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“Dante,” she called miserably. “Dante!”
“I’m here, gorgeous girl.”
She continued to hug the toilet as I stepped inside and ran my hand over her head, smoothing her hair back from her face. She flinched with fright, and I realised that her aids weren’t in, and she couldn’t hear me. I hurriedly rushed to the bedroom, grabbed them from her nightstand, and returned to the bathroom. I put her devices in her ears, switched them on, and waited.
“What,” she heaved, “happened?”
“Ye joined Knit Happens … remember?”
“No,” she said, then retched. “Oh, Dante. Me stomach!”
I hunkered down next to her and rubbed her back, forcing myself to ignore the smell. I was going to redden Lilly’s arse when I got me hands on the little gremlin. Whatever she made Ina drink smelled putrid when it came back up. We spent twenty or so minutes in the bathroom. She vomited so much that it momentarily worried me, but when it suddenly stopped, I sent up a prayer of thanks.
“Come on,” I urged. “Back to bed, sweetheart.”
“But work—”
It was nearly four in the afternoon, so work at the garage was nearly over.
“I called me da this mornin’. He gave us the day off.”
Ina suddenly sniffled as we slowly walked towards her bedroom.
“Don’t cry, love.”
“I don’t like this,” she whimpered. “I feel so sick, and I’m never ever drinkin’ again. I don’t care if God Himself asks me to. I’m not doin’ it again. I swear.”
I believed her.
“I know ye won’t.” I kissed her head.
“How do people do this every weekend?”
I withheld from telling her that people didn’t drink Lilly’s devil’s brew every weekend. Instead, I offered her words of reassurance. “This will pass, love.”
“When?” she croaked. “I feel like I’m dyin’. Me stomach hurts worse than me head, and me whole body aches.”
I didn’t doubt it, not when it came to that fucking brew. You’d need a gut of steel to handle it.
“I’m so tired.”
I didn’t mention that she had slept for over eighteen hours since I got her home the night before. She woke up a few times during the night, still off her face drunk and hell-bent on trying to have sex with me, but each time, I persuaded her to go back to sleep until she finally settled and stayed knocked out until just now. I knew she needed another night of rest before her system flushed the devil’s brew out.
“Dante,” she rasped as I helped her settle into her bed. “Don’t leave me alone.”
“I’m not goin’ anywhere, kid,” I assured her. “Sleep.”
I removed her aids, put them on the nightstand, and settled into her bed. I was only wearing my boxer briefs, so I didn’t have to strip. I wasn’t tired even though I had hardly slept the night before, but as seconds turned into minutes, I became drowsy and dozed off. When I opened my eyes next, the sun was a little lower in the sky. A glance at the clock told me it was ten past seven. I carefully sat up, untangling Ina from my body, and slipped from her bed.
I rubbed my eyes as I walked out of the bedroom, grabbed Ina’s keys, then quietly slipped from her apartment to mine so I could shower and put on a change of clothes. I had been meaning to do it all day, but I was scared Ina would wake up and need me. I ate some food and grabbed my charged phone before I returned to her apartment.
I checked in on her and found her snoring, then went into the bathroom and got to work cleaning and airing out the room. Afterwards, when I was relaxing in the sitting room, my phone rang. When I saw who was calling, I growled when I answered it.
“How’s she doin’, big lad?”
“Hungover to hell,” I hissed. “She’s gonna be sick until tomorrow, Lilly Doherty.”
“Poor lamb.” Lilly clicked her tongue. “She really is a lightweight. I even made the light version of the brew for her.”
A fucking light version?
“You’re tellin’ me there’s a stronger concoction of that devil’s brew?”
“Of course.”
“Christ on the cross,” I grumbled. “Is it legal?”
“I don’t understand the question.”
That was an absolute no.
“Listen, I don’t have all day to talk, sunshine,” Lilly continued. “I’ve a man fifteen years me junior comin’ over for a dirty romp. I just wanted to check in on her.”
I could barely contain a heave. “Lilly.”
She ignored me.
“Tell Ina that next Thursday is a regular night. No more blood oaths, initiations, signatures, or tattoos are required.” Lilly snorted. “Still can’t believe she agreed to get the tattoo. The little chickenshit nearly cried.”
I clenched my free hand into a fist. “Ye’d make the Devil pray for absolution, woman.”
“Don’t I know it, big balls.”
Her laughter was cut short when she hung up on me, and I could barely contain my own huff of laughter.
