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“I’ve recently formed a case of paranoia, but I’m starting to think this animal has it out for us,” I say. “Do you believe hamsters are capable of evil?”
“Can you grab the banister?” he asks, dodging the question. So maybe I’m not the only one who’s a little bit scared of Pumpkin. “I’ll pick him up.”
I do as he asks, and he does as he said he would. Except the little rodent sinks its teeth into his hand. I see it happening, and I also see what happens next—Danny’s surprised enough that he trips over his own feet and goes down the four steps to the bottom. He catches his fall with one of his hands, flat on the ground, but the other’s holding Pumpkin, and despite everything Pumpkin has done to us, Danny is much too nice to smoosh him.
“Oh my God,” I shriek. “Are you okay?”
There’s no question—I have to go to him. I have no further thoughts about dignity as I lower down onto my butt, the crutches slung over my lap, and descend the rest of the way on my ass.
Panic pounds through me when I see the look on Danny’s face—his eyes are cinched shut, and there are lines at the corners of his mouth.
“Did you break yourself?” I blurt as I plop down beside him with zero grace.
“No,” he says, his body heaving, and that’s when I realize…
“You’re laughing?”
He opens his eyes, and they’re glassy with unshed tears.
“Can’t…stop,” he says through gusts of laughter. The hamster looks almost tranquil in his other hand, but maybe that’s because he gets his kicks tormenting people, and we’ve given him plenty of opportunity.
I start laughing too as he sits up. Because it’s funny, the two of us being nearly incapacitated because of a hamster. Me going down the stairs on my butt like I’m a little kid.
I hold my hand out for Pumpkin, but Danny shakes his head.
“Don’t be a martyr,” I say. “You need to check out your wrist. Do you think it’s broken?”
“Want a little company?” he asks, giving my pink cast a pointed look.
“Nah, I’d worry about us being too matchy-matchy. You’d have to get yellow or something. Say, what’s your favorite color?”
“Orange.”
I purse my lips. “Orange and pink. I think I like that.”
“I almost regret that it’s not broken,” he says, still ignoring my outstretched hand.
Inspiration strikes, and I lean against the wall for support and then pull off my flower-patterned shoulder bag. “Put him in there.”
“Won’t you need your…” he trails off, eyeing the bag with wariness. “I have no idea what women carry in those things.”
“A wallet, a phone, and a ton of shit I don’t need.” I take out the things I do need and stuff them into my coat pockets. Then I hand the bag over, and Danny dumps Pumpkin in before zipping it up. He gives me the nod of a co-conspirator, and when I hand him the bag, he takes it without any passive aggressive-murmuring about holding something with flowers on it.
I’ll bet Daphne didn’t appreciate that about him.
It’s a dumb thought, and I push it down. Clearing my throat, I say, “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
We slowly make our way down to the lobby. When we reach it, I can see Shauna and Delia waiting for me on the other side of the glass door, Delia eyeing the elevator at the end of the hall with suspicion it definitely deserves.
“Well,” Danny says.
“Well,” I say. “Enjoy the purse, it’s treated me well. Obviously I’ll have to burn it after you drop off our wily charge.”
“Obviously.” He nods toward my sister and our friend, then turns from me. I watch, my mouth slightly parted, as he makes his way across the lobby in a few strides with those long legs and stops in front of the fucking elevator.
He grins at me before he steps onto it, as if to say, here I am again, rolling the dice.
