Danielle Steel - Southern Lights

“I usually go to Sybil’s. My kids fly in, and we all spend it together. I’d love to have you with us, and I want you to meet my kids.”

“I’ll call Savannah and my mom.” She did that morning, but was startled by what they said. Savannah said that if her mother didn’t mind too much, she wanted to go to Charleston to spend it with her father and Turner, and of course Daisy, Henry, Travis, and Scarlette… and Luisa. She was the only fly in the ointment. Savannah begged her mother to let her do it, so Alexa said yes.

And when she called her mother, Muriel said that Stanley had just bought tickets for a cruise in the Bahamas and she hadn’t had the guts to tell Alexa yet.

“I won’t go if you’ll be alone.” Alexa had just told her about Savannah going to Charleston. In a way, her time in Charleston earlier in the year had prepared Alexa to be without her. It would have been even harder now otherwise. It had broken her in.

“I’ll be fine,” she reassured her mother. “Go on the cruise. You’ll have a good time.”

“What will you do?” Muriel sounded worried.

“Edward just invited me to spend it with his kids and ex-wife.”

“Edward? As in Senator Edward Baldwin?” her mother asked.

“Yes,” Alexa said softly, not ready to say more. She hadn’t told her about dinner at the White House either, and her mother had somehow missed the press on it. Savannah hadn’t and was pleased. She had texted her grandmother about it.

“That’s interesting.” She could tell Alexa didn’t want to talk about it, and wondered if she was with him. “I’ll tell Stan we can go on the cruise, then,” she said with a grin. She could tell that something was going on.

“Looks like we’re all set,” Alexa reported to Edward after speaking to her mother. “My whole family has ditched me.” She was grinning at him. “So I’m all yours for Thanksgiving.”

“Excellent news,” he said, and kissed her. He called Sybil and told her on Monday morning, and she was pleased too. Everybody was happy. Particularly Edward and Alexa, and the fan club rooting for them in secret.

Thanksgiving with Sybil was as chaotic and loving and warm as everything else she did. Instead of turkey, she served a delicious leg of lamb, done French style, with garlic and green beans. They had caviar before dinner, and sautéed foie gras as a first course, and she served pumpkin pie because the children liked it, but she served Baked Alaska too. It was an exceptional even if unorthodox meal. And the wines Edward brought were superb.

All of Sybil’s children were there, and hers with Edward too. Alexa loved his daughter, who reminded her of Savannah and was three years older. His son John was interesting and smart and funny and a little eccentric like his mother. He wanted to be a Shakespearean actor, and was getting decent reviews in London. His hair was almost as long as Alexa’s, and his girlfriend looked ten feet tall and was an actress too.

“It’s a wonder I ever get elected, related to all you people,” Edward teased them. They played charades after dinner, and the dogs barked constantly. The parrot told everyone to go fuck themselves, and several friends dropped by, one of whom was an extremely famous artist.

Being at their home was like being on a movie set, and after things started to calm down a little, Sybil turned to both of them over excellent Château d’Yquem, which tasted like candy.

“So what’s happening with you two?” she asked with a mischievous grin. “I’m dying to know. I think you’re in love,” she said to Edward. “I don’t know Alexa well enough to ask her. She’s not my sister-in-law yet. But will she be?”

“It’s none of your business,” Edward said to her good-naturedly. “When we have something to tell you, we will. Meanwhile, find something else to do, other than meddle in my life.”

“Edward, how rude!” But she was only teasing him, and he was very pleased that his children had obviously taken to Alexa. That mattered to him a lot, and he liked Savannah as well, and he thought his children would too.

“I hope you’ll come to us at Christmas,” Sybil said to her as they left.

“I’ll have to be at my mother’s,” Alexa explained. “But maybe you could all come for drinks,” she added hopefully.

“We’d love it,” Sybil assured her, and Alexa realized that she had to warn her mother of what was about to hit her, even for cocktails. A famous writer, a well-known movie producer, a senator, and five additional children. It was going to be a shock to her mother in her small apartment. But at least it was only drinks. Her mother could never have handled dinner. She could hardly cook for her and Stan. He did most of the cooking. When she was alone, she ate salads she bought on the way home from work. Muriel had never been much of a cook.

Edward and Alexa were staying at the Hotel Carlyle for the Thanksgiving weekend, and they were planning to see his son and daughter again the next day. Sybil and her three younger children and husband were going to their house in Connecticut for the weekend. They were a busy group. But it turned out to be a wonderful weekend. They went to dinners and movies with his kids, went for walks in Central Park and to the Guggenheim and the Museum of Modern Art. By the time the weekend was over, they were all friends, and she told Savannah all about it. She missed her, but Savannah sounded happy. And Luisa hadn’t ruined Thanksgiving for her, which was something. Daisy was thrilled to have her home. Henry had brought his “roommate” Jeff, and Savannah loved him too.

Muriel was in shock when she got back from her cruise and Alexa told her who was coming to drinks on Christmas, and how many of them.

“Are you kidding? They won’t even fit in my apartment.” Muriel sounded panicked. But she wanted to meet Edward and see him with Alexa. And she was curious about his ex-wife and children too. She read all of Sybil’s books.

“Yes, they will, Mom,” Alexa reassured her. “It’s just for a drink, and they’re very casual people. Actually, to tell you the truth, they’re certifiably crazy, except for the kids, but they’re a lot of fun. I think you’ll like them.”

“You sound happy,” Muriel said in a tender tone.

“I am,” Alexa said softly. “He’s a wonderful man.”

“Do I hear wedding bells?” her mother asked, getting excited. Being the wife of a senator sounded good to her. And a good man for her daughter sounded even better. It was time.

“No, just happy bells,” Alexa said. “I don’t need to get married. I did that.” And got burned too badly to do it again was the rest of Alexa’s sentence, but she didn’t say it. And Edward wasn’t Tom. There was nothing weak or dishonest about him. He was a totally straightforward, decent man.

“That’s how I feel about marriage,” Muriel said. “But I’m a lot older than you are, and I can’t see the point. At your age, you should be more courageous.”

“Why? I’m happy like this.”

“If he’s a good man, you might be happy married to him too. Just don’t rule it out. You never know how you’ll feel about it later.”

“Maybe,” Alexa said, sounding unconvinced. Marriage scared her, and probably always would.

When the Senate recessed for Christmas, Alexa took a week off, and they flew to New York. Savannah was staying with her grandmother and Stan, and Alexa and Edward checked into the Carlyle again, as they had over Thanksgiving. She took a room there for Savannah too, who was going to stay at the hotel with them. And Turner was coming up the day after Christmas. They were going skiing in Vermont over New Year’s with their friends, and Edward and Alexa were staying in the city. Alexa was loving her job too.