Twist (Siren Publishing Allure) (22 page)

“I’ll take your word for it.”

“Thank you,” he replied with a laugh. They dried off, putting on their bathrobes and walking into the living room. Lee was watching a movie, and they curled up next to each other, watching it with him. It was late when Rolf lifted her in his arms and carried her to bed.

* * * *

Lee got the first call about his furniture being delivered at nine thirty a.m. Rolf and Lana decided that they needed a day away from the house and headed out with Lee.

They spent the day arranging furniture to create the perfect chi for Lee’s house and then went out to dinner. They were tired when they got home and decided that one more day of celibacy wasn’t going to kill either of them. It was a good, solid sleep that left them both refreshed and ready to face the day.

Lee stopped by for coffee and a light breakfast. He remained at the house as Rolf and Lana went to the funeral home to get Enar’s ashes. They were both okay during the ride, laughing and talking. They walked into the funeral home and were seated in the office. The funeral director, Oscar, walked in with two black bags, similar to those one would use in lieu of wrapping paper for a gift. He offered them a serene nod and handed one bag to Rolf. He removed two boxes from the second bag and handed one of them to Lana. “Fredek requested these memorial cards and also that we take care of the thank-you notes. The envelopes have been addressed to correspond with the invitations that have been sent out. They are all stamped and ready to send. There are extras in case you need them.”

Lana blinked, her expression somewhat disoriented as she stared at the box. The finality of the black bags sunk into her heart like a dark fog. She turned and looked at the bag in Rolf’s hands and started to shake, tears dripping from her eyes as she tried to take in a breath. Her breathing was shattered, her entire body quivering as sobs racked her. Rolf put the bag down, lifting her in his arms. Oscar offered him an understanding nod and walked from the room. Rolf carried Lana’s shivering body out to the SUV and set her in the front seat. He hurried back inside, thanking Oscar and grabbing the two bags. A moment later, he was setting the bags in the backseat, and then he touched Lana’s shoulder. She turned to face him, her lips disappearing into her mouth as she fought to hold back another round of tears. Inhaling sharply, she swiped at the shimmering wetness on her cheeks. “This is it, huh?”

Rolf nodded. “Yeah. The finality of this moment is complete. There’s no waking up when you have been turned to ash.”

“I knew he was dead. He died in my arms. It just didn’t seem real until I opened the box of memorial cards. I want to see the urn and make sure it is sealed correctly.”

He lifted the bag from the backseat, removing the marble urn. Enar had used the same artist who created the fountain to craft the one-of-a-kind black marble ball. The inside had been hollowed out so that Enar’s ashes could be poured into it. It had then been closed with waterproof sealer and a marble plug. A second piece of stone had been sculpted into a perfectly matched stand so the ball wouldn’t roll once it was placed into the fountain. Lana inspected the marble to check for any place where the seal wasn’t complete. Rolf did the same. “It looks perfect.”

She nodded, reaching out and running her hand over the smooth stone. “I love you, Enar.” The tears began again, a drizzle that morphed into a typhoon as she lovingly stroked the urn.

Rolf waited patiently and then put his free hand over hers. “We have to go.”

“I know.” Lana shifted back into the seat, pulling the seat belt on.

Rolf put the urn into the backseat and got into the car. He took Lana’s hand, kissing her fingers. “Are you going to make it through this day?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

* * * *

When they arrived home, Lee had a crew cleaning the house. They maneuvered around the workers, putting the bags in the dungeon before relocking the door. They headed to the backyard, and outside was almost as busy. The gardeners who took care of Lee’s yard were weeding the gardens, a task that had been let go over the last month. Mark was an acquaintance of Enar’s who usually did swimming pools, but today he was cleaning the fountain. People were setting up chairs with small tables to set plates of food upon.

Lee strode over to them. “Rolf, a truck showed up just after you left with your stuff from California. I had them put everything in Enar’s office.”

“I forgot all about that. Thanks. I’ll go through it later.”

Lee nodded. “Everything here is taken care of. The food will arrive between two thirty and three. I have already set up the table and the warming dishes. Are you okay?” he asked, looking at the puffy redness around Lana’s eyes.

She nodded, inhaling deeply.

“Rolf, why don’t you take her for a walk? There is nothing left to do here anyway and we only need one supervisor.”

“You were always the one who was best at organizing and taking care of the smallest details. You have done an excellent job, as always, brother.”

Lee took a bow. “Thank you. Your job is to take care of Lana, and you have done an extraordinary job of that. Now get.”

Rolf chuckled. “Want to go for a walk?”

“I really need a drink.”

Lee opened a cooler and took out two bottles of water and a bottle of her favorite blueberry and pomegranate juice, offering them to Lana. She smiled. “Thank you. You are so sweet.”

“I figured you could use all the help you can get.”

Lana twisted the top from the water, drinking some and then filling it with the juice. Rolf took it from her hand and tasted it. “Wow, that’s sweet.”

“That’s why I mix it with water. I love the taste, but it needs to be toned down a bit.”

Rolf followed her lead, drinking some of the water and emptying the bottle of juice into it. “It’s hot. The last thing we need is to end up dehydrated.”

They weaved their way through the garden, Lana thanking Mark and Eric the gardener as they walked. They headed together onto the slightly cooler path that had been cut into the wooded backyard. They walked in silence, both lost to their own thoughts.

Rolf held his arm out in front of her, his finger going to her lips in a gesture not to speak. He pointed, and Lana followed his hand, a wide smile flowing over her face. A pair of fox kits were playing in a clearing a small distance from them. They were chasing a butterfly, colliding with each other, which started a wrestling match. The mother was standing at the edge of the path, her wary gaze flitting between the two humans and her babies. Lana had seen the adult foxes in the past and she had to think that the mother understood that they offered her no harm. It was quite a while before she finally became too nervous with their presence and she nudged the kits, urging them to follow her. They disappeared into the heavier brush of the forest. “That was cool,” commented Rolf. “You have a stepdaughter. Why didn’t you ever have any children?”

“I married a man with a really obnoxious daughter. He was as much of a child as she was. He left it up to me if I wanted kids. Sometimes I regret not having any, but it is usually a passing whim. Do you have any?”

“I have a son. His mother named him Nigel because she loved Elton John.”

“That was his song writer or something, wasn’t he?”

“Something like that.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

Rolf shrugged. “I don’t know. You were busy with Enar and it never seemed like the right time to bring it up. Nigel is eleven. I didn’t even know about him until three years ago. I dated his mother for about six weeks. What she forgot to mention was that I was only a sperm donor. I found out afterward that she was taking a pin and putting holes in all of my condoms. She took off with another woman. I didn’t even know that she was pregnant. Emma called me because she was in a car accident. It was a hit and run. Her girlfriend was killed. She couldn’t work and needed money. It was a hell of a shock. I went to see her and she introduced Nigel as my son. He looks just like me. I, of course, had a DNA test run and it was positive. I bought her a house and send her money every month to live on under the terms that she would change his last name to reflect that I’m his father. Nigel is a really sweet kid. I told him that I was moving back here and that we would figure it out so that we would see each other.”

He shrugged at Lana and she smiled. “I don’t dislike children. I just dislike my stepdaughter sometimes. If you want Nigel to come here and visit, then it is fine with me. Were you talking visit or live here?”

“Visit. I travel too much to have a child living with me full time. Nigel loves his mother. I would never try to take him away from her. I do want to see him once in a while though.”

“Did Enar know?”

“I told him. I kind of wanted Nigel to meet him, but Enar didn’t seem interested.”

“Yeah, that was his one big hang-up. Whenever I mentioned inviting my grandchildren up for the day, he would always find some excuse why they couldn’t come. I was never really sure why, if he just disliked children or it was because he couldn’t have any.”

“I don’t know. He would never give me a straight answer. If you want to see your grandchildren, then fine.”

“I would then have to deal with their mother. I am not up to it at the moment.”

“Did you call her about the ceremony?”

“No.”

He smiled, shaking his head. “You probably should.”

Lana rolled her eyes and took out her cell phone, glaring at him as she dialed Mona’s number. She listened to the answering machine and then spoke into it. “Mona, it’s Lana. We are having a gathering for Enar at three thirty today. If you would like to come, that would be nice. I would love to see the children. Just keep in mind that it is a memorial for my husband and I don’t want any trouble. Bye.” She clicked the phone shut. “Okay. I called her.”

“Do you think she will show up?”

“Yeah, with guns blazing.”

* * * *

They walked for a while and then returned to the house. All the workers were gone and Lana went to take a shower before people started to arrive. She came out dressed in a long, black dressy shirt and a pair of leggings. Lee and Rolf were sitting outside. She was surprised to find them both in black dress pants and almost matching silk shirts. She flipped a chair, sitting to face them. “Do we really have to do this?”

“Yes,” replied Lee. “We don’t want to face this day any more than you do. We were just talking about it.”

“I called Nigel. We are going to pick him up after we go to Canada. He is on vacation from school and is coming here for a week.”

“Cool. It will be fun to meet him. We have to arrange some activities to do with him.”

“We will. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being so understanding and willing to let me spend time with him. I was kind of worried about it. It was the only thing that I thought might be a problem between us.”

She tilted her head, smiling sincerely. “It’s not. I would never stop you from seeing your son. Mona was a bitch on wheels, but I always tried to be understanding and nice to her. It was hard sometimes. I guess I have become less so as she got older. Of course, she seems to be more adamant than ever to push my buttons and piss me off.”

“She resented Enar, didn’t she?”

“Yeah. She resented losing me as a way to get rid of her children. She resented the fact that I had money and she only had enough to get by. I also think that she resented Enar because we were happy. She always seems to choose losers, and when it falls apart, she can’t figure out why. It’s a shame, because she is not stupid, she is just, I don’t know.”

“Looking for love from the wrong people?”

“Among other things.”

Rolf smiled, taking her hand and holding it. “She has a lot of be envious of. You have three men who adore you.”

“Yes, I do.” Lana frowned. “Do you want more children?”

“Not really,” he replied softly. He was watching her reaction carefully, and Lana smiled.

“After I blew my knee, my doctor suggested that it could be dangerous for me to have a child because it would put a real strain on my leg. I ended up having a hysterectomy. I didn’t want children with Joe anyway.”

“Oh. I hadn’t even considered the fact that we would have to use protection. Jessica was on the pill.”

“Yeah, well. I knew it didn’t matter with Enar.”

“It doesn’t matter with me either, because I honestly don’t want more children. I have a son to carry on the family name. He’s enough.”

The doorbell chimed and Lana groaned. “Please don’t say it is three thirty.”

Lee looked at his watch. “It’s three fifteen.” He got up, stroking her cheek as he walked by her to answer the door.

* * * *

Lana sat on the edge of the fountain, tears dripping down her cheeks as she leaned to put the marble urn under the flow of the waterfall. Rolf knelt beside her, his hand under her ribs so she wouldn’t lose her balance and fall in. Lee held up a sheet of paper. “We would like to thank you all for joining us here today in memory of our brother and our friend. Death took him in an untimely fashion, his young life ending too soon for any who knew him. He asked me to look around at those gathered and send them his warmest thanks. Knowing the approximate time of your death while your mind remains clear does have its advantages. Enar had a chance to speak his final thoughts and wishes. He made the arrangements himself, taking away the need for his family to do so. For those of you who are wondering, Enar asked me to make it clear that he gave his greatest gift, his greatest love, to his brother Rolf. That gift was Lana.”

She sat up, looking at Lee before her eyes again began to fill with tears. “Enar did not want you to see them together and have mistaken thoughts. Their relationship, as it develops, will be with his blessing. I, myself, have seen that Rolf is able to take her from the deepest depths of grief and make her smile. She does the same for the two of us. It was Enar’s hope that she would remain as a part of our lives, and it is a hope that both Rolf and I share.”

Rolf dragged her back into his arms. “My brother was a loving and amazing man. He suffered from illness as a child and it was the recurrence of that same illness that ended his life. His life was not always easy. The loss of our parents was followed by his first wife’s illness and subsequent death. Through everything that has happened to him, he remained positive that his life would get better. He was right. I spoke with him the night he died. He told me how amazing the last year had been. He said that he had no regrets about the things he had accomplished in his life but that Lana had made his existence wonderful beyond belief. His only regret was leaving her.”