Leticia:
OH GOD. I lost my phone and totally spaced, please don’t be mad.
Royal:
I could never be mad.
My wolf snorts.Liar. You’d be mad if you couldn’t find her. But you had a camera, so you weren’t mad.
It’s not mad. I’d be scared and upset.I argue with him.
Leticia:
How is your day going?
Royal:
Oh, excellent. Just the usual, work, a little more work, and a side of... you guessed it, work.
But then a gorgeous woman texted me and made my day better.
What are you up to, gorgeous?
I lookover at the screen. Her room is... slightly less messy than it was before.
Leticia:
I’m through the worst of the closet clean out. Now it’s just to put everything away and get the donate-able items in bags.
Thinking about Chinese leftovers for lunch, what are you having?
The empty cupof coffee and plate where I heated up Dad’s leftovers from Ellery’s last night don’t lend much in the way of lunch.
Royal:
Hadn’t decided yet. I’ll go take a look at the fridge while you reheat your food.
We can call while we eat and pretend we’re having lunch together.
I pocketmy phone and head upstairs to the kitchen.
“Mom?” I call into the quiet house.
When I decided to live at home, there weren’t a lot of rules or discussions. But usually we text each other if we’re leaving, just a general heads-up.
She doesn’t answer, and I walk through the house to the stairs that lead upstairs to her and Dad’s bedroom. Closer to the stairs, I hear her chatting on the phone with a friend. It sounds solemn and not a happy discussion.
My unsettledness could be fueled by Mom’s tension. The whole house radiates with it.
Even with that knowledge, though, the anxiousness isn’t fading.First, I couldn’t find Leticia, and then Mom wasn’t immediately at my beck and call.
I’m being paranoid. Brush it off.
It’s not paranoia if someone is out to get you. We’re Mafia. It could happen.My wolf gives me at least an excuse for the tension.
I mosey back to the kitchen, rolling my shoulders with hopes of freeing up that extra tension.
It’s much warmer up here than it is in my lair.Maybe I’m venting too much server heat outside rather than into my living environment.
