“Good. I can’t wait to spoil you a little bit. It’ll be nice to have you back home. Things haven’t been the same since you left.” She fell silent on the other end of the phone.
“Is everything all right? Is Dad still having those chest pains?” Eli tensed, waiting for her answer. His mother had mentioned his father having chest pains on his last call and the thought of it had never been far from his mind.
His father had always been larger-than-life. This was the man who’d taught him how to ride his bike and given him the facts about the birds and the bees. The thought of anything happening to his dad made him feel ice-cold all over. Mark Alexander represented everything that held his family together. If there was something wrong, he wanted to know about it.
“No, it’s nothing like that. We just miss you. I’m getting sentimental in my old age, that’s all.”
“You don’t look any older than you did when we were kids, and you know it,” he said, relieved when she laughed. He hated to hear her sound so depressed. His mom had always been the cheerful sort. It went against the natural order of things for her to sound so down.
“I just wish you were here already,” Julia continued. “I’ve been worried about you. Working so hard, sleeping so little. I know you want to succeed and I’m so proud of you. But I also want more for you than just work. You’re letting life pass you by, and I think it’s time you face things head-on.”
Eli gripped the edge of his cell phone as her words sank in. “There’s nothing to face. I just need a vacation, that’s all.”
“Maybe you can lie to yourself but not to your mother. I don’t know what sent you running all those years ago, but whatever it was cost me too. It made me lose my son. I think it’s time I got him back.”
An unexpected rush of emotion stole his voice, thickening his throat like he’d just swallowed a giant fist. He pushed back his shirtsleeve and stared at the tattoo he hated with a passion, a small number seven surrounded by several concentric circles.
In the beginning there was rarely a day that went by when he didn’t think about the things he’d done. His monumental mistakes. Then gradually he’d been able to go days, then weeks, and then finally months without flashbacks. He’d finally stopped looking over his shoulder every few steps, finally trusted someone else enough to invite them into his home.
His mother had no idea what he’d really been doing while he was “traveling the world.” Worse, she had no idea that something he’d witnessed happening to her had been the catalyst to send him into his personal hell in the first place.
“Elliott Alexander, are you listening to me?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he answered automatically. He had to get this under control. His mother sounded worried, and when she was worried, she got crazy ideas like coming to visit him. He adored his mother, but he couldn’t have her here while he was in this mood.
“I’m doing fine, Mom. Seriously, I’ll be home next week. Time will fly and before you know it, I’ll be back under your feet again.”
She sighed and Eli knew he might have avoided the lecture for now, but she’d ambush him with it later.
KAY UNWRAPPED HER sandwich and took a bite as she opened her e-mail. She glanced around to make sure Nick was still ensconced in his office before pulling up the photo Ridley had sent her from Christmas. It was a picture of her and Eli, standing under the mistletoe. It must have been taken right after he’d kissed her. The look on his face was a mixture of lust and longing.
If Ridley hadn’t sent her the picture, she’d never have believed he could look like that.
After his abrupt departure following their kiss, she’d been through a gamut of emotions: hurt, embarrassment, despair, and finally anger.
She’d been pissed.
But ever since seeing the photo, her emotions had been in a blender. Everything around her was the same, but it was like viewing the world through tinted glass. Things took on new meaning through the lens of possibility.
The positive of the situation was the anger had finally pushed her to start making changes. She’d resolved to finally stand up to her mother, to share her music, and finally to get out more and start dating again. But if there was even a chance that Eli might want her, it made everything else fade into the background.
Her cell phone buzzed against the desk, making a clattering sound as it bumped around on the hard surface. Kay dropped her sandwich in her haste to pick it up.
“Oh, shoot.”
“What happened?” Her best friend, Sasha, sounded like she had a mouthful as well. She called Kaylee on her lunch break most
days, so she probably did.
“I just dropped my sandwich. It landed mainly on my lunch bag though, so I think it’s okay.”
A soft harrumph came over the line. “As long as it didn’t hit the floor, it’s fair game as far as I’m concerned. Food is too expensive to waste these days.”
Kay picked up her sandwich and shoved the turkey back between the bread. “You’re right about that. I’m not sure how I’m going to afford to feed Hope when she’s older and starts eating more.”
“I wish I lived closer. We could cook for each other. That’s what my sisters and I do. Brenna is making lasagna tonight and she’s going to bring half of it to me.”
Kay would kill for someone to make her half of anything. Especially lasagna. She’d learned to cook at her mom’s side, so she at least didn’t have to spend a lot of money on prepackaged food. She bought in bulk and always froze her leftovers so there was no waste, but it was still a lot of time and energy to cook everything from scratch.