Undeterred, she points that mom look in my direction.
And I cave.
I admit, “I’m sleeping with Ev,” exactly at the same time that Elaine says, “You’ve found the Magic Penis!”
For a beat, our words hang in the air, and it’s like that old showGhostwriterthat I used to watch as a kid. I can almost see the words. And I can see Elaine making sense of them. Her face twists into a look of unmistakable horror.
I’m not sure what to say. I never imagined she’d have a problem with this. Like Ev said, we’re all adults, so…
I open my mouth to ask her what’s going on, because I’m a straightforward kind of gal. But she beats me to it.
“My brother is the Magic Penis of Christmas?” She winces.
I nod.
“I really want an alcoholic beverage right now.”
We break into peals of laughter and then I explain my night out at Mahady’s a few months ago.
“I should have known. I mean, the timeline makes sense, but I never put it all together,” Elaine says.
“To be fair, you were too busy schtupping your fiancé to notice what your brother was up to. And like I said, we gave each other fake names. We never expected to see one another again. But here we are.”
“Here we are indeed. Oh, I love this! You two must be adorable together.”
“Easy there, Killer. We’re not together, not really. This is just a casual, temporary thing.”
Elaine looks defeated, which doesn’t surprise me. She’s a romantic, this one.
“Don’t even start, E. You can’t out-scheme a schemer. Besides, Ev and I are totally on the same page with this. Neither of us wants anything long-term or serious.”
“Okay,” she relents. “But at least I can take the credit for your reunion, right?” She looks downright giddy, so I placate her.
“Sure thing.”
“Excellent.” She’s damn near preening, but I can tell there’s something else on her mind.
“What’s up, Elaine? Spill.”
“Ok, so hear me out. I know you guys aren’t staying together, that it’s temporary, right?”
“Yea.” I can’t figure out where she’s going with this.
“But can you please stick around long enough for Ev to introduce you to my parents?” She’s suppressing a giggle.
“You just want me to tell your mom off.”
“I do,” she admits.
I laugh. “You’re easy to please, E.”
It’s a balmy 78 degrees, and the sun is shining in the cloudless sky.
I’m sitting on the deck in my hotel room with a cold beer in my hand.
South Beach is damn near vibrating with energy.
Our meeting today went well, even better than expected. Nate has risen to every challenge we’ve faced, and I’ve been on my A-game.
