“Yeah, it was great,” I said.
Good. Great. What were we even talking about? I could feel the presence of my mother like a sentry in my periphery. I’d spent so much time around Mari lately, but this was the first actual opportunity since our kiss to have a conversation that wasn’t in a fevered haze, and I was back to not knowing how to articulate any thoughts.
“I should probably get back home. You just got back and I hate to ask you to go out again?—”
“Oh no, you’re staying for dinner. Leo is cooking,” Janice said, interrupting Mari.
I didn’t show how happy I was at the demand. Instead, I shrugged sheepishly.
Mari tried to protest, but Janice held up a finger. “Pishposh. You can stay one more night. Just in case this bug hasn’t quit you yet.”
Mari smiled at the ground. “Thank you.”
“Why don’t we relax while he gets started,” Janice said. “I can fill you in on the drama you missed Saturday.”
I walked toward the kitchen, even though I was exhausted. I didn’t mind throwing a quick dinner together. I glanced back to where Janice and Mari sat on the couch in the lamplight. Mari threw her head back and cackled.
“I bet the PTA moms loved that,” Mari said as Janice grinned.
A warmth spread through me at the sight of Mari here, comfortable and laughing. It would be so easy to wish for a life like this.
CHAPTER 20
MARI
Dinner was a relaxed affair consisting of tomato soup and the best grilled cheese I’d ever had. Comfort food could cure the world.
The three of us chatted easily about the happenings around town and about Cath. I updated them on the lack of updates about my car, though Cletus suspected it was likely to be totaled. I couldn’t even comprehend what that would mean for the next few months of hectic holiday scheduling. Janice gave me in-depth details about Devlin’s impressive house and studio layout. I was anxious to ask more about Leo’s former band and if there was any trouble. Poor Leo put in a thought here and there but tried to hide several yawns.
After dinner, Janice insisted he call it an early night, and the two of us quickly cleaned up the kitchen. Janice gave me a hug good night, and I yearned to linger in her arms. No matter how old you are, having a mother’s embrace soothed. Being here, I was in a home, not just sleeping in a cold, empty apartment. There wouldn’t be anybody missing me at my place. There wasn’t anybody worrying about where I was. It felttoogood to be here. I could easily slip into a life that wasn’t mine. And where would that leave me after Leo wasn’t forced to be a part of my life?
Janice went to bed, and I tried to sleep but only stared at the ceiling for hours. After sleeping since Saturday, my body was restless, and my mind raced with everything Clara and Janice had told me about Leo. How could I possibly express my gratitude to him and what he’d done for me and my students? I gave up trying to sleep a little after midnight. I left the guest bedroom in search of a book in hopes it might lull me into a few minutes of sleep.
I started as I rounded into the kitchen to find Leo in his boxers, chugging a glass of water by the sink. He hadn’t noticed me yet, and I worried I might startle him, so I waited until he set the glass down to make my presence known. His hair was mussed with sleep, and his muscular, long limbs were on full display. His Adam’s apple worked as he swallowed his last sip with a sigh. Apparently, he wasn’t the only thirsty one.
I softly cleared my throat, and he spun toward me. “Didn’t mean to startle you,” I said softly, stepping closer. Janice’s room was upstairs, but the house was so still that talking any louder would have felt like shouting.
“Did I wake you?” he asked. “I’ve been accused of ‘clomping like a horse’ when I come down the stairs.”
I shook my head. “No. I was up already. I’ve hit my sleep quota for the year.”
He nodded, hand moving to his hair, making it stand up even more wildly, before dropping it again.
“Thank you for housing me,” I said. “And making sure I didn’t die.” I started counting off my fingers. “And helping Cath today. And apparently helping at the Fall Festival. I don’t even know where to start with all that.”
“It wasn’t a big deal.”
“It’s a big deal to me. Clara told me all that you did when she came over earlier. I can’t believe you did all that.”
“It wasn’t really a choice any more than blinking or breathing. I just thought about what you needed and moved,” he said simply. As though this were a completely normal thing to confess. People didn’t act on my behalf. They certainly didn’t do it naturally. If my bidding was to be done at all, it required brute force.
I held his gaze as he spoke. My heart began to beat faster.
“I would have been lost without you. Everybody would have,” I said.
“It would have been fine.” He leaned back on the counter, gripping the top. The tendons of his forearms flexed.
“Thank you.” I wanted to ask why he’d cared so much to help when he hated being in Green Valley, but the air was too heavy to find the words.
