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Author's Chapter Notes:

Qianna gets to have a girl's night with Aunty Em but will she get the info and help she needs while there? Read on to see. Enjoy! TAG

Chapter 19 -  Time To Spill.



“Okay, time to spill, Girlfriend. I want to know EVERYTHING about the boys at that summer camp of yours. Any hotties? Or were they all notties?” Em pried as they sipped at the virgin strawberry daiquiris that he’d whipped up for them while they waited for their toenails to dry.



Listening to Emmett’s way with words, Qianna thought she loved him even more than she’d suspected she would. She also loved the watermelon toenail polish job Aunty Em had given her. She took another sip of her fruity drink, looked down at her pretty toes and sighed with happiness. This was the life.



Of course, she felt a little guilty that, while she was in Pittsburgh having a good time and enjoying all the ‘family’ she’d never had growing up, her poor sister was trapped in California dealing with the likes of Hairy Alex. She didn’t want to go back there. Not with the prospect of having Alex as her new step dad. Not when she could be here, with Gus and Brian and all of these other fun, accepting, warm people. But it did make her even more determined to do something to fix things so that she and Quinne could be together. Maybe there was some way she could convince her dad to move back to The Pitts so she wouldn’t have to give up all her new friends?


“So? . . .” Em prodded, bringing her back to the there and then. “Spill, Girl!”


“Well, there was this one boy - Chase - he took me out for coffee a couple of times,” Qianna confided dreamily . . . and then remembered that she was supposed to be Quinne and added, “there was also this girl named Christa who was pretty hot. So, I don’t know, you know?”


“Ooooo! I like this whole ‘open to anything’ vibe you’ve got going there, Q! Way to be all bi-visibility and whatnot,” Em gushed approvingly. “Anything you’d like to confess about either option? Hmmm? You know I love a good summer camp romance story, right?”


Qianna giggled at the campiness of the man as he waggled his eyebrows at her. “Oh yeah? Well, you first then. You tell me about your first summer camp romance and then maybe I’ll trust you with mine,” she teased.


“Oh, Honeychild, we were too poor for summer camp back when I was a kid,” Emmett waved her off as if his confession was nothing. “Unless you count that one summer when I was nine when my daddy lost his job and we had to live in a tent behind Uncle Ennis’ barn. That was sorta like camping, right?”


“That’s . . . terrible. I’m so sorry . . .” Qianna was taken aback by this tale of woe and her empathy level instantly shot through the roof.


“Oh, pish! Don’t worry your head over it, Sweetie. That’s water under the bridge. And, since I didn’t know better back then, it didn’t really bother me all that much. At least it was in the summer when the weather was nice, right?”


“Right . . .”


Just then Qianna’s phone vibrated to let her know she had a new text message which thankfully distracted her from Emmett’s childhood woes, reminding her that she had woes of her own.


Quinne: ‘Sorry, but your dad says you’re grounded till you’re eighteen and he’s still gonna marry the Yeti . . .’


“Damn!” she complained as she frowned at the text.


“What’s wrong, Sweetie?” Em asked.


“Oh, my friend in California got in trouble and is being grounded,” Qianna explained briefly but then smiled when she remembered what she’d been planning to talk to Emmett about. “Hey, maybe you can help us, Em. We need an Anti-Wedding Planner.”


“An Anti-Wedding Planner? I’m not sure that’s up my alley, Hun. I usually put the weddings together not ‘anti’ them.” Emmett looked confused. “What’s the problem?”


Qianna picked up the bowl of popcorn that had been waiting on the nearby coffee table and munched a couple of kernels while she formulated what she was going to say before speaking aloud. “So, my friend’s dad is engaged to be married to this total loser. He’s horrible, Em. And a total gamer who’s just after my . . . I mean, my friend’s . . . dad. She was dreading going back there all summer and now, she’s only been back there two days, and has already got into it with the Yeti . . .”


“The ‘Yeti’?” Em interrupted, chuckling at the name.


“That’s what we call him,” she explained, laughing a little herself, “because he’s extra hairy and kind of a monster and mean and gross and we totally HATE him, you know?” Emmett nodded sympathetically. “But, anyway, The Yeti tried to scald her in the shower this morning, so she retaliated by baking a batch of laxative-laced brownies - which he stole and scarfed down, of course - and then he got the runs so bad that her father took him to the hospital - which was totally unnecessary, right, but the prick had to ham it up - and now her father feels sorry for the twerp and is mad at HER and she just got grounded for, like, forever, and now it’s all hopeless.”


“Wow! You said all that without taking a breath - I’m impressed,” Emmett kidded her, trying to lighten the mood, which had turned dark almost as soon as Qianna had started talking about Alex. “So, let me get this straight. Your friend wants to try and ruin her father’s upcoming wedding? I don’t see how that’s going to help matters. Won’t she just get into even more trouble?”


“We don’t want to ruin the wedding. We want to STOP it altogether,” Qianna insisted, setting aside the popcorn so she could grab Em’s hands and implore him more strongly. “Alex is all wrong for him. He doesn’t love him. He just wants ‘stability’, whatever the hell that means. I . . . I mean my friend . . . just wants more for him than a lukewarm relationship that has no real substance. You know?”


“Gee. It sounds like you . . . I mean your friend . . . is really upset about his Honey,” Emmett replied, obviously catching Qianna’s slip ups but hopefully not understanding why she’d slipped up. “But don’t you think you’re getting a little too invested in this? Even if your friend doesn’t like her dad’s fiance, it’s not really about HER, is it? It’s definitely not up to you. It’s about what’s going to make her dad happy, right? And if he wants this Yeti guy - even if your friend doesn’t understand it - it’s not up to her to make that call.”


“But that’s the thing, Em - The Yeti DOESN’T make him happy. Not really. Not like he was . . .” She had almost goofed up and blurted out, ‘when he was with Brian’, but caught herself at the last second. “Not like he was in prior relationships he’s had. We think he’s just so lonely that he’s willing to settle, you know, and it’s wrong. We have to find a way to stop the wedding. At least for a while. If he had a little more time to think about it, we could probably talk some sense into him. That’s what my friend thinks, at least.”


“Fine. But what do you expect ME to do about it? I don’t even know this guy or his Yeti.”


“The Yeti’s name is Alex Ramsey. He fancies himself to be some kind of tech guru, but I can code better than him and I’m only twelve,” Qianna explained, looking up at Emmett with desperation in her eyes. “And I  don’t know if there’s anything you can do - Pops is the one who suggested I talk to you. He said you’d had enough experience trying to save weddings that you’d know what would stop one too.”


“I should have known Mr. ‘Marriage is just an Outdated Heteronormative Farce’ was behind this,” Em griped. “Leave it to Brian to get involved in a crazy plan to destroy someone else’s wedding . . .”


“Em!”


“Sorry, Honey. But we all know your dad’s position on marriage and it’s not nearly as life affirming as his other usual positions . . .” When Qianna continued to glare at him, the big queen relented. “Whatever. Okay, I’ll look into it for you. I’m not promising anything, mind you, but I’ll reach out to some contacts I have in the Golden State and see what they say. If this wedding was thrown together at the last minute, like you claim, perhaps everyone would benefit by a tiny delay and I can probably even get them a price break on the cancellation fees.”


“Thank you, thank you, thank you, Aunty Em. You’re the best!”


“Yes, I am. But let’s wait and see what I can find out before you start declaring that fact to the world, huh?” The party planner smiled at his wayward and meddlesome niece. “I just hope you know what you’re doing, Q, because this could really backfire.” Qianna simply shrugged, clearly not willing to concede to Em’s wiser warnings. “Okay. So, where’s this shindig supposed to happen?”


“Unless he’s bitched his fiancé into changing the venue again, the wedding is supposed to happen at the Hayes Mansion in San Jose, two weeks from tomorrow,” Qianna answered readily enough.


“Fancy! And expensive,” Em opined and Qianna nodded knowingly. “Well, I’ll let you know what I find out tomorrow, Sweetie. But for now, let’s forget about The Yeti and watch our movie, ‘kay?”


QiQi nodded and Em jumped up, running over to the bookcase next to the TV and pulling out two DVD cases, then spinning around to hold them up for his niece’s inspection.


“So you ready to get our Princess on? I’ve got Frozen or Mulan. What are you in the mood for?”


Qianna decided all over again that she REALLY loved Aunty Em.


 


///~///~///~


Because of the time difference, it was almost 1:00 am her time when Qianna got the next text from Quinne. Em had already fallen asleep and was snoring inelegantly next to her on the sofa, leaving the younger princess in peace to scroll through her social media feeds. She posted a pic of her perfect toenails to her Instagram and then waited to get the reactions from all of her followers - which were, of course, resoundingly in favor of watermelon toes. Natch.


Quinne: ‘The itching powder has kicked in. Hairy thinks its a reaction to the meds he was given at the ER for the diarrhea. Justin is taking him back to the ER. Bwahahahah!’


Qianna stifled her chuckle and immediately typed back: ‘You are soooooo bad! But this time, just play dumb if dad asks you about what happened. Don’t admit to anything. They have no proof.’


Quinne: ‘Good advice. Wouldn’t want to get us grounded for any longer than absolutely necessary.’


Qianna: ‘You DO realize that as soon as we’re found out for THIS... we’re going to be grounded for life, right?’


Quinne: ‘Well, that was always a given. So, I guess if we’re already going to be in trouble, we might as well have fun with it.’


Qianna: ‘Agreed.’


Quinne: ‘I miss you, BTW. Is that cray-cray? It’s only been two days.’


Qianna: ‘Same. But it feels like a week, right? Besides, I’d rather be having a sleepover with you than Em - he snores really loud...’


Quinne: ‘Yeah. Been there... Did he fall asleep in the middle of the movie again?’


Qianna: ‘Yep. Poor guy. It must suck to get old. And he was so excited to watch Frozen, too.’


Quinne: *multiple laughing face emojis* Don’t worry - he’s seen it about a hundred times. It’s his favorite. Uncle Drew had to put his foot down and forbid Em to watch it anymore so he only gets his Frozen Fix when he can talk me into watching it with him. Drew would never deny ME the chance to watch a move - even a Disney Princess Movie - so I’m basically Em’s beard in the movie arena. Aunty Em gets to watch Disney movies and blame it on me and nobody’s the wiser. It’s our dirty little secret. Well, that and the toenail thing.’


Qianna: ‘Awww. That’s so cute. But, I gotta tell you, Sis, I’m falling hopelessly in love with your family. I’m not sure I want to trade back. Em is hilarious and so much fun to hang out with, your dad is even more adorable in person than online, and Gus is such a sweetheart... Thank you again for letting me have a taste of this. I’m so jelly of you.’


Quinne: ‘You totally owe me, girl. You DEFINITELY got the better end of this deal. I’m just coolin my heels in your bedroom waiting for your dad to come back and decide my punishment. It sucks.’


Qianna: ‘I’ll owe you for the rest of our lives. Whatever you want, it’s yours.’


Quinne: ‘I WANT us to be together again. This separation is for shit. How do we fix this? Seriously! We can’t do this two coasts thing. I want to be home but I want you there too.’


Qianna: ‘I was just thinking the same thing myself. And you know, going through all those pictures of our dads together got me thinking . . . Do you think there’s any possibility of getting them back together?’


Quinne: ‘That’s a pretty tall order. Whatever broke them up was enough to drive Justin to the other edge of the continent. What makes you think they’d be at all interested in resurrecting ancient history?’


Qianna: ‘I don’t know. Call it intuition. But if you’d seen those pics of them together . . . They were so HAPPY together, Q. I could see it in my dad’s eyes. And your Pops’ too. They looked so perfect. I just . . . I want something like that for my dad now, you know. I want him to be that happy and complete. I’m sick and tired of him going from useless boyfriend to useless boyfriend, always unsatisfied, always lonely no matter what . . . He NEEDS what he had with your dad again.’


Quinne: ‘You won’t hear any argument from me. My Pops has been playing the Super Stud for way too long anyway. I don’t even think he’s that into it anymore. If you ask me, it’s time for him to settle down. And if that means you and your dad get to move back to Pittsburgh so we can all be together, all the better. I just don’t know how we can work it. Hairy Alex has his claws pretty fucking deep into Justin’s hide at this point. Justin doesn’t even see how manipulative Alex is; he’s just so desperate to find love, you know?’


Qianna: ‘I know. That’s what has me so scared. I don’t think Alex will go quietly, either. But I DID talk to Em tonight about whether or not he can help us break up the wedding. At least that would give us some breathing room. Not sure he’s going to help or not though - he was pretty reluctant to get in the middle of it all.’


Quinne: ‘Cross your fingers. And, in the meantime, I’ll keep doing what I can here. I was thinking, while they’re gone, I might try sabotaging Hairy’s clothing...’


Qianna: ‘Did I already tell you that you’re my shero?’


Quinne: ‘Yes. But you’re welcome to say it again. LOL.’


Qianna: ‘You’re my shero! And I love you. And I miss you.’


Quinne: ‘Ditto, Sis.’


Qianna: ‘Talk to you in the morning.’


Quinne: ‘Nite.’


Qianna was just about to put her phone away and go to bed when she noticed the little red dot on the corner of her email app icon showing that she’d just received a new message. Stifling a yawn, she tapped at the proper spots to open the message and then, all of a sudden, she wasn’t that tired any more. The email was one she’d been expecting for more than a week; it was a reply from the second DNA match they’d sent an inquiry to.


When she read it, she let out a little squeal of glee that woke Aunty Em from his slumbers.


“Wha . . .?” Emmett mumbled as he startled awake. “Did you say something, Sweetie?”


“Sorry to wake you, Em.”


“Uh . . .” Em looked around with confusion, stretching and yawning. “Guess the movie’s over, huh?”


“Afraid so.”


“Damn . . . Oh, well. It’s definitely bedtime for this old queen. And for you too, young lady. We have to get our beauty sleep, dontcha know?”


“You go ahead, Em. I’ll be right up. Just want to respond to one more email,” Qianna advised, already typing away on her phone.


“Okay,” he readily agreed through a yawn that almost split his face in half. “Just don’t stay up too late or we won’t have time to hit the Saturday Market before I have to scurry off to do the Schniders’ wedding tomorrow. Nite, Baby.”


“Nite, Em. See you in the morning.”


As soon as her pedicure buddy was gone, Qianna returned to her email. She immediately forwarded a copy to her sister with a curt, ‘Look what came!’. Then she fired off an eager reply to the mysterious ‘Malina’, thanking her for the information she’d forwarded.


‘Dear Malina; Thank you so much for getting back to me. I’m glad you found my email in your spam folder even though it took a while. You have no idea how happy I am to have another ‘cousin’ to add to my growing family. And thank you also for the contact email for Lizzy Forbes - let’s hope we have the right woman and that she’ll be willing to talk to my sister and I. I want to reassure you, again, that we don’t want to cause any trouble for her - we just want a few answers to some questions we have about the circumstances surrounding her surrogacy - so you don’t need to worry about letting us have her info. And, in the meantime, please keep in touch; maybe we can meet in person some time in the future. Yours, Qianna Taylor.’


Since the Two Qs had already talked at length about what they’d put in any email to their mother, if they ever found her, it didn’t take Qianna long to draft that message as well. They’d decided to go with a fairly vague initial inquiry, just asking Lizette to contact them, out of fear of scaring her off with accusations or recriminations. Qianna just hoped this would work because so far they hadn’t come up with any other way to find out the information they’d been seeking and they weren’t yet ready to come clean to their fathers. She actually crossed her fingers on both hands before hitting the button that would send the email to Lizette, willing to resort to superstition just this once if it might help them get what they needed.


Afterwards, all they had to do was wait . . .


///~///~///~


Qianna, who shared her father’s dislike of earliness, was still asleep the next morning when she was rudely awakened around nine-thirty by a very loud and insistent knocking on the door of the guestroom where she was staying while at Em and Drew’s.


“Um . . . Come in,” she called out, rubbing at the sleep in her eyes so she could focus.


“What the hell is going on, Quinne?” Em growled at her, towering over the bed where she was lying, and looking down at her accusatorily. “Why are you trying to get me to stop Justin Taylor’s wedding? And, while we’re on the subject, why is there a picture of YOU on the couple’s wedding invitations?”


///~///~///~

 

 

Chapter End Notes:

12/5/18 - Don’t you just love a good cliffhanger? Sometimes being an author is extra fun because I get to decide where to leave you and how high that cliff should be when I’m planning out my chapters. LOL. TAG

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