It would be so easy to have her now.
Her bleary eyes lift to meet mine.The unspoken reminder of why she’s here and why giving in to my baser instincts would be a mistake.“Would you rather let me wear the shirt?”I almost croak thanks to my suddenly dry mouth.“Would it be less of a distraction?”
She scowls, and the moment is over, which is a good thing.
I keep myself busy gathering her ruined clothes and tossing them in a trash bag from under the bathroom sink.I keep the place sparsely stocked, but the basics are there.I never know when I’ll need to hole up somewhere for a while.
At least, that was the case before I landed my current job.That life feels light-years away now.
The sound of quiet weeping draws me from the bathroom.She’s dressed when I find her, using one of the towels to squeeze water from her hair while tears soak into my shirt.We’re at the self-pitying stage, I see.“I should’ve known better,” she sniffles, chin quivering.
“You need to shake it off.”It’s coming up on midnight now.The clock is ticking.“We’re going to call the house, and you’re going to explain to whoever answers that you’re spending the night with your friends in their dorm.Don’t give details.Keep it short and sweet.”
Now she notices her phone on the nightstand and dives on it like she’s diving on a live grenade.“They’re all messaging me and calling me like crazy,” she murmurs with relief in her voice.
“Good for them.Maybe they should’ve paid more attention back at the club.Call.Now,” I urge.“It’s always better to make the phone call than force them to track you down.”
“I’m really new at this,” she whispers, like she needs to tell me.Raising the phone to her ear, she squeezes her eyes shut and chews her lip while I study her wet curls and the gentle curve of her jaw.This is the most time we’ve spent together when I wasn’t sitting in the front seat with her behind me.
“Mama?”She sounds clear and alert enough.“No, everything is fine.Is Papa still up?Oh, okay.Yeah, it’s late.”She gives me a thumbs-up, and I realize I’m about as relieved as she is.
“Things ran a little later than we expected,” she explains.“The girls were wondering if I could stick around and watch a movie with them in their room and sleep over.Do you think I could?I would come home first thing in the morning, I promise.”
Then she looks at me.“He’s right here.”
I was expecting this.The moment she handed me the phone.“Mrs.Santoro?”I ask.
“Does everything seem all right there?”There is so much concern in her question.What must it be like to have a concerned mother?Mine was never concerned with much more than herself.
“Just fine,” I lie without hesitating.“I swung around to pick Giulia up, and she told me about her change in plans.I can spend the night here in the city at my apartment and have her back early.”
“So long as it’s not too much of an imposition for you.”
As if the entire night hasn’t been an imposition.“Not to worry.”I hand the phone back, and Giulia says her goodbyes before ending the call and dropping straight back on the bed.
“I can’t believe that worked,” she marvels, staring up at the ceiling.“I’m pretty sure you just saved my life again.”
What a departure.I’ve been called a lot of things, but a lifesaver has never been one of them.Getting up from the bed, I mutter, “I don’t know why.I warned you, didn’t I?”
“You don’t need to… oh, shit,” she moans.I turn around to find her swaying again, like she sat up too quickly, and the world is spinning.
“Wastebasket,” I grunt, rushing across the room to hold it in front of her.I am trying not to replace my bed after this.
She shakes her head, breathing hard.“No, I don’t think I have to throw up.But I feel so dizzy.I hate this.”
“I know.”Turning down the bed, I ease her in until she’s lying down.“Get some sleep.Drink some water first and take the ibuprofen.It will help.”
I’m halfway to the door again when she asks in a soft voice, “Will you stay with me?Until I’m asleep, at least?Please?”
I’m being tested.That’s the only explanation for any of this.“Why do you want me to do that?”I ask, slowly turning back toward her.
She looks small, helpless, swallowed up by the bed and my clothes.“In case I feel sick.Just until I’m asleep.”
And there I is, thinking she saw me as the ultimate threat.She’s not so snide and snotty when she’s been drinking.“How about I turn on a movie?”Because I need something to distract myself from her.I wouldn’t try anything when she’s like this.I’ve done a lot of unsavory shit, I can admit that, but certain lines don’t get crossed.Still, it’s a temptation.
I stay on top of the covers, sitting with my back against the padded headboard, flipping through one streaming service after another while she nurses a bottle of water.
“I can’t believe that happened,” she whispers more than once.I can’t tell if she’s talking to herself or me.
