One Night Stand
“You can’t look at it as if it’s used.”
“I want my own ring. I’ve already seen the one I want: it’s a Princess cut, 5 carat diamond, platinum and about thirty grand.”
“Gabby.” I said shocked. “That’s a lot of money.”
“So what? He can afford it.”
“Oh Gabby.” I sighed. “Can I ask you something?”
“Yeah, what?”
“Do you love him?”
“Do I love him?” She looked at me like I was crazy. “Oh Liv, you need to get your head out of the clouds. People don’t get married because they’re in love anymore. They get married because it makes sense. They get married because it’s better than being single. There are tax breaks and all sorts of benefits to come from getting married.”
“So you don’t love him?”
“I love that he’s a millionaire. I love that he’s hot. I love that he proposed to me.” She shrugged. “Seems good enough to me.”
“But you’re really not sure if that’s enough, if you’re in here asking me what I think.”
“I don’t even know why I’m in here.” She sighed. “I think it’s my hormones.” She made a face. “Being pregnant sucks.”
“Do mom and dad know?”
“Of course not.” She scoffed. “I’m not about to tell them I’m knocked up.” She stared at me intently. “And you better not say anything either.”
“I wasn’t planning on saying anything.” Trust me, dear sister. I want nothing to do with your sordid setup. All of a sudden, I didn’t feel so bad for Gabby. If anything, I felt bad for myself. I was the innocent party in this setup.
“I know you’ve always been jealous of me, Liv.” Gabby fluffed her hair and stared at me with a sad expression. “But I do hope you can grow out of those feelings. We’re adults now.”
“What are you talking about?” I shook my head annoyed. “I’m not jealous of you. What do I have to be jealous of you for?”
“I have a good job. I have my own house. I’m beautiful. And now I’m pregnant and getting married to a millionaire.”
“So?”
“Well, you have a shitty job that pays you what? Like ten dollars an hour?”
“I make thirty grand a year.” I glared at her.
“And you live with roommates.”
“I share an apartment with my best friend, not some random Joe from the street.”
“And well, you’ve always been jealous that I’m a natural blonde and you’re not.”
“Is this a joke?” I looked around the room. “Am I on Candid Camera? Is that show even on anymore?” My jaw dropped as she acted liked the Gabby I’d remembered from my teenage years.
“What are you talking about?” She stared at me blankly. “Anyway, Liv. I wanted to say I want us to move on from whatever kept us apart all of those years. You’re going to be an Aunt now.”
“So?” I scratched my head.
“So you need to be more responsible now.”
“What does you having a kid got to do with me?”
“I don’t want you being a bad influence on my—”
“Gabby, I think you need to leave my room right now.” I marched to the door and opened it and stared at her. “I’m not going to be responsible for what I say next if you don’t get out of here.”
“Liv, don’t be like that. I was just trying to say that—”
“Honestly, Gabby I don’t care.” I shook my head. “I just need to be by myself.”
“Fine.” She huffed as she exited the room. “I just thought you’d be happy for me.”
“I’m very happy for you, Gabby.”
“Good.” She smiled at me. “And if you play your cards right, maybe I’ll hook you up with Henry.”
“Henry, Xander’s brother?” My eyes widened.
“Yes.” She grinned. “He’s very handsome and well, wouldn’t that be fun if we were married to brothers?”
“Oh yeah, oodles of fun.” I smiled weakly. Here we come, Jerry. I groaned inwardly. There was no way in hell that I wanted to be hooked up with Henry. Talk about creepy and gross.
“I’m pretty sure he’s single.”
“That’s good.” I said and then sighed. “Um, we’ll chat later yeah?”
“Okay.” She nodded. “And don’t tell mom and dad about the baby, okay?”
“Okay.” I said and then closed the door, my heart racing as I stood there taking everything all in. I watched as Xander squirmed out from under the bed and stood up.
“So then.” He stared at me with an expectant look.
“So what?”
“Now you know why we’re getting married.”
“I can’t believe you want to marry her after listening to all that.”
“Why?” He frowned.
“She’s a gold digger.” I made a face. “And God forgive me, for saying that about my sister.”
“She doesn’t hide what she’s after.” He shrugged.
“You’re okay with that?”
“Gabby and I haven’t lied to each other about anything. We know what this is about.”
“So she knows you slept with me?”