The Haunted - Jessica Verday [29]
But Mom only shot me the tiniest of glances before she reached into her purse and pulled out a credit card. I gleefully picked up my bags and whispered, “Love you, Mom” as she paid.
I’m pretty sure I heard her mutter, “Thank God it’s not your birthday every day,” and I grinned all the way out to the car.
Sometimes she could be a very good mom.
Ten minutes before I was supposed to be downstairs for my birthday dinner, I was still trying to figure out what outfit to wear. I didn’t want to look too dressy, yet Mom had pleaded with me to wear something nice.
Searching my closet for the millionth time, I finally chose a white cotton sundress and slid it on. The hem was decorated with black satin ribbon, and tiny daisies danced across the straps. It was dressy, but not fussy. Then I threaded a white ribbon through my black curls and pulled my hair up into a low ponytail. A couple of strands immediately escaped, but I tucked them safely behind my ears.
Black strappy shoes were next, and then the last thing I needed was some jewelry. Dipping into the holder on my desk, I picked through necklace after necklace. But none of them seemed to fit my mood. I’ll just go without.
Then my pinkie got snagged on a tangled chain, and I tried to free my finger.
A silver star on a delicate chain spilled out, and I stopped for a second. I’d only worn it once before it had gotten lost in the depths of the jewelry pit. It seemed perfect for tonight, though. Kristen had given me the star-shaped necklace for my fifteenth birthday.
“Okay, Kristen,” I whispered, smoothing out the tiny tangles and fastening it around my neck. “I can take a hint.”
Checking myself over one last time, I straightened the necklace, tugged at the bottom of my skirt, and messed with my hair a bit. Time to go.
I felt oddly nervous as I made my way to the stairs. It’s just dinner. No big deal, I told myself. But that didn’t stop the slightly nauseous feeling that was creeping up. I hoped Mom and Dad weren’t going to do anything too embarrassing.
Forcing myself to put one foot in front of the other, I froze mid-step when I heard voices. It sounded like they were talking to someone. Who’s here? Mom said it would only be us tonight. She’d thought about inviting Aunt Marjorie and Mr. and Mrs. M. but had decided against it so that we could have some “family time.”
Slowly descending the rest of the way, I peeked into the living room. It was Ben. Ben was here, sitting across from Mom and Dad on the couch. He had on a long-sleeved button-down shirt and a tie.
I was horrified.
Mom spotted me first and came over to greet me. “Here she is. The birthday girl.” I put on a fake smile and whispered through gritted teeth, “Mom! What’s Ben doing here?”
“I wanted to surprise you, Abbey.” She lowered her voice. “He’s such a nice boy.” Ben stood up, and so did Dad. “Hey, Abbey. Happy birthday. I hope you don’t mind that I’m here.”
“Of course not,” I said. “I’m glad to see you.”
“Ben here was just telling us all about his college plans,” Dad said.
“Isn’t that wonderful, Abbey?” Mom added. “He has his whole life planned out.” I looked closely at her. Something was… off. “Yes, that’s nice, Mom. I’m sure he has a bright future ahead of him.” Then I changed the subject. “Is dinner ready?” Mom nodded and teetered over to Ben, putting her arm through his. “Why don’t you escort me into the dining room?” she said to him with a smile. “I hear you have very good manner-sh.”
Oh. My. God. Mom was tipsy. I gave Ben an apologetic look, but he played along.
“I’d be honored, Mrs. Browning.” He led her out of the living room, and Dad came over to escort me.
“Is Mom drunk?” I hissed to him.
At least he had the decency to look slightly embarrassed. “She’s not… It’s just that… She was so excited after you guys came home from shopping, and she kept talking about what a great bonding experience it was… so I suggested a drink to celebrate. One drink turned into a couple, and, well… she really shouldn’t have had that last one.” Nice. This was going to be fun.
“Can you watch