December 20th, 2019

They could hear the laughter coming from the inside of the dining room before the maids even opened the wooden door. The conversation stopped; ten pairs of eyes turned toward them as they stepped inside. Nith pulled his hand away from Kate's, putting them inside his pocket.

Nith breathed out, stepping in. 

The long wooden table in the center was decorated with candles and lace; vases filled with fresh flowers from the Aurum garden were in the middle as centerpieces. The chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting a warm glow to the room.

It looked like something out of 1880 - which probably was true since it was Kate's great-great-great-great-grandfather who had built the mansion. He was a viscount until the royals chased him out of the capital, taking away his title, and lessening him to a baron. He was lucky that only took his title, not his life, for the crime they charged him with.

When Lia was young, she would call this the castle room. And she would beg their mother to bring her here because she also wanted to have her dinners like a princess, like Kate. 

Kate, on the other hand, would beg Ann to take her home with them. She hated the emptiness this house screamed off or her mother's own screams echoing through the empty halls.

Her mother, who was sitting right in front of Nith.

"Best of luck," Kate whispered.

Nith walked toward the older blonde woman. "Beth, it's lovely to see you again." She sat next to Clide at the table, wearing a blouse and skirt that matched the flowers. Her strawberry blonde hair - a shade lighter than Kate's - was styled in a French roll updo.

"Yes, sit." She barely gave him a glance.

Nith leaned back toward Kate. "Lia was the one who made us late. Why is she giving me the cold shoulder?"

"Cause Lia said it was you," Kate murmured back.

"Fuck."

Kate chuckled, pulling him to the other side of the table. They sat how they always would - Clide sat at the head of the table, Kate and Beth on both sides. Nith's seat was the one beside Kate's. Lia sat next to Beth, leaving the other chair for Nick. Ann would always sit between Nith and Ian.

And like always, her seat stayed empty.

Beth chimed into her wineglass with a fork and the maids started to bring out the food.

Dinners at the Aurum's was a grand affair. Beth Aurum, a culinary grad, invariably took over this part of their family gathering ever since she quit working as a chef. Nith couldn't remember if there was ever a time when Beth served less than a three-course meal to the table.

Tonight was no exception. Beth as without fail, went above and beyond by preparing a six-course meal for them. From goat cheese crostini with fig-olive tapenade as hor's d'oeuvre and pumpkin sage bisque for the soup and mushrooms stuffed with pecorino, romano, garlic, and bread crumbs as appetizers. Just as they finished those, the next course was being served: a simple Greek salad with olives, lettuce, red onions, and feta.

Nith took the last bite of his salad before the main course was placed on the table. The heavenly aroma of the roasted duck with an orange-ginger graze filled the air.

His stomach felt stuffed, but his mouth watered nonetheless.

"How long do you plan to stay, Nithan?"

This was the first time Beth had addressed him directly tonight. Nith stopped cutting his duck piece. "Probably two more weeks. It has been a while since I came back." He took a bite. The meat melted in his mouth, almost making him moan."This tastes amazing!"

"I’m glad," she nodded, agreeing. She looked like an older, mature version of Kate. "If you would have visited us more, I could have shared some of my recipes with you. But you have been so busy with your writing. So much so that you barely came home to see your poor father. Can't imagine you making time to visit us." A meaner version of Kate.

Lia stared at Beth with an open jaw as Kate glared at her.

Nith took a sip of his wine. "I will make sure to visit more often."

Beth sipped her own wine. "I am sure you would. How is your writing going? I heard you are going to write another romance novel?"

Nith glanced up from his plate, chewing slowly. Beth was nothing like his mother. She didn't make small talk. He had never seen the woman talk without having a motive behind it. Always on guard.

'Old money disease' his mother used to call it.

Nith smiled. She reminded him of reporters who would twist your own words against you. Luckily, with his years of experience in handling Rina, Nith knew how to deal with this. He took a big sip of his wine, letting it build his courage. "I'm thinking of writing one." Nith could feel Kate, Lia, and even his dad's eyes on him. Clide was lost reading the newspaper. "So far, I wrote the stories that I wanted to write. But the readers have been asking for something less action-packed and more idyllic and whimsical." Nith took another bite of his duck.

"I thought writers only wrote what they wanted."

"True." Nith looked up, nodding. "But I won't be able to write anything that I want if I don't give my readers what they want sometimes, too. This is the symbiotic relationship an author has with their readers."

"Nicely said." Her lip twitched a bit on the left. It was a smile Nith was familiar with. Kate would get the same look on her face whenever she was planning something diabolical. The day she made Jay and him crash Jay's grandmother's car to the school pole; when she plotted to have him come to the school as her grandmother ... that same smile played on her lips. It was funny how genetics worked. Nith took a sip of his wine. "No wonder you write such pretty words in your novels."

"I try."

"You read Nith's novels?" Lia asked.

The servants were back, this time with the desert. They served Nith’s carrot cake to Kate with a scoop of pecan ice cream on top of it. He noticed that they placed the cake in front of others. But they placed a slice of chocolate tart topped with sea-salt pecans in front of him. He smiled. Beth remembered his favorite dessert. The smell of salted pecans drifted toward him, making him giddy with excitement.

"Mother is a fan," Kate said, sipping her wine.

"What's your favorite?" Lia glanced between Nith and Beth.

Beth picked up her wine glass. "It's one of Nithan's first works actually." Nith looked up from his tart and the smile Beth threw in his direction caught him off guard. Her brow twitched as she sipped her wine. 

Nith knew what that meant too. 

And for the first in a long time, a shiver ran down his spine. Suddenly, he remembered where he had seen that green cover on the library shelf before. The fork with the tart froze midair as the realization drew in. He blinked as his green eyes focused on the older woman. Her smile told him everything.

That book was the first edition cover of Maybe Someday. She deliberately placed it there for Kate to notice. For him to notice.

"Which one?"

Nith knew what the older blonde was going to say next.

She had read the book.

Nith gulped. The fork in his hand trembled a bit as Jay’s words rang out in his mind.

"What if Beth finds out?"

Well … Beth Aurum found out.

Beth Aurum had read Maybe Someday.

And Beth Aurum never keeps a secret.