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"Hey, Susan. Is everything alright? I'm not scheduled for another call with Bailey until Monday."
"Hi, Daniel. I'm not sure, but I don't feel good about it."
"What the hell does that mean? Is Bailey okay?"
"Honestly, I don't know. Let me start from the beginning. Two nights ago, I got deathly sick. I thought I had food poisoning, but it got so bad my boyfriend took me to the hospital. It turns out I had disulfiram in my system."
"What's that?"
"A drug given to alcoholics to make them extremely ill when they drink. I don't know anyone who uses it."
"What does this have to do with Bailey?"
"I had to call out for two nights, and because we are short staffed, there was a temp nurse on duty. Her notes said Bailey had a male visitor who stayed close to an hour. I found this odd since you're her only visitor.”
My stomach churns with growing unease. Running my hand down my face, I pause. “Wait. Could it have been my partner, Kevin? Or another artist from the shop?”
“Daniel—” She pauses for a long time and my stomach sinks.
“What is it, Susan?”
When she finally speaks, her voice is softer than before. “He signed in as you.”
My breath leaves my body in a sharp hiss. "What the fuck? How did he get past security?"
"I have no idea. Do you think this might have something to do with the guys who shot Bailey?" she asks.
"I don't know anymore. It seems like anything's possible. I'll be in town to sort some details out with the lawyers. In the meantime, please do not allow her any more visitors. I'll keep in touch."
No sooner do I end the call than Andrea climbs back into the R.V. Her smile falls as she scans my face. "Everything okay?".
I fight the tears back; I do not need to put anything else on Andrea. "Yeah, everything's fine. Just…Um... my neighbor calling to let me know they are fixing the broken plumbing in my apartment."
"Oh. Okay." She doesn't believe a damn word I'm saying. And why should she? Every word coming out of my mouth is a lie. The last thing I want to do is lie to anyone, especially a woman I'm starting to like. "I'm just gonna grab something to drink, and I'll let you finish." Her voice cracks as she finishes her sentence.
Fuck. I've made her upset. Again. "Andrea." I step between her and the fridge.
"Don't." She pushes me back. "Please, just don't. I was lied to long enough in my marriage to sense someone giving me a line of bullshit a mile away. So, Daniel or Rome, whatever the fuck your name is, just leave me alone because I will never let a man make a fool out of me again."
"You're right. I shouldn't have lied. I am not hiding anything from you. I'm surprised you haven't just Googled me to find out my story."
"I was hoping you'd tell me, so I didn't have to," she says with a deep sigh.
"I want to.” I scrub my hand through my short hair. “I'm afraid you'll run once I do, and I'll never see you again."
"Is it that bad?" Her forehead wrinkles with concern.
"No. Maybe. I don't know."
With a quick knock, the door swings open before Andrea can even answer. "Mom, can I lay down in here? It's too noisy out there."
"I should make you suffer, but Daniel, here, says that's not very nice of me. So, I guess. But don't think this is over. We are having a long conversation about your behavior, young lady."
"Thanks, Daniel. And thanks for watching out for me last night. I'm not sure what that Lucky guy did to piss you off, but I heard you knocked his ass out."
"No problem. I had to do the same thing last weekend."
"To Lucky?" Madison asks and I nod. "Ew. Does he pick up underaged girls in every city?"
