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“We’ve got biscuits, some eggs that are still warm, sausage I can reheat—”
“I’m actually not hungry. But thank you, Mrs. Denver,” I said.
She quirked an eyebrow.
“You? Not hungry? You feeling okay, Rae?”
I snickered. “Just had a big breakfast at my house is all.”
She looked at me for a long time and I prayed she bought the lie. And even though I figured she knew I was lying, she didn’t call me out on it. She simply nodded her head and walked off, calling for Allison as she got to the bottom of the staircase.
I shoved my hands into my pockets, hoping to conceal their trembling.
“Allison! Rae’s here, honey!”
“Coming, Mom!”
“Thanks, Mrs. Denver. I appreciate it,” I said.
She smiled. “Anytime. You know you’re always welcome.”
I nodded. “I know.”
“And if there’s anything you ever want to talk about, just know it stays between us. Okay?”
I smiled softly. “I really appreciate that. Thank you.”
Allison came bounding down the steps with her blond hair up in a bun. She grabbed my hand and tugged me back upstairs, dragging me. Step by step. We stumbled into her room and she closed the door, and the smell of nail polish remover wafted heavily under my nose.
“I figured since we couldn't paint our nails last night, we could do it now. I mean, Michael isn’t here. But we can still do it. Right?”
I furrowed my brow. “Did you set all this out before you came down?”
She snickered. “Not a chance. I just started to change out my own nail polish when Mom yelled that you were here. I figured it was a nice coincidence.”
She flopped down onto the floor, then reached for my wrists. She dragged me with her, and together, we picked out our next nail color. She dropped her feet into my lap before she handed me the pale pink color she wanted on her toes. She’d already cleaned the nail polish off them once, leaving me a dry and alcohol-soaked canvas for which to do my shoddy work.
Which gave me some time to gather my thoughts.
“Did something happen with your mother?”
I shook my head. “No. Not at all. I mean, yes. But that’s not why I came over.”
Allison sighed. “D.J. again?”
I rolled my eyes. “When is it ever not D.J.?”
“What did he do?”
“The usual. Fighting. Mom threw something against the wall at him. Things got heated. I ended up sneaking out of my window and heading to the park last night.”
“Why in the world didn’t you come here? You could’ve stayed overnight instead of going back home after all that mess.”
I paused. “I didn’t go home until this morning.”
“Oh?”
I bit my bottom lip. “I stayed with Clint last night.”
