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I looked up to find Carly there, holding a tray of food.
“Carly. I thought you went home sick after getting the same stomach bug Sarah had?”
She raised an eyebrow. “Stomach bug? No. Mr. Lee sent Sarah home early yesterday for some reason. I’ve been here the whole time.” She walked over to me and narrowed her eyes. “You have mustard in your ear.”
“Yeah. I know.”
“Okay, well, as long as you know. I’ll see you later. Gotta get back to the bar and grill.”
She hurried away, and I took off, too, to get to the bottom of the issue at hand. “Mr. Lee!” I shouted. Sitting at the front desk, he was relaxed as ever with his feet propped on the countertop.
“Oh hey, Hailee. Ready to take over again?”
“You tricked me!”
One thing about Mr. Lee was that he had no poker face. He lied like a three-year-old who stole an extra cookie. “Who me? I would never lie! What have I lied about? I haven’t lied!”
“I just ran into Carly, and she told me Sarah wasn’t even sick the other day, but that you sent her home.”
“Oh.” He sat up straighter. “Those lies.”
“Mr. Lee!”
“What? What?!” He tossed his hands up in surrender. “I’m an old man. You can’t yell at an old man.”
“What exactly is going on? Why have you lied about these things?”
“I told her you were too smart. I told her you’d figure it out.”
“Figure what out? Who’s her?”
“Laurie, Aiden’s mother.”
“What does she have to do with this?”
Mr. Lee waved his hand in a dismissive fashion. “You know mothers. They are always sticking their noses in their children’s business. She wanted you and Aiden to make up. To rekindle some old flames. To force you into proximity.” He sighed and swooned, placing his hands against his cheeks. “It’s kind of romantic if you think about it. But then again, what do I know? I’m just an old man. I’m going to go take a nap.” He stood and started walking away but paused and turned back to me. “You glow different, you know.”
“What?”
“For years, you’ve walked around unassuming. You keep your head down in your books and don’t really show many emotions. I know you’re happy, but at the same time, your aura feels muted. Yet when he walks into the room… you glow different. You glow bright. You know how I can spot it in you?”
“How?”
“Because it’s the same glow I used to get whenever I was around my late wife. It didn’t matter if I was happy with her or pissed off at her. Whatever I was feeling showcased through my glow whenever she was around me. Do you know why? Because she made me feel alive. Life is short. So many people are walking around like zombies. Most people’s souls are dead as they move through life. But when you find that person who makes youfeel? When you find someone who makes you glow? Stay around them. Anyone who makes you feel alive in a dark, lonely world is worth fighting for.”
After work,I found myself knocking on the Walters’s front door. When Laurie answered, she gave me the biggest smile. “Hailee. What a lovely surprise. What are you doing here?”
“Don’t play innocent, Laurie. I just left work, and Mr. Lee told me everything.”
Her sweet, sweet smile dropped a little as guilt filled her brown eyes. She then stepped to the side and gestured toward her living room. “Samuel is on his way home from Chicago. Do you want to come in for a glass of wine?”
I walked into their house, and it felt so odd. Walking through their hallways felt like a time capsule. I couldn’t help but smile when I saw pictures of Aiden and me still hanging in their living room.
“Take a seat. Are you into red wine or white?” Laurie called out from the kitchen.
“White, please.”
“Coming right up.”
