“Hmm?” Violet replied. She appeared to have lost her train of thought. “Is something troubling you, dear? Is it boy trouble?” She leaned over the table again and stared at Amy. After a long silence, Violet cleared her throat. “Well?”
Amy laughed and threw her hands in the air. “I’m not in high school, auntie. Though at times it feels like it.”
“Ahh, I see,” she replied as she reached out her hand and leaned in closer. She lowered her voice and said, “Man troubles. I know just the cure.” Instead of placing her hand over Amy’s, she braced herself and stood up. She walked across the kitchen and grabbed a flower off of the counter. She grabbed a pair of scissors and cut the stem of the flower short before placing it in the glass. Then she grabbed a pitcher and poured what looked like water into the glass, too.
“Take one deep sip, and you’ll feel much better,” Violet said as she handed the glass to Amy. She was always doing things like this, telling Amy about some herbal remedy or another. Amy had learned over the past few months to just play along and do what she said. She grabbed the glass from Violet’s hand and raised it to her lips. A little flower water wasn’t going to make any difference either way.
As soon as she swallowed the first sip, Amy felt a burning sensation roll down her mouth and through her throat. She felt like her eyes bulged out as she said, “Is this gin?”
Violet laughed as she poured herself a glass. “Yes, it is.”
Amy looked at her in disbelief. “What was the flower for?”
“To get you to drink it,” Violet replied. “In all my years, with all the men I have known, I’ve never found a better solution than to forget about them for a bit. If a few drinks in, you’re still thinking about him, you’ll know what to do.”
Amy laughed. “If only it were that simple. I really don’t need to bother you with it.”
“Talk to me,” Violet replied. “You’re usually so boring, and now you’re interesting and you want to leave? What’s his name?” she added with a laugh.
“Ethan,” Amy replied.
“And what did this Ethan do to put you in such a state?”
“He proposed to me.”
“What did he propose?”
“Marriage.”
“To you?”
“Yes, Violet. He asked me to marry him.”
“Did you say yes?”
“I said no.”
“But did you want to say yes?”
Amy shook her head again. “I don’t know, Vi.”
“Do you like him?”
As Violet asked the question, she got up and started searching the kitchen for the remaining gin. She returned to the table a moment later and poured more in the glass.
“Vi, I think I’ve had enough for the night.”
Vi placed the bottle on the table before Amy and crossed her arms in disapproval. “I thought we were celebrating! Lord only knows how many birthdays I have left.”
“Many more I’m sure,” Amy replied.
“Not if you keep breaking my heart.”
“Fine, one more, and then we both need to get some sleep,” Amy said. She could feel the warmth of the alcohol in her veins and in her cheeks. “I can’t actually accept the offer.”
“Give the boy a chance,” Vi said as she tipped the glass back and took a long sip of gin.
“You’re taking the side of someone you’ve never met, a man who asked me to marry him so he can seal a business deal.”
“Sounds like the beginning of a whirlwind romance.”
“It sounds like the beginning of a lawsuit.”
“Is he handsome?”
“Very.”
“Is he funny?”
“Yeah, I think so.”
“Is he good in bed?”
“Violet!”
“Fine, fine, are you secretly in love with him?”
“Violet! No, I am not secretly in love with him. He is one of my clients, and he has been a thorn in my side for years.” Amy wasn’t about to discuss her feelings about Ethan with Violet, but that was exactly what she was afraid of. What if she were in love with him? Love was the wrong word. How could she love someone she didn’t really know? And how could he harbor any feelings for her? She felt like an idiot just for thinking about it. After a long pause, Amy added, “I don’t know, Vi. It’s complicated.”
“Good. Complicated and potentially good is better than simple and bad and boring.” Violet winked at Amy as she knocked back the last of her glass of gin. “Now be a good girl and take him for all he’s worth. This has been a wonderful birthday gift.”