“I know. It’s not a problem.”
I was frozen in place as Wren and Troy talked about me just a few feet away.
“Charlie called Tom almost daily when Alexi moved here. I think he needed someone to talk to so he wouldn’t call Alexi himself.”
“It’s understandable. He’s a parent.”
“Yeah, I’m not looking forward to Miles growing up and wanting to leave home.”
“I’m sure you’ll do just fine.” Troy laughed.
“So, have you been hanging out much?”
“Not really. Just enough to…reassure you he’s fine.”
There was a pregnant silence and my anxiety spiked.
“Troy, has anything happened between you two?”
Troy laughed. “No way.” He laughed again. “Not with him.”
I heard shuffling, so I took the remaining steps to the bathroom and locked myself inside.
If my face was flushed moments ago, now I’d lost all color. My eyes watered and my chest was tight.
My brain tried to come up with an explanation, but I’d heard what I’d heard.
I took ten minutes to pull myself together and then left the bathroom.
When I turned the corner from the stairs to the living room, Troy was right there as if he’d been waiting for me.
“You’ve been gone a while.” He smiled. “I almost sent out a one-man search party. If I’d known you’d be so close to my room, I’d have upgraded the ravishing plans.”
When I didn’t react, he narrowed his eyes. “Is everything okay? Did I take it too far earlier?”
“You could say that.” I tried to keep my expression as bland as possible and hoped my whiter-than-white skin wouldn’t give me away.
“Shit, I’m so sorry, Lexi. Fuck.” He ran his hands through his hair, looking really contrite.
“I’m going to eat birthday cake.” I moved away from him, but he grabbed my hand.
“Let’s talk. You’re upset.”
“I’m not upset, and it’s okay. You don’t need to babysit me anymore. Everyone has seen that I’m managing to stay alive and kicking in the big, bad American college. Your job here is done.”
“Lexi.”
“Please don’t call me that.”
I walked away with all the hurt I felt pressing down on my chest. Thankfully, the number of people in the house that had made it easy to escape earlier also made it easy to blend in.
Miles was the perfect birthday boy, loving all the attention. I’d always wondered what it would be like to have a younger sibling.
I managed to avoid Troy the rest of the day, even after most people left and there was only family. Coincidentally, feweradults and Miles being down for the day made it even harder for him to pull me away.
TROY
Please, Alexi. Let’s talk.
