Bit by the Bug (Matthews Sisters 1) (24 page)

‘Yeah, Sash, you did.’ Megan grinned. ‘It was Christmas and Ella spilled mom’s homemade apple juice on your white pants.’

‘Oh, you had to bring up the white pants.’ Ella cringed.

‘Do you remember when we were kids and Megan here kept that notebook detailing all the things we did when we were little so she could submit her reports to mom and dad?’ Kat asked the group at large, making a pointed effort to keep the conversation off herself. She knew they remembered it. How could they not? That damned thing had gotten them all into trouble more times than not. Sure, they deserved it, and Megan always told the truth about what happened – even if it got her into trouble as well.

‘They put me in charge,’ Megan defended. ‘And don’t think I don’t know you all stole it from me.’

‘What can we say? Just another notch on our crime spree belts,’ Zoe said, shooting her fingers like pretend guns. ‘First your tattletale notebook, next The World Bank.’

Even Megan laughed that time.

‘Ah, look at this!’ Beatrice Matthews stood on the other side of the opened patio door. ‘All my girls at home, just like when you were little. See, Douglas! I told you moving closer to them was a good idea! Oh, now we can do this every weekend!’

Beatrice smiled brightly at her girls, her blue eyes sparkling. Their mother wore a yellow jumpsuit, the colour brilliant enough to rival the sun. Pink flowers were embroidered down one of the sides with a matching pattern along the hems. Her short blonde hair had streaks of what should’ve been a strawberry blonde, but
instead had turned an almost coppery orange. It didn’t help that the woman insisted on making her own hair products – which included her all-natural dyes. Unfortunately, the concoctions didn’t really work out. Even though she was almost fifty, she looked great and none of it was unnaturally enhanced.

Kat wanted to groan and was sure her sisters were right there with her. Instead of committing to an every weekend family dinner, she lied, ‘Something smells good.’

‘Oh, I’ve started Mediterranean cooking classes,’ Beatrice said. She looked at Kat and her smile began to fade.

Knowing her mother sensed something, Kat prompted, ‘Really? Mediterranean?’

‘Oh,’ Beatrice said, her attention successfully diverted. ‘I’m making Moroccan couscous. You girls just wait right here. I won’t be a moment.’

When their mother was gone, they all groaned.

‘I heard that.’ Douglas Matthews grinned at his daughters from the opened door, appearing where Beatrice had been moments before. If their mother was a bit of a neurotic flake, their father was just the opposite. He had dark-brown hair and eyes. A retired English professor, he favoured his old tweed suits. ‘And I’m warning you now. I saw about fifty peppers go into the kitchen that are unaccounted for.’

‘Want me to order the pizza this time?’ Megan asked, laughing.

‘I’ll go see if I can help her out,’ Zoe said, going through the door. She kissed her father on the cheek as she passed.

‘See if you can up the microwave time when she’s not looking and burn it for us,’ he told Zoe.

‘Oh, god! She’s put it in the microwave?’ They could hear Zoe running towards their parents’ new kitchen.

‘So, how are my girls?’ Douglas asked, joining them on the patio.

‘Megan’s famous,’ Sasha offered.

Douglas nodded. ‘Better than infamous.’

‘Sasha’s switched majors again,’ Ella said.

‘Glad to see she’s keeping her options open,’ he replied.

‘Ella’s going into exotic dancing to entertain the troops on those big ol’ Navy ships,’ Kat offered.

‘Ah!’ Ella gasped, smacking Kat on the arm. ‘You’re awful.’

‘I got nothing for that one.’ Douglas laughed.

‘Well, Kat’s got a big secret,’ Megan said, giving Kat a pointed look.

‘Oh?’ Douglas said, looking at Kat expectantly. Kat was sure she was going to be sick. Not her father. She didn’t want them to tell her father about him. Not until she set things right. Not until there was a chance he’d meet Vincent as her boyfriend.

‘Oh, yeah, it’s a good one,’ Ella said.

‘Really good one,’ Sasha said.

‘Do tell, Katarina,’ Douglas said.

‘I got a job,’ Kat said weakly. It was foolish of her, and she knew it, but she really hoped her sisters would leave it at that. ‘And a commission to put together a catalogue of insect specimens.’

‘That’s great,’ her father said. ‘This the same job Ella was saying something about? The one with bugs in the building?’

Kat nodded, feeling nauseous. When no one said anything, her stomach started to ease up.

‘Kat has a boyfriend and it’s not Jack,’ Ella blurted.

Kat wanted to slug her.

‘What happened to Jack?’ he asked.

Kat took a deep breath. There was no way her parents knew the nature of her relationship with Jack. She closed her eyes briefly. Apparently, she didn’t understand the nature of her relationship with Jack. She’d completely underestimated his feelings on the matter. ‘We decided to make a clean break of it.’

‘Best way,’ her father said, nodding.

‘Her new man’s a scientist.’ Ella draped an arm over Kat’s shoulder.

‘Oh?’ His eyes lit up at that.

Kat was hard pressed not to laugh at the look, even as she wished the balcony would break away and take her with it. Trust her father to instantly like another intellectual.

‘An entomologist,’ Megan said. ‘He’s the one who helped me out on that case.’

‘The insect killer thing?’ he asked. Megan nodded. ‘Is this serious?’

Kat bit her lip and shrugged. This was her father. She couldn’t lie to him, but she didn’t like herself too much or what she’d agreed to do in ‘trick-dating’ Vincent.

‘I think Kat likes him.’ Sasha teased.

‘I like him.’ Ella hugged Kat to her, shaking her lightly. It was all Kat could do to laugh. ‘He’s cool. He milks spiders.’

‘Well, if Ella says she likes the guy, that must be something.’ Their father nodded. ‘You should bring him over for dinner.’ He glanced at the patio door, in the direction of the kitchen. ‘Or, better yet, we should all go out for dinner.’

‘Maybe,’ Kat said. ‘We’ll see.’

‘We’ll see about what?’ Zoe asked at the door.

‘Dad wants to meet Dr Vin,’ Ella answered, ‘and Kat’s avoiding saying yes.’

‘Oh, I like him. He’s very nice.’ Zoe winked at Ella. ‘I think you should bring him by, Kat.’

‘Zoe’s biased,’ Kat said.

‘Is that the one you were telling us about? Kat’s friend who called your boss and facilitated the promotion you would’ve eventually got anyway?’ Douglas asked. Kat hid her smile. Their father always believed the best in them. It never occurred to him Zoe wouldn’t have been promoted on her own. Zoe and Kat knew the world
wasn’t always fair. Whereas Zoe should’ve been promoted several times by now, it was Vincent’s phone call that paved the way.

‘Yep, that’s him all right.’ Zoe nodded.

‘Hmm.’ He nodded in approval.

‘Oh! No, no, no, no, no!’ came Beatrice’s scream from inside, punctuated by the sudden blaring sound of the smoke alarm. Kat had never been so glad to smell burnt food in her life.

Her sisters started laughing and even Kat managed to force a small chuckle. Ella gave Zoe a high five.

The blaring stopped and Beatrice showed up at the patio door, looking very dignified. Smiling, she said, ‘Take out, anyone? I decided against the couscous.’

‘I’ll call for pizza,’ Megan said, pulling her cellular phone out of her front pocket.

‘Cheese,’ Ella said.

Pepperoni,’ Zoe and Beatrice said in unison.

‘I know, I know,’ Megan said, waving for silence as she walked to the far side of the balcony. Leaning against the rail, she began ordering into the phone.

‘I like anchovies,’ Douglas said.

‘Sorry, Daddy, they’re all out,’ Megan yelled, before talking into the phone once more.

‘She always says that,’ he grumbled good-naturedly. ‘How is it I’m the only one in this family who likes anchovies?’

‘So, Kat,’ Beatrice said. ‘Zoe tells me you have a new boyfriend.’

Kat made a face at Zoe. Ugh, not again. ‘Thanks a lot, Zoe.’

‘What?’ Zoe laughed, not caring that her mother could hear her. ‘She was getting at me for not having one, I had to throw something at her.’

‘So you sacrificed me?’ Kat shook her head. ‘For shame.’

‘Pish,’ Beatrice said, though she hardly took offence to her daughters’ banter. ‘Let me guess. It’s that Richmond
boy, Mimi’s son, isn’t it, Kat? I knew you two would hit it off!’

‘You knew?’ Kat gasped.

‘Well.’ Beatrice waved her hand.

‘You met him?’ Kat asked.

‘No, not directly.’ Beatrice said.

‘What’s this? Knew what?’ Douglas asked. ‘Met who?’

‘I told you about Mimi Richmond, dear. Kat and I met her when we were in Colorado.’ Beatrice smiled at her husband, but Douglas looked to be at a complete loss. ‘You know, the one who looks half her age?’ Douglas shrugged. Beatrice rolled her eyes and gave him a tolerant smile. ‘Anyway, I was all alone one day in the hotel’s restaurant drinking some tea and in walks Mimi. She sat down and we had a nice little chat about our families. Turns out, she has a son that needs a push and I have five daughters, none of whom brings home a fiancé or even gives us hope they’re going to marry anytime soon.’

‘I just graduated, Mom,’ Ella protested. ‘You want me married already?’

‘Yeah, Mom, that’s not right. And I’m still in college,’ Sasha said. ‘You really want some guy coming along derailing all my hard work?’

‘No, of course I don’t mean you two.’ Beatrice turned to Megan, Zoe and Kat. Sasha and Ella grinned, like two little girls who’d just gotten out of trouble. ‘But you three –’

‘Bea? Your story?’ Douglas interrupted, saving his three oldest from the marriage lecture. Unlike his wife, he was in no hurry to see his daughters settle down.

‘Oh, yes, yes. The story.’ Beatrice leaned against the patio door’s frame. ‘Anyway, the woman was distraught, poor thing. I thought a blind date might be fun and even suggested we set up her son with Megan, but then, as I finished my tea, there in the bottom of the cup was –’

‘Not the tea leaves,’ Kat groaned, unable to take any more. The stress was too much. If the balcony didn’t
break off naturally, she just might have to start jumping up and down until it did. ‘Mother! Tell me you didn’t use the leaves in front of Mrs Richmond.’

‘What?’ Beatrice asked, as if she couldn’t understand why on earth her daughter would be horrified about such a thing as divination. ‘She was very curious about tasseography, even asked me to do a reading for her.’

Kat groaned again, this time louder. Her sisters snickered. Her father’s face was blank, as it always was when his wife went on about such things. He never corrected her, but he never agreed with her either.

‘The tea leaves have never proven wrong yet,’ Beatrice said, ‘even when you were young girls. How do you think I managed to keep five daughters safe? Why, Sasha, you would’ve been hit by several cars growing up, had I not paid attention to the signs and kept you out of harm’s way. And, Megan, the leaves saved you from a pretty bad broken leg once.’

‘It’s a wonder any of us are sane,’ Kat said to the sky, shaking her head. ‘Our mother is certifiable.’

‘Having gifts is not certifiable. My mother had them, as did my grandmother.’ Beatrice put her hands on her hips, looking upset. ‘You all inherited them, if you’d ever take the time to learn the art.’

The girls said nothing.

‘Anyway,’ Beatrice continued. ‘They did good by you, didn’t they, Miss Katarina?’

‘So what did the leaves say, Mom?’ Ella asked. ‘Finish your story. I want to hear what happened.’

Kat glanced over her shoulder, and wrinkled her nose at Ella who just shot her an amused glance in return.

‘As I was saying,’ Beatrice said, continuing her story where she’d left off. ‘There Mimi Richmond and I were, talking about our children, though she only has one to my five and couldn’t believe I’ve kept my figure without plastic surgery, when I mentioned Kat being on vacation with me.’ Beatrice paused, giving a self-satisfied giggle.
Their mother had a penchant for babbling, but with a lifetime of practice, Kat followed her easily. ‘I took my last sip and there, right in front of me, was the unmistakable image of a cat along the side of the teacup as if walking along the bottom. By its tail was a bell for good news and a daisy, which means love. Knowing our Kat would never agree to going on a blind date with anyone I chose for her, I hinted to Mimi you were an actress once, and a very good one at that –’

‘Mom, I was an old Chinese man. I was horrible,’ Kat said.

‘– and that perhaps she should consider hiring an actress to help bring her son out of his shell. I also mentioned you were a magnificent photographer,’ her mother continued as if Kat hadn’t interrupted. ‘She said she had a friend at some hoity-toity art gallery to tempt Kat with. The idea took off and, somewhere between cucumber sandwiches and the bill, a plan was made.’

‘Ew, cucumber sandwiches are gross,’ Sasha said. They ignored her.

Kat stared at her mother. Here she thought things couldn’t get worse, only to find out her mother was behind her meeting Vincent. ‘You? You came up with this plan? You plotted against your own daughter?’

Beatrice grinned, clearly pleased with herself. ‘It was very sneaky of me, I know.’

‘But, I thought you said they wanted me to take their family portrait. You didn’t let on.’ Kat rubbed her temples.

‘We did discuss you doing that, briefly, as a way you could meet their son,’ Beatrice said. ‘But I knew if I asked you to meet him and ask him out on a date you’d say no.’

‘You would’ve said no,’ Ella agreed.

‘Yeah, Kat, you can be pretty stubborn.’ Sasha nodded

‘Of course I would’ve said no,’ Kat exclaimed, throwing out her hands ‘You divined my love life in a tea cup.’

‘Would you have preferred I used a crystal ball?’ Beatrice giggled.

‘I would’ve preferred you not meddle in my love life.’ Kat wasn’t amused. It was weird, knowing her mother had facilitated her meeting Vincent. And, what was worse, she talked about divination to a woman like Mimi Richmond.