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“You need space,” I said.
She nodded, lip quivering.
“Okay, you got it.” I kissed her forehead. “You want some food? I’ll bring you something back.”
She chewed on her lip some more, not making eye contact.
“If you-” I started.
“I know my way around this joint,” she waved dismissively, “There’s always somethin’ kickin’ around in the kitchens. Don’t sweat it.”
She reached for her purple box and her handbag, then turned and went into the bathroom with them, shutting the door.
Hearing her fumble until it locked, I stared at the door for a long moment, pondering that action before I pulled out my phone and sent Deke a text with an update. I hung around for a solid ten, fifteen minutes and the water still ran, so I made my way down the labyrinth of hallways until finding the lounge where Mick, Lou, and Axel were having a beer, prospect Rash behind the bar.
“What’ll you have, Jesse?” Rash asked.
“A beer’ll do. We got any prospects who can run out for food for me and my girl?” Testing that out, I found it rolled off the tongue pretty easily.
“Happy to do it for ya, brother,” Rash offered, grabbed his phone and pocketed it, pulling out his keys.
I sent him for pizzas, telling him to find her a gluten-free one with the works along with a regular pizza for me with the works as well. I remembered seeing all sorts of butterscotch candy wrappers in the gold foil in her car so told him to hit a corner store to get some of those, too.
***
I quietly slipped into the room in case she was asleep. She wasn’t. She was staring at me with wide eyes, curled up on her side on the double bed, dressed in a black hoodie pulled up over her head and black tights.
“Hey,” I greeted softly. “Brought you some food.” I put the pizza boxes and the bag of candy on the dresser.
“Pizza?” She looked disappointed.
“Gluten-free,” I amended.
“Oh. Thanks.”
“And candy.”
She frowned.
“Figured you liked those. Lotsa wrappers in your junker.”
She whispered, “You remembered what candy I like?” And then she shook her head like she was trying to shake something off.
I sat on the edge of the bed and tugged her hood back and off before I pushed a loose lock of hair behind her ear.
She shivered at the contact and said nothing.
“You ready to eat?” I asked. “You haven’t had anything today.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but a knock made her clamp it shut.
I answered the door, opening it no more than a few inches when I saw who it was. Skip stood there.
“Yo,” I greeted.
“Yo brother,” he replied, face hard, unhappy to see me. “Here to talk to Gia,” he said. And by his expression, he was nonverbally daring me to refuse him access to her a second time.
I looked over my shoulder.
She shook her head, eyes pleading with me while chewing on the end of her braid.
“She’s not feelin’ good. Not a good time.”
“Wanted to give her my condolences. Heard about Kailey.”
“I’ll pass that along,” I declared.
“I might stay the night, dependin’. Send her to see me, yeah? Room 402.” He turned to go.
“I won’t be sending her to your room, brah.”
He slowly turned around to face me, folding his arms over his chest. “’Scuse me? This again?”
I spun the doorknob lock to unlock it, then stepped into the hall, shutting the door.
“Yeah, this again. Because second of all… she’s grieving. She isn’t bein’ sent anywhere.”
“Second of all?”
“Yeah, second. ‘Cuz first of all, she’s not ‘all but yours’ like you tried on the other day. Far from it.”
He’d already straightened. Now he was lookin’ pissed. “None of your business who I’m fucking and not fucking. Or who I’m thinkin’ of fucking. What’s this really about, Garcia? She say somethin’?”
“It is my business if I’m the one fucking the one you’re tryin’ to fuck, and she’s made it clear she’s not interested,” I stated plainly.
His lip curled as he scoffed. “She say somethin’ about me?”
I said nothing.
“Ah. Makes sense now,” he said, “She’s made no such thing clear, but I get it, man. I get it. You’re sampling the goods while you’re on babysitting duty. Whatever. I’ll have her back when you’re done with her.”
I resisted the urge to slam my fist into his teeth – only because we’re in the same club and there’s protocol for that.
“Might not be done with her for a long time, Skippy,” I said and winked as I saw his jaw go tight. I went back in.
Despite the fact that it was a bit soon for a declaration, it’d solve this problem. It’d show her I’ve got her back. It’d take Skip out of the equation. And we’d see where it went. Yeah, it was early, but it might be time.
She was cross-legged on the edge of the bed, looking at me with an expression that let me know she heard every word.
