SEAL the Deal(97)
“Well, it’s not your birthday party,” Lacey snapped.
Vi shrugged, plopping her math homework down on the table and pulling up a chair.
“Besides,” Lacey added, suddenly angry, “you’re not invited.”
That was perhaps one of the few things Lacey could have said that could pull Vi’s attention away from math. Math was her favorite subject at school. “What do you mean, I’m not invited?”
Lacey struggled to ignore the hint of rejection she saw in Vi’s eyes. She had to stand firm on this. For once. “If you want to go to a birthday party, you’ll have to wait for your own next month.”
“You know I have Dad and Mom just give me the cash.”
“Exactly. You take all the money that they would have spent on a party and save it. But then I’m the one throwing the party.”
Vi tossed up her shoulders carelessly and looked back down at her homework. “So, take the cash instead of the party. They made the same offer to you, you know.”
Lacey slumped in her chair, feeling her argument losing ground. “But I’d rather have the party.”
Vi didn’t look up from her work.
Irritated, Lacey squared her shoulders toward her sister. “But I’m not going to have you coming to my party and enjoying it when you’re not going to throw a party next month that I get to go to. It’s just not fair.” With great flourish, Lacey picked up her list, pushed back her chair, and stormed into the kitchen.
Was that hurt she had seen in Vi’s eyes? Lacey pressed her lips together. Well, it serves her right if it was, she decided as she stared into the fridge.
Truth was, she couldn’t bear to hurt her sister.
She gave herself a shake. “Snap out of it, Lacey,” she said to herself quietly. Vi was using her. That was what it was. Every year, Vi would happily deposit a check from her parents equivalent to the cost of the pizza, the cake, and whatever other expenses Vi had observed at Lacey’s birthday party from the month before. She inventoried it all, everything from the party hats to balloons, hovering over the festivities like some sort of deranged accountant.
Then she’d eat Lacey’s cake, sing “Happy Birthday” with her friends, and have the time of her life. All at Lacey’s expense.
Literally.
Well, Lacey was almost thirteen now. Practically a teenager. She wasn’t going to be the pushover she had been in earlier years. Vi might complain to their parents that she wasn’t invited to her own sister’s party, but Lacey knew they’d let her invite whomever she wanted.
Or didn’t want.
They might even respect Lacey for laying down the law to her sister. For standing her ground. Wouldn’t that be refreshing?
Looking sullen, Vi stepped into the kitchen. “You’re right, Lacey.”
“I am?”
“Yeah. I’ll skip your party this year, if that’s what you want.” Vi’s lip trembled just a bit. Or was that in Lacey’s imagination?
“It’s not what I want. It’s just what’s fair,” Lacey said.
“Absolutely,” Vi agreed.
Lacey wasn’t expecting this. She sighed, watching her visibly deflated sister unwrap a Hoho and pop half of it into her mouth as solace.
Frowning, Lacey took the other half from her sister’s hand. “Well, so long as we agree that it’s not fair, then I guess you can come.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” Lacey cracked a smile. “But you better get me a really good gift.”
“Deal.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Today
Baby Abigail stared up at Lacey, a perfect cherub, eyes locked on hers as her tiny bow of a mouth sucked happily on her bottle.
In silent awe, Lacey gazed down at the tiny miracle nestled on her lap. It seemed as though Abigail had nearly doubled in size the past month. The darker hair she had at birth had fallen out, and a crop of fiery red hair was popping up. Just like her momma, Lacey thought as she glanced at Bess.
Holding little Abigail, Lacey’s worries melted down to a more manageable size. Over a month had passed since Jack had told her that Mick had been recalled on a black ops mission. Bess was still in the hospital at the time, but Maeve had sat with her on the couch that day, holding her hand as Jack confirmed what they had learned from Bess’s new West Point friend. Jack had promised to do all he could to find out details, but “no news is good news,” he assured her, when it came to SEAL missions.
There were still so many unanswered questions between Lacey and Mick. For all she knew, he was still fuming about the deception she had allowed from the first day they met, and patting himself on the back for being rid of her. Oddly, even that thought comforted her, because it would mean that Mick was still alive. She gently stroked Abigail’s forehead, the feel of the baby’s soft skin somehow comforting her.