“His prank is what brought us together, so it’s hard for me to be mad.”
“I talked about some really personal things there. To someone not even qualified to hear them. And now she’s telling Michael about them.”
He smoothed some hair away from my face. “What makes you think she’s telling other people?”
“I overheard her.”
He kissed my cheek. “I’m sure she didn’t mean to.”
I pulled back, creating space between us. “Why would you be sure about that?”
“I guess I just like to think the best of people.”
“Even when they’ve done something completely wrong?”
“Babe, babe, babe.” He widened his stance so he could be closer to my level and looked me in the eyes. He ran his handsover my shoulders. His charming smile was on his face as though trying to appease me. “You’re taking this so seriously.”
God, those words felt so patronizing.
“You’re right, why would I take anything about us seriously? We’re just short term, right? I can’t believe I let myself fall for a sweet talker.” I whirled around and marched for the door. “I’m telling Tara.”
“Fine, tell her,” he snapped. “Because why not destroy everything in your wake on your way out of town?”
I grabbed the door handle but didn’t open the door. “It’s important to go into a relationship with your eyes wide open. She deserves that.”
“Maybe she’s not constantly looking for reasons not to trust people, like you are. She probably won’t even care about this as much as you do.”
“If she doesn’t, it’s only because she didn’t just waste a month of her life!” Something feral came over me, and I reached into my purse, fished out the dirty napkin, and flung it at him. Then I threw open the door and left.
I felt crazy, mad with rage or grief or something, as I pulled back into the driveway at home. When I walked in the front door, the first thing I saw was my mom slumped over on the couch. As if she’d been sitting, but now her head was at an uncomfortable angle on the armrest.
“Mom,” I said. “Are you okay?”
There was no response. I rushed forward and shook her shoulder. “Mom.”
She moaned. “Cold.”
“You’re cold?” I pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped it around her shoulders. As I did, my hand brushed the back of her neck, which was burning hot. I felt her forehead. Also hot.
“Hold on to me. I’m going to make you more comfortable, then call the doctor.”
“You shouldn’t have left me,” she said. “I wouldn’t be sick if you hadn’t left me for so long with nobody.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, guilt pouring through me.
I’d placed a cold compress on my mom’s head and given her some ibuprofen per the doctor’s instructions. If the fever didn’t break by the morning or rose over one hundred three, I was supposed to take her to the hospital. Right now, several hours later, it was still hanging steady at one hundred two.
“Does anything specific hurt?” I asked her now as she blinked awake from a short nap.
“My leg,” she said.
I inspected her leg, which was still in a cast, but her foot and the skin around her knee all seemed to be the right color. No signs of an infection or anything. I took the cloth off her forehead to rewet it. I brought it back and draped it onto her hot skin. Her hand reached up and grabbed hold of my wrist. I sat down on the floor next to the couch, allowing her to hold my wrist in her grip. “Do you need water? Or some food?”
“No,” she said. “Your father called yesterday.”
I took in a shallow breath. I wasn’t going to tell her Dad called. Not after our conversation that went nowhere. I hadn’t realized he’d called her too, however. “Oh, yeah?” I asked.
“He said he might come,” she said.
