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She looked at me with shrewd, angry eyes. “Acceptable.”
She flipped the blanket up and gave us her back.
I flipped Francie’s back the bird, then gestured with my head for my girl to follow me.
She drooped dramatically with an eyeroll as she walked down the hall and I put an arm around her. “I’ll hold you up, baby.”
I flashed a smile.
“God, you’re amazing,” she said, “I will love you forever.”
And then she straightened and closed her eyes tight, blowing out a breath, looking like she’d just fucked up huge. Her eyes then hit my face, panicked, like that was a slip that could buy her trouble. Scare me off. Something. Whether it was just a turn of phrase, or she actually meant it, she was getting a reward for saying it.
I pinned her against the wall and laid a hot and heavy kiss on her. And then I held her face in both hands and stared into her eyes. Communicating.
She looked dazed and afraid at the same time. I hoped my expression told her I liked what I heard.
I then tugged her hand and pulled her outside where Ma and Archer were already sitting.
I pulled out a deck chair, sat, and pulled G onto my lap, kissing the side of her head.
“Breathe, baby,” I coaxed as she melted into me, tears springing forth in her pretty eyes.
Ma gazed at my girl like she was an angel. So was Arch.
“Thank you for coming, guys, I’m so, so sorry about that,” Gigi told them.
“The bar had a flood two days ago,” Arch responded.
“Fuck,” I muttered. “I wouldn’t have let you guys come if I’d known that. Why didn’t you say?”
“It’s closed for probably two weeks while the repairs are happening, so it wasn’t a problem,” Ma answered. “You’ve really got your hands full here, Gia. So, we’re gonna stay and help you out.”
Gigi straightened in my arms. “Huh?”
“I’ll call Delia, ask her to give you guys a room at the club,” I said, lighting a smoke.
“Yeah?” Ma asked. “She’ll do that? It’d be nice not to have to pay for a motel.”
”’Course she would,” Arch piped up. “Delia’s a peach. Rude and me are friends, go way back. But we can afford a motel.”
“I know we can,” Ma rolled her eyes, “But if we don’t have to pay for one, why would we? Extra money for us to put toward the RV.”
“RV?” I asked.
“Yeah. I don’t camp. That sad excuse for a camper he’s tryin’ to get me to sleep in? No. Won’t cut it. If he wants to camp, we are doin’ it in style. We’re saving up for an RV. A nice one. Saving a coupla hundred bucks on hotel rooms this week, that’ll go in the RV fund.”
Arch smiled big. “What my lady wants, she gets.”
“Damn straight. Now, we can stay the week and help out. You need to go back to Aberdeen, JJ, go ahead. We’ll take care of your girl and her aunt. Come back in a week and we’ll go back. Maybe by then, she’ll be feeling a little better.”
“Oh no,” Gigi breathed. “You guys are so sweet. I can’t let you-”
“Family,” Ma answered.
“I’m-” Gigi tried to protest.
“Family,” Ma repeated.
“You won’t win this argument,” I told my girl softly.
She sank deeper into me. “Thank you, Fern. Archer.”
“Our pleasure, darlin’,” Arch said. “Before Jesse heads out, you two go on out and have yourselves a few hours to yourselves. Go out for a nice meal or somethin’. We’ve got things here.”
“Oh no, she-” Gigi started, but stopped abruptly when Ma reached across the table and held out her hand.
Gigi stared at it, so Ma wiggled her fingers until my girl reached out and took her hand.
“Trust me, sweetie.”
Gigi nodded. “Maybe an hour.”
“Good girl. Go on, you two,” Ma insisted.
“She just had the anti-nausea ginger stuff. When I can convince her to take it, she usually sleeps for a little. But if she wakes up to strangers in her house, she’s gonna lose it.”
“I’m her new nurse. She’ll be fine. Arch, run to Walmart and buy me a cheap pair of scrubs.”
I laughed.
“You’re serious?” Arch asked.
“When am I not serious?” Ma volleyed.
“That sounds familiar,” Gigi muttered.
I laughed again.
She looked into my eyes. “God, you’re handsome when you laugh.”
I stopped laughing.
“You’re handsome all the time, but I wish I were funnier, so I could make you laugh all the time. Need my purse and a quick tinkle. One second.”
She got off my lap and slipped inside.
I leaned over and kissed my mother’s cheek. “Thank you, Ma,” I whispered.
Ma looked into my eyes. “You need to get back and no way are we leaving our girl alone with that woman. But this could be a long haul, my boy.”
“Yeah,” I muttered.
“Any insurance to get her a nurse?”
“Dunno. See what I can find out from G.”
