Page 81 of One More Time
‘Oh, there’s something. And it’s real bad, kid.’
‘I’ll need diagrams on that sometime, but right now I’m off. Sleep well.’
‘You, too, Chloe … eventually, I mean,’ Nicky said with a wink.
Chloe walked on, and Nicky tapped the keycard to his door.
‘Wait,’ came Chloe’s voice.
‘What’s up?’
She walked back to him and he flipped the bar lock on the door to keep it open.
‘Look, it’s probably not my business.’ Chloe stuffed her hands in the pockets of her trench coat. ‘But my mom, she can be … timid.’
Nicky’s disbelief must have shown on his face because Chloe added, ‘About certain things. About herself.’
‘I don’t—’
Chloe interrupted, ‘One time, when I was about eight or nine, I was on this baseball team. Co-ed. We’d had a tough loss and after, as we were walking to the car, my mom and I saw one of my teammates crying. A kid named Jeffrey.’
Nicky had no idea where Chloe’s story was headed, but he needed information on Lucy like he needed oxygen, so listened carefully.
Chloe continued, ‘Jeffrey was walking with his dad, a complete troll, who said to Jeff, “Don’t be a pussy. Quit crying.”’
‘Oh, boy,’ Nicky grumbled.
‘Yeah,’ Chloe replied. ‘So, without any hesitation, my mom goes right over to the troll and says, “Excuse me, what is your definition of pussy? Because I have one and I’m a fucking badass.”’
‘Jesus,’ Nicky said, feeling the smile split his face.
‘I know, right?’ Chloe said with her own smile. ‘Then she says to the troll, “Don’t be adick.” She bent down to Jeffrey’s height and said to him, “There’s no shame in crying, Jeff. It shows you’re human and you care.” Jeff’sdad was so stunned, he just stood there like a complete moron and watched us walk away.’
‘Wow.’
‘Needless to say, the troll avoided us from then on, and Jeff practically worshipped the ground my mother walked on. He ended up getting the last laugh on his dad, too. Mom helped him get into Yale where he and his boyfriend study dance.’
Nicky laughed.
‘Yeah,’ Chloe said. Then, she became more thoughtful, serious. ‘Thing is, when it comes to others – me especially – she would go full ninja in a heartbeat. But when it comes to herself, she doesn’t have the same sort of bravery. She would defend anyone. She sees the best in them and will bend over backward to make their dreams come true. But herself?’ Chloe just shook her head. ‘She’s tough, but sometimes she aims all that badassery in the wrong direction. Know what I mean?’
It was Nicky’s turn to nod. He understood. Completely.
Chloe added, ‘I don’t know what’s going on with you two, but … just, maybe, don’t give up on her.’
Nicky tried, ‘I—’
Chloe stopped him with a hand to his arm. She said, ‘No promises to me. Just wanted you to know.’
‘Thanks, Chloe.’
‘Anytime,’ Chloe said over her shoulder as she walked away, her fuzzy slippers flip-flopping as she went.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
LUCY
Their suite had been transformed into a beauty salon with a side of charcuterie. A veritable battalion of eager experts had filed into the place shortly after noon, pulling giant hard-sided steel cases on wheels behind them. There were manicurists, makeup artists, and more hair stylists than seemed entirely safe. (So many hot tools! So many overloaded plugs!) One tiny older woman with a thick Russian accent was exclusively handling eyebrows, apparently.
