Page 26 of Promise Me Sunshine

“Lenny?”

I jolt and turn at the familiar voice calling my name from the cobblestone path in front of us.

“Lenny, thatisyou!”

“Marzia,” I say weakly, standing up for a familiar hug that gets me poked in the chest, face, and back by her copious jewelry. “Hi.”

“Honey, you’ve lost weight!” she crows, holding my hands out to the sides and surveying me closely.

It’s true. And I look like a character fromBeetlejuice,but I guess it’s only the lbs she cares about.

“Your mother says you haven’t been doing so well, but look at you…” She trails off suggestively, making wide eyes in Miles’s direction. “Introduce me.”

“Miles Honey, this is Marzia Marcutio, my family’s longtime dental hygienist and…proxy family member?” How best to describe someone who has inserted herself into your family politics through sheer force of will? “Marzia, Miles is a friend. This isn’t a date.”

She nods knowingly, not believing me at all. “Well, it’s good to see you out and about. The last time I saw you was at the funeral.”

My stomach pulls tight like she’s garroted it with fishing line.

“It was dreadful,” she stage-whispers to Miles. “So young, of course, but we all saw it coming. Stage four doesn’t leave much room for happy endings.”

“Oh.” Miles blinks at her and then slides his gaze over to me. He’s probably trying to figure out if he’s interpreting this correctly. If Marzia could possibly be this insensitive.

Trust me, she can.

“Ovarian cancer of all things!” she powers on. “And for such a pretty girl. Hysterectomy, you know, when she should have been out meeting a true love. What a shame she nevermet somebody. A waste. And then the cancer cameback.I always wondered if it came back because of how much she celebrated after it was over the first time. You can’t tempt fate like that! A hysterectomy something to celebrate? Well, it was dreadful, and this one here took it worst of all.”

Even knowing Marzia, I’m still struck dumb. If she’d run me over with a taxicab I wouldn’t be more stunned than I am right now. How could someone believe that about Lou? And how could shesayall that? And to my face? Like Lou’s entire journey is just a sad, gossipy story she gets to shill to whoever she happens to run into in the park? Like Lou got what was coming to her? I feel hot emotion creeping up from my extremities; when it meets in my chest, Marzia’s gonna see me blow.

“Wow,” Miles says, giving her the same face he gave the amorous dancers just last night. “Well, that was fucking rude.”

“Hm?” Marzia blinks, certain she hasn’t heard him correctly.

“I said you’re being fucking rude.”

Her mouth drops open.

My mouth drops open.

“Excuse me?”

I’m not sure if Marzia or I am more shocked. Someone telling her to her face that she’s being fucking rude is enough to discombobulate my nervous system. My rage and pain just sort of scatter as he opens his mouth again.

“Lou’s story clearly doesn’t matter to you,” he says slowly. “But to Lenny…” His hand clamps my shoulder.I’m here,it says.So are you,it says. “Like I said. Rude.”

Marzia does a very good impression of an extremely flustered duck. “Lenny, honey. I didn’t—I’m not sure. Well, your friend is—” She’s oscillating between outrage andembarrassment. She’s backing away from us, red in the face, sputtering. Giving up, she leaves without saying goodbye.

We sit back down on the bench and I study him. My heart doesn’t feel like it’s beating right. Probably all the adrenaline still pumping with nowhere to go. “You…stuck up for me.”

He raises his eyebrows but looks a tiny bit embarrassed. “It seemed an obvious moment for me to hold up my end of the deal.” One finger points at his own chest. “Grief wingman, you know.”

I gag. “Worst kind to have. It’s the only kind of wingman who doesn’t try to get you laid.”

He sucks air through his teeth and squints his eyes. “We’re gonna have to cross that bridge eventually, you know. At least three items on your Live Again list are, ya know.” He moves his hands in a few different configurations because he apparently can’t say the wordssex positionsout loud.

“Those werejokeadditions,” I insist. “Well, mostly.”

We both laugh and then fall into silence. I kick his shoe with my shoe. “Thanks. For saying that to her. I was either going to politely defer to my elder and then hate myself forever or I was going to burst into flames and smite her entire bloodline.”

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