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I get off at one. Can you wait?
There was absolutely no way I was going to be able to stay awake until one in the morning.
Absolutely I said.
* * *
My plan totake a nap before Esme came over was smart in theory, but in practice I passed out on the couch and woke up to someone knocking on my door.
For a second I was terrified, and then I woke up enough to remember that I’d invited Esme to come over and bring drinks.
“Come in,” I said, my voice thick with sleep. I’d left my door unlocked on purpose.
“Hey,” Esme said in a soft voice, poking her head in. “Did I wake you up?”
“No,” I lied, sitting up on the couch and combing my hair with my fingers before checking to make sure I didn’t have any crusties in the corners of my eyes.
“Hey, Potato,” Esme said, giving the cat some attention before coming over to the couch and sitting down.
“I’m sorry, I should have sent a message to make sure you were awake,” she said, putting my feet in her lap.
“No, it’s fine.”
The night was warm and she had glitter on her eyelids that was a little smudged after a long shift.
Looking at her made something deep in my chest ache in the most wonderful way.
“I brought you a little something. Let me go mix it up and I’ll be right back.”
Potato followed her to supervise while I tried to get myself a little more perky.
“I figured since I kept you up, the least I can do is make up for it,” she said as she came back with two mugs, which I didn’t expect.
“Here we go. Frozen spiked cocoa.” She handed me one of the cold mugs and I sipped through the straw. The chocolate hit me first, along with the coldness. I was a little sweaty from my nap, so it was a nice change. Then a little hint of booze hit me as I swallowed.
“This is perfect,” I said, trying not to suck down the whole thing at once.
“I’m sorry I woke you,” she said, holding her drink in one hand, and rubbing my foot absentmindedly with the other.
“It’s okay. It’s worth it. How was work?”
We lightly chatted as I finished my drink. The alcohol went to my head and I started to feel sleepy and warm again.
“Do you want to stay over?” I asked through a yawn. I was absolutely done and if I didn’t go to bed now, I was going to be too tired to walk there.
“No, I should get home. But maybe this weekend? As long as you’re okay if I come a little late. Not this late. I’ve changed my hours a little, so I’ll be getting off at seven instead on Thursday nights.”
That was unexpected.
“They’re also going to hire an extra bartender for the summer, so I’ll be able to cut back a little bit more. Maybe even take off two whole days a week. I literally don’t remember the last time I had two days off in a row.”
My heart leapt at the idea of her working less, because it meant she might have more time to spend with me. It was probably selfish to want to claim those hours already, but I couldn’t help it.
“That would be great,” I said, my words slurring together from tiredness and the boozy cocoa.
“Okay, time to get you to bed. Come on.” I protested, but she leaned down and got me up, having me lean on her as she walked us both to my bedroom.
Esme pulled some pajamas out of my drawer and set them down next to me.
