A/N: Thanks so much as always for everyone's continued reading and comments. You all keep me writing!! I tried to keep the chapter about the Thanksgiving holiday as one, but it's just too long, so I finally broke it down. So, here is part one!! Enjoy (: there is much more to be told in this story, so buckle up!
Chapter 31
Thanksgiving with the Cabots/Novaks (Part 1)
Olivia kept her promise and set an alarm for a little before 4:00am – 3:30am to be exact. Turning it off, she sat on the edge of the bed and ran her fingers through her hair before stretching and yawning. She got up and changed into her outfit for the day before heading towards the bathroom. She noticed that the light was on, but the door was ajar, so she cautiously went in.
She nearly jumped out of her skin and gasped as her hand flew to her chest, the person in the bathroom startling her. "Alex! What are you doing in here?!"
"Hey Liv!" Alex whispered, sitting on the edge of the bathtub in her light blue pajamas. "I'm here to see you!"
"Baby!" Olivia said cautiously, checking the hallway before shutting the door. "We are gonna get caught!"
Alex stood up and walked over to Olivia, pinning her against the door as she reached over and clicked the lock shut, a smirk sitting proudly on her face. Olivia immediately felt a shiver run up her spine as well as a jolt of arousal course through her. Swallowing, she looked up at Alex before taking her face in her hands. She carefully shifted her eyes back and forth between Alex's eyes and lips before pulling her in for a hungry kiss.
Alex rested her hands on Olivia's hips, holding her against the door as they kissed, their bodies pushing against each other every few kisses. Olivia quickly ran her tongue across Alex's lips before pushing it inside of her mouth hungrily. Alex let out a soft whine as she drove her hips against Olivia, desperate for friction.
"Shhh," Olivia hushed. "You have to be quiet, Alex."
Alex bit down on her lip and let out a large exhale before pressing her lips to Olivia's in a bruising kiss. They kept kissing and pawing at each other, pressing their bodies together until Alex's hands traveled up to Olivia's breasts over her shirt, squeezing them as she growled. "Why did you put a bra on?"
Olivia chuckled. "Because I'm supposed to be helping your mom soon, Alex!"
Alex grabbed Olivia's hands and placed them over her own breasts, encouraging Olivia to squeeze them through her nightshirt. Olivia gladly obliged, biting her lip and grabbing them, waiting for her nipples to strain against the fabric of the shirt so she could roll them between her fingers.
Alex melted into Olivia's touch, her groin on fire. She wanted Olivia so badly, and planned to cherish every moment before her mom woke up. Alex carefully placed her leg between Olivia's, pressing her thigh against her center. Olivia's eyes closed as she crashed her lips to Alex's in hopes to stifle the moan that threatened to escape her mouth.
As Alex kept pressing her thigh against Olivia and flexing the muscle for Olivia to grind against, Olivia carefully began rolling and pinching Alex's nipples through her shirt, causing her to grind herself against Olivia. At this point, both of them were having a hard time keeping quiet. Olivia moved her hands to begin unbuttoning Alex's shirt, only unclasping the first three buttons before moving inside the shirt and palming her hands around Alex's bare skin; her nipples straining hard against her palms.
Alex had to choke down a moan as she began kissing Olivia's neck, her hands finding their way to Olivia's jeans. She carefully unbuttoned and unzipped them as she continued kissing her, slipping a hand inside only to be met with a flood of wetness at her fingertips. She smiled as she continued to kiss Olivia, who was struggling to choke back her own moans. Olivia removed one hand from Alex's chest and slipped it inside of her pajama pants, meeting her own flood of wetness. Slowly, Olivia and Alex began rubbing each other as they kissed, swallowing each other's moans and groans.
Just then, Alex heard her parents' door close and reluctantly broke away from Olivia, who whined at the loss of contact. Alex began doing up her buttons as there was a low knock at the door. "Olivia, is that you?"
"Yes, it's me! I'm just getting ready," Olivia talked to the door, turning the sink on.
"Okay dear, I'll use the bathroom downstairs. Meet you down there!"
"Okay!"
Olivia closed her eyes and laid her head against the door, trying to regain her breathing. She wanted Alex so bad, and knowing that she couldn't have her the entire day was nearly driving her mad. She gave a pout of her lips, looking at Alex, whose hands were on her forehead as she paced the small area in front of the tub.
"God. I thought we had more time! I need you so bad, Olivia," Alex complained.
Olivia swallowed as she nodded. "Same. God, if we had just three more minutes I would've been gone."
Alex softly whined as she threw her head back, letting out an exhale. "Tonight. I don't care. I'm sneaking in your damn room or you're sneaking in mine. We have got to fuck. I'm so horny." Olivia could see how blue Alex's eyes were with lust, and it made her knees weak.
Trying to mask her own lust, for fear they would continue what they started and get caught, Olivia snickered at Alex's frustration. "Yeah, me too. We'll figure something out baby." Olivia walked over to Alex to give her a kiss before shooing her out of the room. "I have to get ready now. Go back to bed sweetie."
Alex grabbed Olivia's face as she backed her against the bathroom counter, hungrily kissing her a few more times before finally breaking away and unlocking the door. "Night!"
Walking out of the bathroom, Alex gasped and jumped before freezing. Her mother was standing in the hallway, arms folded. Olivia hung her head down in the bathroom; she knew who was out there without even looking. Great! How am I supposed to cook with her now?
"Mom! Hi! I was just, uhh…" Alex nervously laughed as she inched back to her room, her mother following her slowly.
"What's that, dear?" Rosemary asked, eyeing her daughter intently. "Doing what?" Stopping at the door to the bathroom, Rosemary peeked in at an embarrassed and flustered Olivia; lips kiss swollen and splashing her face with water. "Good morning, Olivia dear!" she said with a warming smile to try and quell Olivia's nerves and embarrassment.
"Morning, Rosemary!" Olivia tried to calmly greet, her voice cracking and failing her.
"Alexandra, don't you shut that door." Alex had tried to slip away while her mom was distracted, but it didn't work. She carefully moved back into the hallway and crossed her arms, staring at the floor. She was waiting for her mother to rip her a new one. "Why are you bothering my kitchen helper?!"
Alex wasn't expecting that. "Huh?"
Quite frankly, neither was Olivia. She peeked her head out of the bathroom and looked over at them, a smile on her face.
"You heard me! You leave Olivia alone. I need her mind focused on the cooking. And she can't do that when you're trying to fondle her in the bathroom." Rosemary was pointing at Alex, trying to maintain the scolding look she was giving her daughter.
Olivia couldn't help but snort with laughter. Alex's mouth was dropped open, staring wordlessly at her mother for a moment before she tried to defend herself.
"Mom! I wasn't fondling her!" Alex squeaked, obviously lying.
Rosemary pursed her lips. "It sounded like fondling."
Alex's eyes grew wide. Brushing her teeth and listening, Olivia froze. I knew Alex was too noisy!
"Mom!"
"If you're going to try to sneak around, you girls really need to learn to control your volume. I could clearly hear you from the door to the bedroom. Plus, the door kept rattling. Want to explain why?" Rosemary knew she had her daughter now. She was trying so hard not to burst out laughing. She really was excited she finally could play the role of "mean mom." Alex was always so quiet and well-behaved in school and growing up, she rarely got in trouble. So now, she was going to soak it all up and milk it for all it's worth.
Alex covered her face with her hands, shaking her head because she couldn't dare to explain. "Nope."
"That's what I thought. Now, since you're awake, come down and help me and Olivia."
"No way! I'm going back to sleep," Alex protested.
"That's funny, because if I hadn't interrupted, you wouldn't be sleeping. On the contrary, I think you'd be fully awake and energized." Rosemary wore a proud smirk on her face, watching Alex's expressions change so drastically.
Olivia was trying hard to contain her laughter, but she couldn't. She was now outside of the bathroom, watching the interaction.
Rosemary turned and pointed at Olivia. "I wouldn't be laughing, Olivia. It takes two to tango. You're just as guilty, and although you're not my child, I will scold you as such."
Olivia immediately hung her head down to her chest, blush threatening to creep up her cheeks. "Yes, Ma'am. I'm sorry."
"Oh my God, Mom, please, enough!" Alex pleaded.
Rosemary finally broke her composure and began laughing, looking down to check her watch. "See? Already losing time. Olivia, are you ready to cook a Thanksgiving feast?"
Olivia smiled, trying to push back this whole encounter in the depths of her mind. "Yes Ma'am! I'm ready."
"Come on then!" Rosemary motioned for them to head downstairs. "Alexandra, you're sure you don't want to help?"
Alex tapped her foot before catching Olivia's gaze, a soft smile perched on her mouth. Alex sighed before responding. "Fine. I'll come help."
Once downstairs, Rosemary began preheating the oven before pulling the massive turkey out of the refrigerator. "Alex, grab me the deep roasting pan in the cabinet, please. Olivia, I need you to go into the dining room and grab the baking sheets with the bread." Alex and Olivia did their tasks as Rosemary pulled ingredients from the cabinets and refrigerator.
"Great. Now, Alex, I'm putting you on stuffing duty. Here's everything you need, and here's the instructions." Rosemary pointed to the family recipe book for homemade stuffing. "Olivia, you and I are going to dress this bird!"
Alex carefully followed the instructions, mixing the stuffing until it was ready to be stuffed inside the bird. As she was doing this, Olivia had successfully cleaned the inside of the turkey and lifted the skin up from the meat. By the time she was done, Rosemary handed her the garlic herb spread to rub on the turkey between the skin and meat. This always made the turkey extra flavorful and juicy.
As she was lathering it up, Rosemary and Alex were chopping and dicing potatoes, carrots, and onions to roast alongside the turkey. Once everything was covered, Olivia then stuffed the turkey with the stuffing that Alex prepared. Finally, the vegetables were laid alongside the turkey, and it was ready for the oven.
"Wonderful! You girls did such a great job." Rosemary gave them both a kiss on the cheek before opening the oven and moving the rack to the lowest position. "Olivia, dear. You're strong. Would you mind throwing the turkey in for me?"
Olivia smiled and nodded as she carefully put the giant 33 pound turkey into the oven and shut the door. "Now," Rosemary started, setting the kitchen timer. "We baste it every hour until it's ready, which will be around 1:00pm. I'm the meantime, I need help prepping some other dishes. I need to ready the potatoes for mashed potatoes, the green beans for the casserole, shred the cheese for the macaroni, the yams for the yam dish, and the chocolate chip cookies since we forgot to do that yesterday."
Alex yawned and stretched. "Where do we start, Mom?"
Rosemary dug in one of the cabinets and pulled out a Keurig machine. "First, we make coffee." She smiled as she filled the reservoir with water and turned the machine on to heat. "Now, you girls begin peeling the potatoes. I'll start shredding the cheese. I bought frozen rolls this year to save myself the headache of trying to make them."
Rosemary made everyone a cup of coffee, making sure to sweeten Olivia's and Alex's so the taste wasn't so bitter. She had used cream, sugar, and caramel syrup. She drank hers black; she needed it to be for all the work she had to do.
The women continued prepping dishes and items until the sun came up, basting the turkey every time the alarm went off. They had also successfully made 6 dozen batches of chocolate chip cookies. The house smelled fantastic; they were all practically drooling at how good everything smelled. Finally, around 7:45, they were done until a couple hours before everyone was supposed to eat. Alex retreated upstairs to change while Olivia and Rosemary relaxed in the living room watching the news. Olivia yawned and stretched, propping herself against the crook of the couch.
"I honestly have no idea how I would've gotten everything done if it wasn't for you girls helping me. Normally I'm in the kitchen straight from 4 until we eat. But now, I can actually relax!" Rosemary beamed as she reclined the chair, crossing her legs together at the ankles.
"That's crazy that you do that alone every year. I'm really glad I could help, honestly," Olivia admitted with a smile. "I've learned so much more about cooking now! It was a lot of fun."
Rosemary smiled at Olivia as she took a drink of water. "I like you, Olivia. You're a very sweet girl. And you seem to really make my Alex happy."
Olivia began blushing as she smiled back at Rosemary Cabot. "Thank you. I try to. She's really the first serious relationship I've had. I'm really fond of your daughter. She's smart, funny, intelligent, beautiful, kind. And she has a really great family." Olivia could feel the tears stinging her eyes. She'd known this family for… 3 days? And they were all treating her like they had known her their entire lives. They weren't afraid to hug her, talk to her like she was a person, make jokes with her, or ask for her help on tasks. Olivia's heart was full of emotion; for once, she felt like she belonged somewhere, and it made her both happy and sad. Happy, because she felt the love from strangers who barely knew her. Sad, because no matter how hard she tried, her own mother never showed her this kind of affection.
She felt a few tears fall from her eyes as she wiped them away. Rosemary got up from the reclining chair and sat next to Olivia, wrapping her arm around her shoulder. "Is it your mother, dear?" She asked softly.
Olivia nodded as her lip quivered and more tears fell from her eyes. She was cursing herself in her head for crying in front of Alex's mother.
Rosemary pulled Olivia to her and ran some fingers through her hair in hopes to calm her down. "I don't know your full situation, sweetheart, but please know that you are welcome here. You're a very sweet girl and your manners are impeccable. Even if your own mother has trouble seeing it. I've known you for a few days and can already see what big of a heart you have. I'm very glad my Alexandra met you." The words only sent Olivia into a sob. She held onto Rosemary's shoulders for a few minutes, letting her tears fall. Why are they being so nice? Why can't my mom be this way? Olivia, stop crying! You're stronger than this!
"Liv? What's wrong?" Alex, who had finally come downstairs, was now kneeling down in front of Olivia with her hands on her knees, a look of concern on her face.
Olivia broke away from Rosemary and wiped her tears away. "Just thinking about my stupid mom. I'm okay." More tears kept falling as she frantically tried to wipe them away, breathing in harshly through her nose to stop the mucus from running down her face.
Alex leaned up and placed her hands on Olivia's cheeks, wiping her tears away with her thumbs. "You know, it's her loss and not yours, right? Anyone would be lucky to have you at their Thanksgiving." Olivia smiled at Alex who smiled right back at her before leaning up and giving her a kiss. Her mom was back in the reclining chair and smiling at them both.
"She's right, Olivia. And the Cabots are extremely happy to have you, dear."
Olivia smiled as she felt her tears finally slow. Alex gave her forehead a kiss before running to the kitchen and coming back with three chocolate chip cookies. She handed one to her mother first before plopping down next to Olivia, laying her head against her chest. "Here!" Alex held the cookie up to Olivia's mouth who gladly took a bite, moaning at how chocolatey and gooey they were.
"Oh my God," Olivia groaned. "So delicious," she said with a full mouth, causing Alex to giggle as she bit into her own cookie.
"We did good, didn't we?" Alex asked, looking up at Olivia with nothing but adoration and love.
"We sure did," Rosemary agreed, watching Alex and Olivia, admiring how sweet and flirtatious they were with one another.
Olivia and Alex had fallen asleep around 8:15, with Alex cuddled into Olivia's arms on the couch. Rosemary draped a blanket over them as she went back to the kitchen to baste the turkey and do some crossword puzzles. Luckily, most of the family wouldn't be arriving until noon. It was now 9:00, and Casey and her parents had just arrived.
"Alex and Olivia are in there," Rosemary whispered to Casey. "But, they're sleeping I think."
Casey crept into the living room and smiled at the sight in front of her. She carefully took out her phone and took a picture of them before sitting next to Alex and leaning against her, watching as the parade began on TV. Alex shifted and opened her eyes, yawning to look over at Casey.
"Hey!" Casey whispered.
"Hey!" Alex whispered back, removing the blanket from herself and lifting from Olivia's embrace. She had hoped it wouldn't disturb her too much, but Olivia awoke once she felt Alex no longer next to her.
"Hey Liv!" Casey whispered a bit louder now that they were awake.
Yawning and stretching, Olivia smiled and greeted Casey before turning her attention to the TV.
"Parade time!" Alex returned with 3 more cookies that she snuck from the kitchen, giving one to Casey and one to Olivia. Alex made the bold move of sitting on Olivia's lap, wrapping her arm around her shoulder as they watched the parade start. Olivia wrapped her arms around Alex's waist and held her close. Soon, Ronald Novak came into the living room while Brenda and Rosemary were chatting.
"Morning, girls! Happy Thanksgiving!" Ronald took a seat in the reclining chair, a cup of coffee in his hands.
"Happy Thanksgiving!" They all said.
"Mr. Novak?" Alex started.
Ronald, taking a sip of his coffee, took his gaze away from the TV to look at Alex. "Yes, Alex?"
"You've met Olivia," she nervously started, causing Casey and Olivia to both chuckle.
Ronald gasped. "Why, no! I don't think I have!"
"Dad!" Casey laughed.
"Sorry, sorry. Yes, I have Alex."
Alex leaned her head against Olivia's as she tightened her grip around her shoulders. "Well… she's more than just my friend, Mr. Novak. She's my girlfriend."
Ronald smiled wide. "Well, Alex, thank you for letting me know! Olivia, it's still a pleasure! I can only hope you treat our Alex right. She's a wonderful girl."
"Yes, she is," Olivia agreed with a smile, looking at Alex. Alex then got up from Olivia's embrace and grabbed her hand, pulling her up from the couch. She led them into the kitchen.
"Mrs. Novak?" Alex said.
"Good morning, Alex and Olivia! What's up?" Brenda asked with a smile, also drinking coffee.
"Olivia here, is my girlfriend. I just wanted to introduce her as such." Alex held Olivia's hand tight as she caught her mother's smile.
"Well, thank you Alex for telling me! She's very pretty, and seems very smart. I'm happy for you!" Brenda walked over to give Alex a hug.
"Thanks!" Alex smiled wide before turning to her mom. "Is Daddy up yet? I think it's time I tell him."
Olivia couldn't help but swallow. For whatever reason, she was nervous. She supposed it was because Alex's father was a bit intimidating. He was 6 foot 4 inches and had a very strong, booming voice after all.
"Yes, sweetheart. He's in the garage looking for his football jersey for the game today."
Alex began to drag Olivia towards the garage. She also couldn't help but be extremely nervous telling her father. Stepping into the garage, she saw her dad rummaging through some boxes.
"Hey Daddy!" Alex said.
"Princess! How are you? Happy Thanksgiving!" William opened his arms to give Alex a giant hug.
"Happy Thanksgiving! I uhh… I wanted to tell you something." Alex could feel her heart beating furiously in her chest.
"Sure! What is it?"
"Daddy… I'm… I'm gay. Olivia is my girlfriend." Alex felt like time stopped after the admission.
"Oh." William said, his face not showing what was going on in his mind. After a few moments, he opened his arms for a hug.
Alex wrapped her arms around him, still unsure how this was going. Luckily, she didn't have to wonder long.
"I don't care that you're gay, Alexandra. You're still my baby girl." He held her tight, hoping she knew he meant the words.
"Thanks, Daddy." Alex held him tightly back, tears threatening to escape her eyes from all the emotions this morning.
Breaking away, William turned to look at Olivia, who was nearly shaking. Finally, he cracked a smile her direction. "You treat my Alex right, and we won't have any problems," William said.
"Dad!" Alex exclaimed, shocked.
"I wouldn't dream of it, sir." Olivia slid her hands in her pockets and smiled back at him.
"Alexandra, you have to let me be the overprotective father!" He chuckled after the words, resuming his rummaging through the box.
"Fine, but Olivia isn't going to hurt me Daddy. She's very sweet and kind to me."
"Good! Honestly, I'm relieved. I was so afraid you'd meet a pre-law boy and my mind was sick over it. So thank goodness you're gay! No more fears of accidental pregnancies."
"Oh my God, Dad!" Alex immediately turned red as Olivia was speechless, biting her lip to stop herself from laughing. "We're leaving now!"
William only laughed as he finally found his Giants jersey.
As soon as they were back inside, Olivia started laughing as Alex groaned in frustration. Worried, Rosemary peeked her head around the corner. "What happened?"
"Dad is so ridiculous!" Alex scoffed, Olivia bending over laughing.
"Why?"
"You know how he took the news?" Alex did her best to mock him with her next words. "'Thank goodness you're gay! No more fears of accidental pregnancies!' Ugh!"
Casey started laughing now too, just as hard as Olivia was. Rosemary couldn't help but chuckle too. "He does have a point, dear. It also gives me some peace of mind."
"Oh my God. No. I'm going back to the parade." Alex waved everyone off and plopped on the couch to continue watching the parade, leaving Olivia and Casey cackling in the kitchen.
