takes to protect your kid, to give them the life they deserve. You're earned your career, and from what Charles has told me, you're very good at your job. Don't feel bad about that, Liza. And in regard to my cousin, I think you're pretty secure there. He loves you so much, Liza. Has for a long time. He was in a pretty bad place when you came into his life, and you lifted him up out of the place. I've never seen him happier than these past few months. Trust that. Trust each other. Trust your love. You deserve it."
Blinking back a few tears, Liza pulled Anna into her arms, into a fierce hug. No wonder Charles adored her.
Anna squeezed her lightly and let her go. "Okay, enough with the mush. Let's go drink some margaritas. And," she paused, cocking her head, "I think a couple more cars just pulled up."
Liza heard a car door slam and straightened herself up. "That's my cue."
Diana and Enzo had just pulled up, as had Caitlin and Rose. Caitlin had barely climbed out of the car when Liza pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Mom! Ohmygod, stop, woman."
"Hey, I missed you! I'm entitled to give you a hug." She squeezed her one more time, laughing as Caitlin squirmed out from under her arms.
"Liza, is this your daughter?" Diana stood a few feet away, smiling cautiously.
"Yes, it is! Caitlin, this is Diana Trout. She's the head of marketing at Empirical. Diana, this is Caitlin Miller, my daughter."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Caitlin. You mom, well, she's quite a special woman."
"Yeah, she's pretty cool." Caitlin jabbed her playfully in the side. "Oh, mom, before I forget." She reached through the open window of the car and handed her a pamphlet. "I'm supposed to give you this."
"What's this for?"
"Parent's Weekend. In two weeks. I thought it might be nice if you came up to campus. Charles can come too."
"Did you let your Dad know?" She didn't relish the idea of David meeting Charles. She wanted to put that off for as long as she could.
"I emailed him."
"Okay, well, I'd love to come. We'll talk about it later. Time to get y'all out back. Rose knows the way." She ushered the 4 into the house as her blue SUV pulled into the driveway, Maggie at the wheel.
"You made it!"
"Holy shit, girl, look at this place! It's a freaking mansion." Maggie tipped her sunglasses down, looking up at the house.
"Wait till you see the kitchen." She went to link her arm through Maggie's but paused as the 4th car door opened, and Josh stepped out.
"Uhh, hi. I didn't know you were coming."
Kelsey made a face at her as she passed. "I invited him, Liza. You two need to work things out. C'mon, Mags, I'll give you the quick tour." She pulled Lauren away, leading the way into the house, leaving Josh and Liza standing awkwardly by the car. Josh shuffled back and forth for a moment, looking uneasy.
"If you came here just to antagonize Charles, I'm not going to have it, Josh. We're just trying to have a nice, drama free weekend."
"I didn't come here to fight, Liza. I promise. Kelsey kinda kicked my ass this weekend about how I've been behaving. I owe you an apology, Liza. Both of you. I'm sorry for how I've acted the past few months. I've been acting like a child, and I'm sorry for that. I want to be friends with you. We've always been good at being friends, and I want to get back to that. I can't promise that I'll be perfect 100% of the time, but I'm going to try.
"That means a lot, Josh. And that you're willing to make amends with Charles. I do think that you would like him if you got to know him."
They started to walk around the side of the house towards the backyard, where squealing children and adult voices could be heard.
"I know. That's probably part of why I've been such an asshole to him. You guys are good together, and that's been hard to stomach. He's the right guy for you."
Liza blushed slightly, truly caught off guard by Josh's words. She could only hope that they were sincere. "I'm not going to disagree with that, but it means a lot to hear you say it. C'mon," she said, pulling him towards the people milling in the backyard. "Let's get you a drink."
It was the perfect afternoon, Charles thought, surrounded by some of his closest friends and family. Bob and Julia had showed up midafternoon, and he always love spending time with Anna and her family. He loved that she seemed to be getting close to Liza – he'd seen them sequestered together more than a few times this afternoon. He only hoped that Anna could still keep a secret.
He'd pulled her inside after lunch under the guise of grabbing some swim towels for the kids and had shown her some real estate listings on his phone. He'd started looking around at new vacation properties awhile back, when the idea of Pauline buying his interest out of this house had been floated. He'd found a few properties, one just a half hour from Pound Ridge, in Chappaqua. He'd immediately fallen in love with the property and was highly confident Liza would as well. It had a distinctly English country estate feeling to it, with stone walls, a summer porch and meandering gardens full of beautiful flowers. The interior was updated just enough to be both modern and traditional. The buyout from Pauline would cover more than half the purchase price, and if Liza loved it half as much as he did, it would be worth the payment on the loan from the bank.
He'd been thrown off when he saw Josh round the corner of the house with Liza and had steeled himself for some unpleasant words but had been surprised when Josh came up to him, hand extended and apology in hand. He, like Liza, was skeptical of him, but gave him the benefit of doubt. He was sick and tired of the drama.
It was dusk now, and they were all gathered around the firepit on the patio. Caitlin had plugged a speaker into her phone and some acoustic guitar music was playing quietly in the background. The kids were still splashing around in the pool, supervised by Caitlin and Rose, while the adults were all sitting in lounge chairs around the crackling fire, drinking wine and talking quietly. Liza slipped her sandals off, enjoying the feel of the cool stone patio on her feet as she sipped her wine. It had truly been a wonderful day, but she could sense the end like it was a palpable sensation in the air. The food was packed into coolers or people's cars, their bags packed. They would be returning to the city late tonight, opting for an evening departure to avoid traffic and hopefully have two quiet kids in the backseat. She'd noticed Charles glancing around somewhat wistfully at the place, taking in things for the last time. She knew that he wanted a fresh start, but this house held a lot of memories for him. She knew the feeling well.
"Dance with me?"
Liza jumped a little as she heard his voice, splashing a bit of wine onto her hand. She turned to see Charles right behind her, hands outstretched, a quiet smile on his face. She set her wineglass on the stone wall behind her and stepped into his arms. She snaked an arm around his shoulder, resting her fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck, as his arm slid around her waist and onto her bare skin just under the edge of her t-shirt. Charles clasped her fingers in his other hand, pulling their intertwined fingers to his chest, pulling her close to him. She rested her head on him as they slowly turned in time with the strumming of the guitar.
"Thank you for this weekend, Charles. It's been just perfect." It had been. She'd spent time with all of her favorite people. For so long she had struggled to keep all the parts of her life separate, but now, finally, she could enjoy the best parts of her life all at once. All of the people she loved near and dear to her were getting to know each other, to like and love each other. She loved seeing Caitlin playing in the yard with Bianca and Nicole and then discussing school with Diana and Kelsey. She loved seeing Charles having a civil conversation with Josh and cracking jokes with Maggie. It was almost as if all the puzzle pieces of her life were finally fitting together.
"You're perfect. This weekend, just a close second." He leaned down, kissing the top of her head. If only they could stay like this forever. He hoped they would. He could look at Liza and see the rest of his life in her eyes.
Liza sighed contentedly as she felt him pull her closer, felt the heat radiating off of his body.
"Completely and perfectly incandescently happy." She whispered, just loud enough for Charles to hear. And she was. Truly.
**This is the link to the house I am picturing Charles buying for he and Liza. I can imagine them spending time here, and I love the English country estate vibe. There may be a wedding that takes place here, down the road 😉 **
homedetails/30-Hemlock-Hls-Chappaqua-NY-10514/33064864_zpid/