Page 51 of Just a Heartbeat Away

“You look awful,” Sadie said candidly, taking a step backward like she could catch germs from ten feet away.

“I feel awful. I just took another round of medicine. I can’t believe this was how Matty was feeling. I give him a lot of credit.”

Sebastian’s eyes found Via’s and she found herself stepping up the stairs to the porch. His eyes were bloodshot, his face pale, there was a sheen of sweat covering all the skin she could see. He really did look awful.

“Seb, maybe I should take Matty out for dinner. Give you a few more hours on your own to rest?”

Matty looked up. “But it’s my cheese night! I wanna go but only if I can get mac and cheese and a grilled cheese and a cheese stick like I would have here.”

Sebastian groaned and leaned his clammy forehead against the door. “Matty, you’re not supposed to tell people about cheese night.” He looked up with one cracked eye, his hair sticking up in a hundred directions. “I swear we eat vegetables on every other night.”

Via couldn’t help but laugh. But her mirth dissolved when Sebastian wiped the sweat off his forehead with one shoulder and looked exhausted at the simple motion.

“No judgment about cheese night. But, Matty, I make a mean grilled cheese. I really think I should help.”

Sebastian looked like he was going to argue, and Via took another step up the stairs.

“Come on, Seb. It’s no trouble. And don’t act like Mary wasn’t going to stick around and help for a few hours. Let me fill in for her, okay?”

“Looks like you guys have it covered!” Sadie called from twenty feet away. Apparently, she’d been slowly backing away from the house of plague this entire time. “I’m gonna hit the road but, Via, just call me if you need something, okay? See you tomorrow, Matty! Feel better, Sebastian!”

With a brisk wave and a backward skip or two, Sadie was jetting down the sidewalk toward the school.

Sebastian lifted his eyebrows and gave a little chuffing laugh. “I look that bad, huh?”

“You’ve looked better,” Via observed dryly. “Come on, Seb. Let me help.”

He gave a deep sigh and stepped backward, letting her come in. “You’re right. I need a hand. Matty, you wanna show Via your puzzle collection? I’ll be right back out.”

He closed the door behind Via and she hung her bag and coat on the hooks in the front hall. She noticed they were his copper-and-wood signature style. Sebastian disappeared down the hall, and she took the opportunity to really look around.

The last time she was in his house she’d been so tightly strung. Nervous and off-kilter. She hadn’t expected Mary to be so pretty; she hadn’t wanted to butt in on his quasi-date with Serafine. She’d been worried about Matty. She just hadn’t gotten comfortable at all. But now, with Sebastian in the other room and nobody around but Matty, Via let her eyes take it all in.

It was a very warm space. Every wall was painted, all slate grays and a few accent walls of royal blue. There were countless picture frames, photos of Matty at every age, Seb in a few places. And a gorgeous blond woman who Via could only guess was Matty’s mom. Via made her way down the hallway toward the living room and paused to grin at a picture of a very young Seb and Tyler, not older than Matty, missing teeth and dirty, arms around each other’s shoulders.

The living room, with its plush couch and armchairs, had a big, colorful rug and a spray of toys that Matty had already hauled out of a big tin chest in the corner.

“You have a puzzle collection?”

“Yeah! I love puzzles. No, Crabby!” Matty attempted to box out his dog who was boisterously nuzzling at the boy’s hands. “Dad says I have to do them at the dinner table, though, or else the pieces end up mysteriously lost.”

Via grinned and took Crabby by the collar so that Matty could pass by unhindered. “Do you want a snack before dinner?”

It was only 4:30. She figured she had an hour before she had to start making dinner.

“Yeah.”

“Run that back, kid.” Sebastian’s voice came from over her shoulder and Matty froze in place, turning back to Via with a sheepish look on his face.

“Um. Yes, please, Miss DeRosa.”

She hid her smile. “You got it. Why don’t you get started on your puzzle and I’ll bring it to you, okay?”

He scampered into the dining room to start the puzzle, and she turned to Sebastian. Something went smooth and soft in her belly. He’d changed into jeans and a fresh T-shirt, and his face and hairline were damp from where he’d splashed water over them. He still looked like microwaved death, though.

“Sebastian, why don’t you go lie down?”

“I’m sick of my bedroom.” He took on an ornery, stubborn expression that was especially prevalent in elementary schools.

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