Holidays In The Hamptons [COMPLETE]

Chapter Five

Everyone had already dispersed by the time Marley made it downstairs the next morning. Despite the late-night they had all partaken in, Marley was the last to breakfast.

Gabbie gave her a half-yelled explanation of where she was accompanying Thea to that morning. All Marley caught was something about a neighbor with daughters Gabbie's age but that was more of a guess than anything else as Gabbie hadn't even hesitated while running out the door and Marley was hardly awake to fully understand what her sister was yelling at her.

It was only their second morning at Thea's but Marley was starting to see a trend when she entered the dining room and found a buffet of food rivaling the spread that had been waiting for them the morning before on Christmas day. Stella was finishing her food and heading off to make friends with Thea's kitchen staff. Or so Marley guessed when she cleared her own dishes and exited the dining room through the swinging doors that led into the kitchen.

Both her parents, too, were getting up to leave. Apparently, Marley had been the only one affected by the late night.

"I've got a box of things Mom wants me to look through in the attic. She's finally gotten around to organizing Dad's things and what's to know what I want to take," Avery answered to Marley's yawned "What are you doing this morning?"

Marley didn't have to ask her dad where he was headed. He had that focused look in his eyes that he only got when faced with a deadline. Considering that the only freelance job he still had going on was a script for a New Year's Eve program, Marley merely said good morning and took his distracted to kiss to the forehead.

She was left alone in the dining room. But not for long.

Halfway through her plate of bacon and eggs, footsteps echoed through the entryway following the sound of the large front door opening and then swinging shut.

"Anyone home?"

"In here!" Marley called before putting another forkful of food into her mouth. It was as if she lived there. There was no one else to answer Christian's call and so the responsibility had fallen to her.

Marley was grateful it wasn't Thea and Gabbie back from whatever adventure they had embarked upon. Marley hadn't missed the look on her grandmother's face when Marley had finally stopped dancing with Felix the night before and because of said look, had purposefully made a point to avoid his side of the ballroom all night. She had been expecting a talk of some sort from Thea but had yet to see her. Christian's sudden appearance meant she now had something else with which to occupy her thoughts.

Christian didn't bother sitting down at the table after making his way to the dining room and came to rest right, leaning against the table, by Marley's plate.

"Good morning, Cousin. Don't you look fresh as a daisy?"

Aware of her current state of being, Marley shot her cousin a glare but smiled when he did.

"Fancy an excursion this morning?" Christian asked, making idle chit-chat until Marley was finished eating before asking his question.

"Where to, oh cousin of mine?"

"There's a little carnival downtown. And an ice-skating rink, if you're into that sort of thing. Basically, anything that's going to keep me out of my mother's house for the morning."

"Sure. I've got nothing better to do. Wait for me by the door, I've just got to get changed."

Christian nodded and Marley left her breakfast plate to hurry up the stairs. Christian was right by the front door when Marley raced down the staircase in her wool-socked feet and hopped across the foyer while pulling on her snow boots.