He lifted his gaze and scanned the tasting room, a reminder of his father. And the pending memorial.
Monk:Not going to the memorial
Helia: (eyeroll emoji)I didn’t ask you what you’re not doing. I know what you’re not doing. Or at least one thing you’re not doing. But what are you doing?
A creak sounded over his head, and he glanced up. He needed a shower, which was on the second floor. He’d skated past without one yesterday, but after all the lifting and carrying, he smelled a little ripe. Felt grungy, too.
Monk:I need to shower, which means I need to go upstairs. Since I’ll be up there, I should probably start going through Roger’s stuff
A pause followed before the dots appeared.
Helia:If you haven’t gone upstairs yet, where have you been sleeping?
He grimaced. He should have thought through his response better.
Helia:And don’t lie to me
Monk:You’re bossy
Helia:I have leadership qualities
He chuckled.
Monk:The couch in the tasting room. It’s not so bad
Helia:You could have stayed at my parents’. Your room is still there
The room might be there, but the boy he’d been—the boy who’d needed it—was gone. He was eternally grateful foreverything the Shaws had done for him. But he was an adult now. He was stronger, he had family, he had responsibilities. The memories were brutal, but that’s all they were, memories. They couldn’t hurt him anymore—his father couldn’t hurt him anymore.
Or so he told himself as his gaze lingered on the ceiling. If that was true, why hadn’t he managed to climb the stairs to the private part of the castle?
A low growl of frustration rumbled in his throat.
Monk:I appreciate that, but I need to be here
Helia:Do you need me to be there with you?
His heart hitched in a funny little beat. He hadn’t seen or spoken to Helia in years and yet here she was, sliding right back into his life as if she’d never been gone.
Monk:Why aren’t you mad at me?
A pause again before the bubbles.
Helia:I’m not going to pretend not to know what you’re talking about. I missed you when you left. A lot. But it made me sad, not angry. Now that you’re back, I can either be happy about it or mad that you were gone for so long. I choose to be happy
Monk:You’re a better person than I am
Helia:This is getting deep for an early morning text
Monk:This fucking castle inspires maudlinism
Helia:Not a word, but it should be (laughing emoji). So do you want company?
He considered it. It would be nice to have her with him, to have the light she carried inside her as he stepped back into the darkness of his past. But he had no idea what he’d find, and he wouldn’t risk subjecting her to any of Roger’s depravities. Not that she’d talk—he knew her better than that—but she didn’t need any more insight into his childhood.
Monk:Not today, but maybe dinner tonight?
The offer both surprised him and didn’t. He hadn’t asked a woman out in ages. Well, truthfully, ever. Not that he hadn’t gone out with women or dated them, but on the rare occasions he did, the woman initiated it.
