“I love you. Talk soon.”
She hung up before he could press further.
Lizzie leaned back against the seat and let herself imagine it. Her mom and Jasper getting back together. Really together this time. They’d get married again. Her mom would move to Miami with her brothers. They’d all be close by. She could live with them and go to school in Miami and on the weekends, she could visit Sarah until all of this court mess was over. And then …
Her phone buzzed. A text from the front desk: “Group is heading to the van now.”
Lizzie shook off the daydream and climbed out. Twelve spring breakers signed up for tonight’s crawl. Not as many as usual, but spring break was winding down. A lot of people had already gone home.
The group appeared from around the building. She recognized a few faces from previous activities. No Cynthia, thank god.
Emma had left two weeks ago to get back to classes on time. But Cynthia had extended her stay again. Apparently she’d hooked up with some local guy and was spending all her time at his place. She barely came back to the hotel anymore.
Lizzie wasn’t complaining. The less she saw of Cynthia, the better.
Just as the guests were taking their seats, her phone buzzed again.
Miss you. S.
Miss you too. Headed to the bar crawl. See you later?
Yes. I’ll wait for you to get back from the bar crawl. Meet me in the employee garage.
Lizzie smiled and put her phone away. She and Sarah had been okay these past few days. Ever since that strange conversation about Sarah’s parents, Lizzie had stayed away from that topic. It felt saver that way. It wasn’t the healthiest thing, perhaps, but there was so much going on with Sarah, she wasn’t going to push her. No, for the time being, Lizzie was determined to do the only thing she could-Enjoy her time with her and worry about the future when the time came.
***
Lizzie pulled the hotel van into the employee parking lot and killed the engine. Eleven PM. The bar crawl had been small tonight. Just eight spring breakers who wanted a guided tour of Duval Street’s best bars. She’d brought them all back safely, nobody too drunk, no incidents. She sent Sarah a quick text to let her know she was back. She replied immediately.
Great. I’ll be down in twenty. Just finishing up this report on the damage on Carlson Island for the insurance.
Got it. I have to use the bathroom anyway. Meet in the garage still?
Yup.
She grabbed her bag and headed into the hotel through the employee entrance and rushed to the bathroom and changed out of her clothes before making her way through the lobby.
The lobby was quiet. Just the night desk clerk and a few late-night stragglers. One woman, however, drew her attention.
Lizzie noticed her immediately because she looked so out of place. Small and thin with hair that looked box dyed because it was one of those unnaturally red colors that probably glowed in the dark. She wore a heavy suit jacket and tracksuit bottoms.
The woman fidgeted with her purse. Opened it, closed it, opened it again. Her eyes kept darting to the front desk and then away.
Lizzie walked to the restroom and when she came back out, the woman was still there. Still fidgeting.
The night clerk was a girl Lizzie had seen around but didn’t know well. Mary, maybe? She approached the desk.
“Who’s that?”
The clerk leaned in and lowered her voice. “Says she’s waiting for Sarah Barnes. Claims she’s her mother.”
“Her mother?”
“That’s what she said. I sent a message to Sarah’s office, but she hasn’t come down yet. Should be interesting. Even ice queens have mothers, I suppose.” She chuckled but Lizzie ignored the comment.
Sarah’s mom? Sarah had never mentioned her mother visiting. Had barely mentioned her mother at all except to say she lived in Texas.
The woman looked uncomfortable. Lost. Like she didn’t belong here and knew it.
