She nods and follows him, while the rest of us make our way down the hall. At the bottom of the stairs, I pull Mom and Donovan into another hug.
“Buenas noches, Mamá, Donovan.”
“Buenas noches, mijos. I’m so happy you’re both here.”
She has tears in her eyes as she looks up at us both and I feel a pang in my heart; I’ve missed her so much, I shouldn’t have left it so long.
I messaged Elizabeth after she disappeared upstairs, but it’s still only showing as ‘delivered’, which is pissing me off. Why is she ignoring me?
The back door slides open and closed and I follow the noise, the outdoor lights are on and there’s a figure in the pool. Getting closer to the glass, I see Elizabeth swimming lengths, and knowing she can’t see me, I stand and watch for a while.
She’s wearing a black one-piece swimsuit; her skin glowing in the moonlight and the soft lights coming from thedeck. With her hair wet, it’s not its usual vivid red, and it’s even longer without the curls.
Opening the door, I step outside and go to stand at the end of the pool. After finishing the length she’s on, she comes to a stop and looks up at me from the water.
“Elizabeth,” I say.
“Angel… I had no idea that was your name.”
“Yeah, well there’s a lot you don’t know about me.”
She lifts herself out of the pool and sits on the edge, grabbing her towel to wrap around her but leaving her legs in the water.
“It’s nice to see you and your mom together, and it’s sweet of you to come and see Donovan too, I know he misses you.”
I chuckle.
“What’s so funny?” she asks.
I move closer, crouching down so I’m next to her and at the same level.
“I’m not here for them, princess.”
“Then why are you here?” she asks.
“I don’t like being told what to do.”
“That doesn’t really answer my question, did someone tell you not to come?”
“Oh, you’re gonna play innocent?” I ask.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, so I think that makes me innocent, yes.”
I smooth away some of the wet strands of hair that are stuck to her face. Leaning in as close as I can, I lower my voice.
“You told me to go and fuck somebody else.”
“What?”
“I told you I wanted to see you this weekend, and you told me to go and fuck somebody else.”
“Are you serious right now? I told you I was busy, and I didn’t tell you to go and fuck somebody else, I simply informed you that there are girls at the club who want you, and that if you wanted, you could go and fuck one of them. I figured you probably are anyway.”
She thinks I’m fucking other people. There’s a sharp pain in my gut at the realization that she’s probably fucking other people too. That image of her curled up with Donovan on the sofa appears in my head again.
“Are you fucking my brother?” I ask.
“Fuck you!” She stands and takes a step back from me. “I’m not having this conversation with you.”
