My eyes fly to the single dick-shaped cactus on the windowsill.
“And you couldn’t ask Joan?”
“On tour in the Balkans.”
“Your nephew Finn? He lives down the hallway you said.”
“Organizes fetish parties in my bedroom. No spare key for him.”
My fingers pinch the bridge of my nose. What a mess.
“Okay, I get it. You still need to tie up some loose ends.”
He sighs in relief, planting a grateful kiss to my mouth.
“Thanks, love. And again, I’m really sorry. Can you stay open-minded for the next couple of days, just in case?”
Those sapphire eyes work their spell on me, over and over. Damn it, he knows it too. I curse myself as my head nods yes.
“Define ‘open-minded’ for me.”
“I don’t know. Expect the unexpected. Somehow I always end up in weird shit and piss people off. I really don’t want that with you.”
The tension gathers in his shoulders. For a moment, I see the same insecure Tom I met that first day at Arcadia.
He needs my support. He needs to know things are different. More importantly, he’s different. That’s what breaks the cycle.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’m not going to be mad about things that happened before you came to Avalon. You’re here to start fresh, right?”
The nod he gives is small, the attempt at a smile even smaller.
“And I know exactly who you are. You’re my wild, beautiful vortex who leaves a trail of destruction and blurts things out without thinking.”
I jab my finger into his chest. “But don’t you ever lump me in with your last fling again, especially not with ‘kitty.’”
He chuckles, leaning back on the black Chesterfield. I would love to make that couch ours right now, if only the squatter wasn’t still around.
“I’m going to check if Kimmy has a place to stay, if I need to give her a hand with that.”
I nod, feeling very open-minded as I say, “It’s the right thing to do.”
Tom leaves the room. I walk to the piano and let my finger trace a line through the dust.
How long has it been? Two months? No one’s touched it since.
I lift the fallboard and stare at the black-and-white keys. My finger finds the E. Then D sharp. Back to E, back to D sharp. I’d done everything I could to bury it, but it’s hardwired into me. It’s not going anywhere.
I sit down and start again. Same keys, same pace. Over and over.
I continue. My right hand glides over the keys.Für Elise.There was a time I could play the whole piece blind, both hands. I had to. Failing was never an option.
A floorboard creaks.
“Holy—”
I flinch, fingers freezing on the keys. Tom’s hand lands on my shoulder.
“Go on,” he murmurs.
