His brows pull together as he frowns. “I mean you’re tall, but you’re not an MMA fighter. What the fuck does your size have to do withanything?”
“That’s a good question.” I look down at the sheet covering his abs. “I get how important money is to people like David Dorrit and all his satanic offspring, but… someone sat down and planned my murder. I can’t imagine actually wanting someone to die. I can’t imagine thinking so little of someone that I think their death wouldn’t matter or that their death is deserved.” Saying those words out loud does the trick. I feel that snag in my chest finally give and tears just running down mycheeks.
Silas puts down his own coffee and opens his arms for me. “Come here.” I slide over and find myself clinging tohim.
“I worked so hard on that case. I worked so fucking hard for that piece of shit and his piece of shit daughter. And this is the thanks I get. I don’t know how I goback.”
“Back to work?” heasks.
I nod and wipe my face. “I had a plan. I was going to bust my ass and one day, probably at a different firm ’cause I really hate Murrell a lot, I was going to make partner. But like, how the hell do I do that if one of my own clients tries to kill me first? I don’t know what I’m doing.” A hiccup slips out of me and I cry even harder. My eyes shut tight when I feel his lips brush myforehead.
“I’m not using you,” I tell him. “I’m not using you to run away fromthis.”
“I didn’t think that you were. Running comes with a lot more lying. And you didn’t even want to come here in the first place,” hesays.
“That’s true, but I’m glad that Idid.”
“I don’t want you toleave.”
I almost tell him that I don’t want to leave either, but I keep that to myself. We both know that I can’tstay.
* * *
Icrymyself out and even though we’ve both had a half cup of pretty strong coffee, we fall back asleep for a few hours. I wake up to the sounds of dogs barking. A second later there’s a loud knock on the frontdoor.
“Lemme get that,” Silas says as he gently nudges me off his chest. I watch him as he throws on a pair of basketball shorts and a t-shirt. “That’s our food.” I curl back in the sheets and wait for him to come back, but the waiting game doesn’t last long. I hear him call myname.
“Ebie!”
“Yeah?”
“Can you put on pants? Mason wants to look at you for aminute.”
“Eh! Fuck off man,” I hear Masonsay.
“I’ll be right out,” I call back. I make myself presentable and head down the hallway. Honeycrisp follows me. I find Mason and Silas standing in the front doorway. Hank and Morty are sniffing around the huge bag of food in Silas’s hand. I spot Joe Namath in the dining room. He looks dead until his tail startsmoving.
“Hi Mason,” I say with a teasing smile. He immediately turns bright red and starts scratching the back of his head under his Yankeeshat.
“See, she’s still here,” Silas says. “I didn’t scare heroff.”
“Now, I never said you did. I just wanted to say hello and give Ebie here a littlewarning.”
“Warning aboutwhat?”
“I got an email from my aunt this morning—his mum. She told me the three of you have a FaceTime date this afternoon. She's waiting for this one to callher.”
My head whips in Silas’s direction. “Is thatright?”
“She did mention thatyesterday.”
“Best-a-luck.” Mason raises two fingers to the corner of his hat and backs out the frontdoor.
I turn back to Silas. “Should I be concerned? I've never had to talk to a mombefore.”
“I've never had a girlfriend talk to my mom so I guess we’ll find out together.” He hands me the bag of food and ushers me toward the TV room. “Let’s just call her first and then we can discuss how much fun it is to lie to my parents while weeat.”
“I look like shit right now. This is not FaceTime with anyone presentable,” I say, motioning to my lack of makeup and my silk scarf wrappedhair.
