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“Knock, knock, Sleeping Beauty. Rise and shine!” There was humor in Cal’s voice and I rolled my eyes. Who in the hell was so chipper this early in the morning, and after what happened last night?
I yanked open the door to tell Cal as much, but he was gone. Disappeared like a figment of my imagination.
“Weird.” I found my shoes and did one more quick search for a pre-breakfast fix, letting disappointment wash over me before putting on my big girl panties and facing the firing squad.
Over pancakes.
“Ah, she lives!” Cal flashed a playful smile my way the moment I entered the small, though still well-appointed kitchen.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m alive. Barely.” The scent of coffee was in the air, causing my nausea a brief return, but somehow, I managed to swallow it down. “I don’t smell any pancakes.”
His lips quirked into an amused grin and I looked away, refusing to be charmed by whatever this breakfast meeting was meant to be.
“That’s because I haven’t cooked them yet. Pancakes cook quickly, hence the wake-up call.” I had a feeling his wording was chosen more carefully than Cal would ever let on, so I shrugged, feigning ignorance and poured a big mug of black coffee. “Sugar and cream are on the counter.”
“Black is good, thanks.” My gaze connected with his in a tense moment that wasn’t quite romantic or sexual in nature, but it was something. “So. What’s up?”
“Impatient. We’re gonna have to work on that.”
I grunted in response. My eyes glued to Cal as he grabbed ingredients from a nearby pantry as well as the stainless steel fridge with double doors. He reached for a large mixing bowl, showing off just the barest hint of midsection, revealing he was more than a sedentary computer geek.
“Seriously, Cal?” My patience was painfully thin, or maybe it was just the general feeling of unease and overall sense of blah that had me feeling testy.
“Not a morning person. Got it. I’ll put it on the list of things to know about my new houseguest.”
Houseguest. “You mean Sadie’s houseguest.”
Cal shook his head and looked up from the bowl, showing off his muscular forearms dusted in reddish gold hair while he whisked the pancake batter. “Nope. I mean my guest, as in you’ll stay here. With me.”
I gasped and immediately started to shake my head. “That’s not a good—”
“It’s not a good idea, you’re right. It’s a great idea. You can stay here and get clean,” he emphasized the last two words unnecessarily.
It sounded good. So far. In theory. “What’s the catch?”
His red brows dipped in confusion. “You’re far too naïve to be so suspicious, Bonnie.” At my offended look, he let out an amused bark of laughter. “Fine. The catch is that you get and stay clean. I’ll keep you safe and taken care of while you focus on sobriety. And finding a way to use your degree that doesn’t rely on your folks’ church connections.”
I snorted a laugh and shook my head. “Why not just tell me that I need to catch a shooting star? It’s about the same effect. No job. No home. Nada.”
I couldn’t stand his sympathetic look and turned away, finding no answers in my almost empty coffee cup. It made me feel like he was pitying me, like I was some damn charity case. Which I totally was.
“I don’t want a shooting star, Bonnie. I want you to get your shit together. Start living the life that stuck up girl I met a few months ago couldn’t stop talking about.”
I sucked in a breath, outrage seeping from my pores. “How dare you! You don’t know a thing about my life or what I’ve gone through.”
“Not specifically, no.” Cal’s words came out slow and even like he didn’t really care as much as he pretended to. “But I do know you’re not the first child to be disappointed by a parent. Or the only person with a nasty habit that you can’t shake.”
“I could…if I were so inclined.” I wasn’t a junkie or a tweaker as Virgil called them. I was just going through a tough time and the pills, well, they made things a little less harsh. “Right now, I need the extra help.”
Cal poured the batter onto a sizzling griddle before he looked at me.
“No, you don’t. You think it’s temporary because you can’t see it from this side. If you could, you’d see how far gone you already are.”
I bristled from the back of my neck to my toes. “That’s crap and you know it. That didn’t work when my parents tried it, and it won’t work now.”
I might be a little naïve but there was no way I was an addict.
“Really? Then tell me how you felt when you woke up this morning? A little nauseous? Incredibly hot or cold, maybe? How about muscle aches or vomiting? Those are the biggies, but maybe you had other symptoms?”
