Page 45 of Ghostlighted
I waved. “Hey, Felicia.”
As she reached our side of the street, she slowed down. “What happened to you?
“Oh. You mean this?” I pinched the wet shirt and pulled it away from my chest. Mistake, since when I let go, the fabric remained bunched like I’d sprouted a weird third nipple. “Ricky asked me to water Sofia’s garden this morning, and I had a slight mishap with the hose.”
Her laugh faded as her gaze flicked between me and Liam. “Guillermo? Is that you?”
Liam frowned, and Avi… disappeared.
Knowing how affectionate Ricky’s family normally was with one another, I was surprised when Felicia huggedme, despite my soggy condition, and then simply turned to study Liam.
His frown deepened. “My name is Liam.”
She winced. “Sorry. Last time you were here, I was just a kid and Tia still calls you Guillermo. I’ll remember for next time, I promise. Did Ricky contact you?”
Liam seemed momentarily stunned by Felicia’s shotgun approach to conversation. It took him a moment before he said, “Yes. That’s right.”
“She’s not home from the hospital yet. I came by to get her car so I could do some grocery shopping since I’ll be staying with her while she recovers. Are you going to the hospital now? I can take you. Oh!” She pointed at the Porsche. “You have your own ride, I see.”
“I’m here to pick up a few things for Sofia,” he said, his tone dripping with disapproval.
“Really?” Felicia cocked her head. “What?”
“Personal things she might need. Her purse. Her checkbook.”
Felicia waved his words away. “No need. Mami stopped by last night and collected all that. Do you know where the hospital is in Richdale? Oh! I forgot. You grew up there mostly, didn’t you?” She laughed a little. “You probably know the place better than I do. If you hurry, you can get there when visitor’s hours start.”
I wasn’t aware that Liam’s frown could deepen, but clearly I had underestimated his abilities. “She’s allowed visitors?”
“Eh.” Felicia waggled her hand. “We’reallowed. Antonio—you remember Antonio, don’t you? Uncle Federico’s middle son? He’s the charge nurse on her floor.”
Wow. If there were a frown Olympics, Liam would snag the gold without breaking a sweat. “That’s incredibly irresponsible of him and inconsiderate of all of you. Think of Sofia. You’re endangering her recovery. It could be months?—”
“Oh, no. Not months. In fact, she should be home by Sunday.” Felicia’s smile was brilliant. “She’s decided on the ablation procedure.”
“What?” Liam seemed sincerely shocked. “Surgery? She can’t— The risks are too great.”
“They’re not, really,” I said. “Not any more than letting the SVT worsen.”
He turned his gold-medal scowl on me. “What would you know about it?”
“My grandmother had the same condition. She opted for the ablation when she was in her sixties and kicked herself for not doing it years earlier.”
“See?” Felicia looped her arm through my elbow. “She’ll be ready to travel by the end of the month, so when we’re there for your graduation, she won’t even be on meds anymore. Isn’t that great?”
“No, it is not great.” Liam’s chest heaved like a bellows, nostrils flaring in a way that was reminiscent of Greg—or a bull about to charge. “I see that I need to have a serious talk with Sofia, because clearly the rest of you are thinking only of your own enjoyment and not her well-being. Andyou.”
He thrust his hand at me, index finger fairly vibrating, and the gold charm on his key chain nearly bonked me on the nose. I went nearly cross-eyed staring at it, but I refused to back away. Pretty ballsy of Liam to spend Sofia’s money on a Massachusetts keychain in what looked like solid gold, although whoever crafted it hadn’t quite gotten the shape right. My geography app project would probably have tagged it as a coffee pot.
“What about me?”
“While your gesture was no doubt well-intentioned, I trust you’ll see now that it was extremely ill-judged and take appropriate action.”
He turned and strode toward the Porsche, brushing past three people who had stopped on the sidewalk in front of my house.
“Well,” I said. “He seems nice.”
Chapter Sixteen
