Page 58 of Roses, Pearls, and Hot Summer Nights
“Let’s pretend that we do.” He kept his voice low as he rubbed my back. “Let’s pretend we’ve known each other for years. I lovegetting to know you, but let’s pretend I already do if it means you can cry, because she was awful.”
He let me sob it out until I could control myself, still rubbing my spine, even though I soaked his designer tee shirt. I admitted, “I’m crying for the second time today, but I’m not a crier.”
“We all have bad days.” He wiped his thumbs under my eyes, with no sign of frustration or unease in his expression. “I’m glad we were here for you today. Most of the time, we keep people at such a distance, so it makes every interaction too distanced for us to be there for people. I’m glad I had a chance to be here for you. Did she hurt you?”
I sniffled. “Not physically. It’s just been a lot. She said some mean things, ones that were hard for me to hear. Um, I soaked your shirt. I don’t know the brand, but I would guess it is far too expensive to be covered in my tears.”
His gaze might be warm, but the world proved cold, too cold for him to make any difference for me.
He dismissed my worries with a wave. “Fuck my shirt. Come on.” He pushed the elevator button but didn’t let go of me, tucking me close against his side. “Will you tell me what she said? Or not yet ready to share?”
I’d told Barrett quite a lot of it the night before, so what could it hurt? “Bad things happened to me in Chicago, then I got blamed for them.” I didn’t want to start crying again so I breathed through my nose for a couple of seconds until I controlled myself enough to speak again. “She also said my mother died of a drug overdose. No one ever told me that before, so I will have to look into it.”
The elevator arrived, so he ushered me inside. As the door closed, he bent over and kissed me gently, on the lips. “She might have been lying. Just to be mean. To hurt you. Whatever happened in Chicago, I’m sure you didn’t actually do anythingterrible, since I can see it in your eyes. I won’t press you for your secrets, but I can tell that’s not who you are.”
I sniffed, amused at him despite the topic. “You can tell from my eyes, huh? They must be pretty red right now.”
“I find your eyes beautiful, and I can tell from the eyes, though yours aren’t red. They never hide true intent, like you seem to tell things about us based on our shoes.” I caught my breath and he laughed. “See? I’m actually pretty observant. I don’t know what you’re getting from it but, yeah, I noticed you looking. We all have our ways of judging people.” He kissed my head again. “What do my shoes tell you?”
I dug my head into his shoulder again, finding his warmth and safety too tempting to leave. “For starters, they told me you aren’t to be trusted. I’m hoping I was wrong, because I’ve really started to trust you and your brothers. If it turns out that you’re not anomalous shoe wearers, I’ll be super sad.”
His lips curved into a sad smile. “I’ll buy different shoes. I would rather if my clothing said safe when it comes to you. Tell me what to wear.” We arrived in the lobby together. “Better yet, in a few days, we’ll go shopping. You can pick my shoes for me.”
I shook my head before lifting it. “Maybe I need to readjust my criteria?”
“You do what you need to, but I’m not adjusting mine. I like looking in your eyes too much.”
Jeremy waited in front of the elevator, staring at his phone. He stepped back so we could get out. “I was just coming to check on you two. Here, give me your bag.” He took it from me, scowling at his brother accusingly. To me, he asked, “Were you crying?”
He tugged me against him as he asked, which meant I wasn’t hugging Julian anymore.
“Watch it.” His brother roll-punched Jeremy in the arm. “I’ll take her stuff to the curb. The others out there?”
Jeremey nodded before kissing my temple. “Did Julian make you cry?”
“No.” I could smell the same soap Jeremy used on Julian, but the scent changed, as if their bodies altered it for them each individually. My cheek was starting to ache again, so I closed my eyes and sighed.How long is that going to last?“My aunt was mean to me, as usual. Among other things, she claimed my mom died of a drug overdose, which is news to me. Julian thinks she could be lying about it.”
He remained quiet, letting me talk as he led me from the lobby. I didn’t bother to glance at the doorman, but I knew I probably looked like a wreck. I pursed my lips, wondering if the doorman answered to the private investigator, too.
Jeremy finally spoke again. “If you want to get some concrete answers about your family, Kit can look into it. He’s a lawyer, and they have their own investigators. I’m sure they could find out more than we could.”
I blinked, surprised at the way he worded it. “Kit? Do you mean your father?”
“Yes.” He answered quickly—almost too quickly. “My father. Kit.”
For a second, I thought about asking him about it, then I admitted, “Maybe I don’t want to know the truth about my mother. Her own family hated her so much, it trickled down to me before I was born. I haven’t even been able to find anything about my dad other than he’s dead. Maybe they were really bad people.”
“I get that.” We stepped through the door onto the street as a horn blasted down Park Avenue, the city alive and loud. “But if I was you, I would hate to have someone else telling the story of my life. I would want to know the truth, whatever that might be. It is your decision, though, so think about it. If you want to find out, we’ll make that happen.”
Barrett turned to greet us as we approached while Phoenix stared at his phone.
“All okay?” Barrett asked. I was spared answering because Dina breezed out the door.
“Hello, children.” She grinned at us. “Ah, and here is your ride.”
A long limo pulled up to the curb. I tried to hide my surprise, but my eyes probably gave me away. I’d never ridden in a limo before, but then again, where I came from, they were mostly used for proms and weddings. Barrett narrowed his eyes at his granny. “Ourride? I thought you were coming with us to the Hamptons.”
“I’ll meet you there.” She shrugged, not seeming bothered. “I’m taking a helicopter.”
