Total pages in book: 206
Estimated words: 192184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 961(@200wpm)___ 769(@250wpm)___ 641(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 192184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 961(@200wpm)___ 769(@250wpm)___ 641(@300wpm)
She stopped shaking and wiped her eyes with the sleeves of her bathrobe. She looked up at me for a second and then looked away, pain on her face, her eyes red. I felt like I’d been punched in the gut. I tipped her chin up so she’d have no choice but to look at me and then I kissed her lips softly. “I have to go out for just a while today and then we’ll go do something, okay?” I tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.
She shook her head, and her voice was timid, small. “I know you’re here on business, not to entertain me. Maybe you should’ve left me back at your place.” She still wasn’t looking me in the eye.
“Our place. And no, I want you here.” I let out a sigh and tucked her head under my chin and rocked her for a minute. Then I got up, taking her hand to lead her back to the sofa. I pulled her on top of me so that she was lying on me with her head on my chest. I wrapped my arms around her. She was so warm. My head was fucking pounding so hard.
“I need to close my eyes for a few minutes, Tia. Stay with me?”
She didn’t answer but she didn’t try to move away. I closed my eyes.
I could reach the remote on the coffee table, thankfully, and found something else to watch on TV once I heard his breathing even out. He had me on top of him and he was snoring. His arms were tight around me and I wasn’t going anywhere without waking him, so I just made myself comfortable and watched TV with my head on his chest until he woke up a little over two hours later to the sound of his cell phone ringing.
So much for breakfast. I tried not to think about what’d happened. I didn’t want to think about that temper and what it might mean for my life going forward. I didn’t want to think about it, so I just let it feel good to be in his arms. I let him comfort me with his arms around me, which was beyond bizarre because those same arms had lifted me up by my bathrobe a little while ago and were attached to a man who was hollering right in my face. I closed my eyes and focused on the sound of his heartbeat while I let myself get caught up in The Wizard of Oz. I’d never get sick of this movie. Ever.
He didn’t reach for the ringing phone, though. He ran his hands up and down under my robe, then gripping my rear end. Bile rose in my throat. Sex was the last thing on my mind right now. His phone started to ring again and at that same moment there was knocking on the adjoining door. We got to our feet. He grabbed his phone and I decided to go into the bathroom, get a shower, and get dressed.
I didn’t know what was on the menu for plans today, so I wore a pair of dressy cream-colored walking shorts, a frilly tan peasant blouse, and sandals. I put make-up on.
I couldn’t find my tweezers to clean up my eyebrows, which were looking a wee bit unruly, in my train case so I started to go through my purse, seeking the small make-up bag that Sarah had put together for me when we were in Mexico. I’d used it at the farm, too, and I knew there was a manicure kit in there with tweezers. I rifled through it until I found the kit and my eye caught something shimmery. It was Tommy’s silver chain with the crucifix. I lifted it out and looked at it. Then I remembered Tommy said I could call to have the spa people come up. Maybe I’d do that today while he was out and get my eyebrows and girlie bits done.
He came into the Hers bathroom, just walked right in. He grabbed his toothbrush from my train case and then his eyes landed on the necklace in my hand. He made a face I couldn’t quite read.
“Um, I could’ve been doing something embarrassing in here,” I said.
He rolled his eyes at me, but he didn’t answer as he squeezed toothpaste onto his brush and started on his teeth.
“Next time I guess I’ll lock it,” I mumbled.
His eyes narrowed and he spat toothpaste in the sink. “Don’t ever try to fucking lock me out of anywhere.”
This made me jolt back. Loaded silence filled the space as he looked at my reflection in the mirror, then he put the toothbrush back in his mouth and resumed. His eyes were on the chain in my hand.
“I, uh, Mexico,” I said, motioning to the case it had been in.