The Family You Choose (9 page)

"Boy, can I throw a party, or what?"

"Mitch doesn’t get it, but Emily does. And I
do. And no one blames you."

"So does that mean Mitch is a jerk, or that
we should welcome Emily into our society of misfits?"

"No, I don’t think I want Emily in the club."
Michael had come in, carrying empty dessert bowls. "So I guess this
means nothing was wrong with the mousse?"

"No, Michael," Miranda said, wiping the last
of her tears. "Everything is fine."

"Zainab, I think I need a word alone with
Miranda. You don’t mind do you?"

Zainab looked at Michael, but he was looking
at Miranda. And Miranda looked in Michael’s direction as if he
weren’t there. "Of course," Zainab said, squeezing Miranda’s waist
before she let go. "But I’ll be right outside the door."

The swinging door closed behind Zainab.
Miranda reluctantly looked at Michael. "If you have something that
you need to say to me without anyone else hearing it, this has to
be good."

"I wanted you to see my home."

"I’ve seen it. It’s actually a few blocks
from here."

"That was never my home."

"What do you want? It could have been your
home, but you did everything you could to make sure it wasn’t.
Congratulations. Now you have your real home back, and I really
hope you’re very happy here."

"Didn’t you ever wonder about where you came
from?"

"Yes, I have. One of the nicest places in
Massachusetts."

"Not just the place but the people, the
memories, the habits—the things that fill a place and make it a
home. Ever notice that Richard never really had one?" Michael was
ten inches away from her now.

"You do know that you had something to do
with that, right?"

Michael shook his head. "It was always like
that. Lucy and Jim never liked each other—at least, Lucy never
liked Jim. She never liked anything. Even Richard. Sometimes
especially Richard."

"So much would be explained if you and
Richard were related through her."

He shook his head again. "No. No, people
liked me when I lived here. They even loved me. Do you know what
that’s like? Do you remember before Alex? Did people love you?"

"Yes," Miranda said with quiet conviction, as
if he’d just asked her if his eyes were brown.

"Then didn’t you ever wonder what happened to
them?"

"I know what happened," she whispered. "My
father died in Israel, and my mother died in a car accident. My
grandmother died too, and that’s why I’m with Alex. And Alex loves
me."

A smiled traced across Michael’s face, and
suddenly his proximity was menacing. "Yes, and you love Alex, too,
don’t you?"

"You want to tell me the name of the game
we’re playing, or did you just make this one up?"

"You never asked before."

"No, I just did actually."

"Not that."

"Never asked what?"

"Never asked what happened to my
parents."

"Yes I did. I think you almost shoved me down
the stairs."

"Did you ask Alex?"

"Sorry, I guess I was a little preoccupied
usually with your latest attack or threat."

"I don’t think I’ve touched you since I was
twelve."

"There was the incident that summer after you
got out of high school."

"But I don’t think I scared you, did I?"

"No, you just saved it for my friends and
anyone else who came into my life. By the way, you touch Zainab and
I’ll consider it an invitation to kill you in your sleep."

He smiled even wider. "And maybe that’s why I
moved."

"Don’t worry, I can be very persistent."

"You’d have to give me a reason to let you
get that close, especially if I were in bed."

Miranda stepped back and looked at him as if
she were seeing him for the first time. He was still smiling in his
menacing way. She blinked then replayed what he said in her mind,
just to make sure. Then she laughed again. "Are you for real?"
Before he could answer, she shoved past him and through the
swinging doors. Michael followed her out a moment later, this time
carrying a bottle of wine and glasses. Richard and Alex resumed
their conversation, and Michael spoke to Zainab more politely than
Miranda had ever heard him speak to anyone. She emptied her glass
then announced that she wanted to leave.

~~~

Fifteen minutes later, Zainab kissed Miranda
good-bye and agreed to call the next day to meet for coffee, maybe
even dragging out Jessie and Emily. Miranda nodded vigorously, her
color high from the wine, then turned and walked away quickly.
Zainab watched her for a moment, then starting walking with
Richard. "How come you never told me?"

"Which ugly family secret are you referring
to now?"

"The one about Michael having a thing for
Miranda."

Richard raised his eyebrow, half-smiled, then
shook his head. "Because I was never sure about that one
myself."

"I am. I don’t think I like it."

"You like the one about Alex and Miranda
better?"

"I don’t think that’s a secret."

~~~

Miranda read in Alex’s study, stealing
glances at him. He was on his computer, as usual, engrossed in
stock prices and other company’s quarterly reports. She wanted to
ask him something, but she wasn’t sure. It wasn’t the wine—she
hadn’t had that much—she just couldn’t put the question into
words.

She lay in bed in the dark for hours,
thinking about Michael and why that night was so much more
disturbing to her than anything else he’d ever done.

Several weeks later Mitchell Graham was on
the train to law school with his wife. He liked that their stop was
so far out because it meant that they got their own seat together,
a relative luxury four stops later.

Emily was sleepy. It was funny, because she
used to rise so early the year before. She’d enjoyed getting up at
eight, and then getting up at ten, depending on how late they had
been up the night before. So Mitch could run his fingers over her
cheeks and hairline without too much protest.

He sighed. Last year the most important thing
to him had been getting into law school. Now he wanted nothing more
than to stay home with his beautiful, precious wife. It was only
the first week, and already he missed the all-night, all-day lying
in bed with his wife, making love, making jokes, talking, watching
television, just being together in the little world they’d created
for themselves. He’d resented intrusions from Zainab, Jessie and
Miranda at the time, and now, childishly, he made a face when he
thought of them. Emily had reminded him that she was tolerant of
Martin and his friends from high school when they came for visits,
but it wasn’t the same. Not that he could explain it, but it wasn’t
just the time her friends had taken away from them, it was the love
too. He liked his friends, in some way he even needed them, but he
didn’t love them the way Emily loved hers. They weren’t just
friends, they were family, and Mitch was jealous, stupidly jealous.
And he knew it, so he never said anything. Now that he had to be
away for so long, he was comforted somewhat that at least Emily
wouldn’t suffer for a lack of company.

One person he was grateful for was Professor
Hazlett, who had managed to find a way to give Emily the job she’d
started last year. They’d spent the summer living, mostly, on the
generosity of his parents—a wedding gift, they’d called it,
continuing to remind him how upset they were that they hadn’t been
invited—and while they could probably scrape by on his student
loans, the income Emily would bring in, although not generous,
would help a great deal. Plus, he thought as she started to rouse
from her nap, now she had a reason to come with him to the
university. And that was something.

~~~

Emily and Mitch showed up with their
backpacks on Richard’s doorstep at six. Zainab opened the door. She
was laughing. Emily hugged Zainab, so happy that she was happy. "Oh
look, the prince of darkness came too!"

Mitch kissed Zainab on the cheek. "Very
funny."

"Hey, I thought that was me!" Richard said
with mock indignation. He kissed Emily on the cheek, and reached
over to shake Mitch’s hand.

Richard made a stir fry, the best he could
come up with for the vegetarians. Emily teased him, but happily ate
it anyway.

"Alright," she said when everyone was done.
"What’s wrong with Miranda?"

Zainab sipped her juice. "I don’t know, but
she’s been wigging out ever since Michael moved out."

"Since he left?" Mitch repeated
incredulously. "Maybe she just doesn’t know how to handle normal.
Oh right, Alex is still there, so that’s not a problem."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Alright honey—I don’t
think anyone’s here to defend him."

"She’s not going to be any better until she
gets away from that pedophile freak."

"It’s more complicated than that," Richard
said quietly.

Mitch shrugged. "She’s probably had a crush
on him since she was a little girl. But he’s just sick."

"I don’t think he’s ever touched her,"
Richard said calmly.

Emily scoffed. "Come on. You can get to
someone without that."

"And that’s sort of what I wanted to talk
about," Zainab said pointedly. Emily held up her hands as if in
surrender. "She’s been a mess since we had dinner at Michael’s
house. I don’t know what he said to her that night—and God, I think
she even told me—but he’s the one eating at her now."

"Okay," Mitch said. "What is Alex’s deal? Why
does he have both of them? He’s not related to them, right?"

Everyone looked at Richard. "He isn’t related
to them."

"There’s something," Emily muttered.

"So...?" Mitch prompted.

"Michael’s parents died when he was seven.
There was a car accident where his dad Stephen died."

Emily had heard this part from Jessie before.
"Right, and then his mother accidentally overdosed on some sleeping
pills—"

"His mother," Richard said quietly, "was my
Aunt Annabelle."

"I’m sorry," Emily said quietly. "Were you
close?"

Richard shook his head. "No. She didn’t have
much use for me—I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that.
But...she was very close to my father. He...couldn’t take it when
she died."

Emily exchanged a quick look with Zainab. She
knew this wasn’t the right time. "Did she have any use for
Michael?"

"Yes, I’d say that," Richard said, nodding
slowly. "Both of his parents loved him. Aunt Annabelle could be a
little...high-strung, as I recall, and Stephen was kind of an
immature and spoiled party boy. That’s what my dad thought, at
least, but they both loved Michael. Stephen liked to play ball with
him; I remember because I thought it was the best thing in the
world when they’d invite me to play catch. Annabelle was always
taking him to the circus or movies or reading with him—they had a
lot of fun. They were usually laughing when they came by to visit
us, or when we went to their house. He was a lucky little boy, at
the time anyway."

"After they died, why didn’t Michael come and
live with you?" Emily asked.

"My dad...was having trouble taking care of
himself after his sister died, much less me. My mother would not
have been helpful. It wouldn’t have been a good environment for
Michael. Alex really was the best choice, believe it or not."

"How did he know Alex?" Mitch said
impatiently.

"Alex was Stephen’s oldest friend, period.
Not quite kindergarten, but grade school, at least. He also worked
for my grandfather before he started his own firm. Probably part of
why my aunt didn’t like him, but I never knew exactly."

"Was he an immature, spoiled party boy too?"
Emily asked.

Richard narrowed his eyes. "No. He was much
more...intense. Honestly, I didn’t see him all that often before
Stephen died. Sometimes I would go over there and Alex and Stephen
would have private conversations, or Michael and I would be playing
and Alex would come over. He was there a lot; which, I must say,
was not much appreciated by my aunt. I think I heard them arguing
about Alex more than I saw him in the flesh."

Zainab stroked Richard’s hair. Emily smiled.
It looked as if Richard was getting used to being appreciated. "So
Alex was always Mr. Broody Intensity?" she said.

"No," Richard said, taking Zainab’s hand
again. "He wasn’t like Stephen—I mean, not always smiling and
joking and laughing—but he was more carefree than he is now,
certainly. But he was always ambitious, absolutely. He always
wanted to talk to Stephen about investments and companies—I didn’t
understand too much of it—but even then I could tell that he could
be very committed to something." Richard was silent for a minute,
looking off into space as if he were trying to remember something.
"And a little impatient," he said at last. "Like he was always
trying to get Stephen to do something, but Stephen never worried
about anything. I dunno." Richard shrugged, coming back to the
present. "I really don’t know too much about who Alex was before,
but I am pretty sure that the Sheldons weren’t nearly as well to do
as the Abbots. Maybe that’s why Alex needed to work it so
hard."

"He worked it pretty well, I’ll give him
that," Mitch said. "That has got to be one of the biggest homes
I’ve ever been in, at least in the city."

"A big house isn’t everything," Richard said
quietly.

Emily felt herself tearing up. It hadn’t been
possible for her to conceive that Richard’s childhood had been
worse than his young adulthood. "I’m sorry for your loss," she said
softly.

"Sorry enough to make dessert?"

"No!" Emily said, throwing her napkin in his
face, as they all started to laugh.

~~~

Hours after Emily and Mitch had left, Zainab
and Richard were lying in the dark, holding each other. "Richard?"
Zainab asked at last.