Page 146 of Yellow
“But even if that story about washing your clothes was right, then where were your toothbrush, shampoo, perfume, and other things?”
“What are you now? Chloe’s little spy?”
“No. Chloe seemed to buy your story; I’m just not convinced.”
“So these are not Chloe’s questions?”
“Nah-uh,” I said and crossed my fingers in my lap, relieved that it was too dark for him to see that.
“Okay, I’ll tell you the truth then,” Adam said and I almost stopped breathing to hear better.
“The truth is that your sister is a bloody idiot who obviously doesn’t know what looking through an apartment means. First of all, there was a whole room she didn’t search; second, it’s not true when she says all my stuff was gone.”
“Really?” I said and held back my need to defend myself.
“Max’s food was still there and so was his water bowl. My toilet bag was on the counter in the mudroom, my bag was on the floor, and most of my clothes were in the washer. If she had only opened the door to that room she would have seen it.”
“But why would you even pack your toilet bag? That doesn’t make sense if you were staying an extra night.”
“It makes complete sense,” he insisted. “I wasn’t going to use the guest bathroom anymore since I was spending my last night with Chloe and figured I could use her bathroom.”
“Then why didn’t you put your toilet bag in her bathroom?” I said, trying desperately to keep my voice cordial.
“Maybe women and men are just different, but here’s how it works for a guy. Chloe was in the shower, right?”
“Right.”
“And I was waiting for her to get out – and she took forever, by the way,” he said with a grunt. “So I did the dishes and I gathered all my things from the guest room. And then I decided that since her apartment has a washer and a dryer, I might as well wash my clothes.” He tilted his head sarcastically from side to side as if explaining something to a child. “I went into the mudroom and put my bag on the floor, pulled out the toilet bag and placed it on the counter before I put the clothes in the washing machine.”
He gave me a do-you-get-it-now look but still added, “And then I took Max for a walk since he looked like he needed it.”
“So you really didn’t leave her?”
“No, but maybe I should have. I had no idea she was that unhinged. Did she tell you she blocked my number?”
“Yeah.”
“Did she also tell you that she did it after texting me that I’m a loser and that we don’t belong together?”
I felt stupid and didn’t say anything.
“Hey, I’m sorry for bashing your sister, but you asked.”
“No, I get it. She doesn’t always think,” I murmured.
“When I got Chloe’s text messages and she wouldn’t pick up her phone, I drove back to the apartment thinking we could clear up whatever misunderstanding there was between us. But she was gone.” Adam had deep frown lines on his face. “That’s like something a teenager would do, not an adult.”
His comment stung!
“I didn’t know what to do about the key so I left it in her mailbox and wrote her text messages asking her to call me. She never responded to any of them, and now of course I know she didn’t even see them.”
I interrupted him. “But at least she made the foundation possible, right?”
Adam kept his eyes on the road. “She did and I’m grateful for that, but can you explain to me why she’s too busy to be on the board of her own foundation or why I had to hear it from Onava, like I wasn’t important enough to hear it from her? That’s just wrong.”
“I know she tried to tell you herself, but she said you were with another woman when she called you.” It was hard for me to keep my voice calm when my emotions were running all over the place. “And I don’t think she thinks herself too busy to be on the board, it’s more that she wasn’t ready to run into you. Remember, she did think you left and her heart was broken.”
Adam took a turn at high speed and I had to put my hands on the seat to keep my balance.
