Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90084 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 450(@200wpm)___ 360(@250wpm)___ 300(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90084 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 450(@200wpm)___ 360(@250wpm)___ 300(@300wpm)
“Merrick. What did Valentin do?”
“Oh, to hell with it.” He throws up his hands. “He keeps asking about you, okay? I tell him I don’t want to betray your trust, that he can reach out to you if he wants to know what you’re doing, but he won’t stop. God, he buys a few million-dollar paintings and it’s like he thinks I owe him something.”
“Valentin’s been bugging you about me?”
“Relentlessly. It’s all up in my damn head now.” He storms over to a storage chest, flips open the lid, and takes out a bottle of wine. The lid twists off and he takes a long drink. “Honestly, I wasn’t going to tell you, but that big asshole’s got a way of sneaking into my brain.”
“I know what you mean.” I walk over and hold out my hand. He passes the bottle and I take a drink. “What’s he been saying?”
We sit together on a small, ratty couch. Merrick stretches his legs with a sigh. “Nothing, really. Just wants to know how you’re doing. Like he wants me to keep tabs on you, as if he’s not doing it himself.”
“And you’re not telling him?”
“Listen, darling, I feel terrible about the way things went down last time, okay? I shouldn’t have put you in that position. Believe it or not, I do value your friendship.”
“That actually means a lot.”
“Good. It should.” He takes a big drink of wine. “I wouldn’t say no to that man for just anyone.”
“I’m honored.”
He leans his head back and stares at the ceiling. “What is this strange relationship between you two, anyway?”
“There is no relationship.”
“So you show up at his house, strip naked for him, and now he can’t leave you alone? Is that everything?”
“Pretty much.”
“No offense, darling, but I’ve seen you naked. You’re beautiful, but—” He shakes his hand in the air.
I smack him playfully. “Don’t be such a prick. I’m a real looker.”
“You’re a real something, darling.”
“Thank you for not talking to him about me. Really, I appreciate it. But if it’ll make your life easier, just tell him I’m fine.”
“I’ll pass along the message the next time he calls. Which will be soon, given that man’s persistence.” Merrick takes one more drink before getting back to his feet. “Okay, that’s better. I’ve purged myself of guilt. Shall we get back to work?”
“You know, I really should’ve been a therapist. I’m great at this.”
“You’re a bartender, darling.” He gives me a wry look as he puts away the wine. “That’s practically the same thing.”
I’m in a good mood on the way home from Merrick’s that night. It’s not too late, I’ve got a thousand bucks in my pocket, and for the first time in a while, I feel like I have a decent friend in my life.
Which is odd, thinking about Merrick as decent, but the world has bigger mysteries in it.
When I was a girl, back in my school days, I had plenty of friends. My parents were strict and wouldn’t let me see boys, but I spent time with the girls on the soccer team and in the math club. I found a little core group when I hit middle school, but life at home began to change as I got into high school. My parents let me go out less and less, regardless of gender. They were strict about study hours. They made me get a part-time job and put half my earnings in the bank, which were already pretty pathetic to begin with.
Then my friends went to college. I tried to keep in touch, but it wasn’t easy. We drifted apart the way young adults do when they’re not talking all the time, and when my dad got sick, that basically ensured all those relationships faded to dust.
It’s been a lonely, frustrating life. Sometimes, when I’m at my worst, I can’t help the bitterness that flows over me. I’m angry with my parents for hiding me away, and I’m mad at Luka for getting the life I always wanted, and I’m even annoyed with Dad in particular for getting sick and making sure he dragged my life down with him.
Which isn’t fair. It’s honestly a gross thought to have. I hate myself every time it slips into my head, but at my weakest, at my worst, it’s there.
But having Merrick as an actual friend is nice. Maybe I should be angrier with him for that stunt with Valentin, but he’s basically the last relationship I have in my life. I don’t want to lose it.
When I reach home after a moderate walk in the comfortable fall weather, I find the front door slightly ajar.
Which is unusual, Mama’s usually scrupulous about keeping it closed. We live in an okay neighborhood in South Philly, not somewhere with a whole ton of crime, but it’s still the city. People don’t take chances around here.