Page 74 of ILY
‘Deaf?’
“No,” Thorne says. “He was a hearing guy. But he knew basic ASL, from what I remember.”
I sit back, all the air rushing out of me. ‘I don’t understand why they couldn’t prove that he was a stalker.”
Denver looks angry again. ‘I freely gave him my number, and since he never made any direct threats, all they had to go on was harassment because I had repeatedly asked him to leave me alone, and he didn’t.’
I bite my lip and look at Thorne, whose face is drawn and almost angry. I think I might understand now why he was so fixated on the case with me—even though there was no case. He’s a man who genuinely wants to do good.
It’s obvious he cares about Denver.
‘He was found guilty,’ Denver signs, waving his hand to draw my attention back away from Thorne. ‘He didn’t have a record, so he didn’t serve jail time.’
“What the fuck?” I demand aloud.
Denver reads my lips very clearly and scoffs. ‘They gave him probation and me a lifetime order of protection, as though a piece of paper is going to stop some psychopath from breaking into my house.’
Thorne shakes his head, but he’s not disagreeing with Denver. “I advised that he move house, and I stuck around town for a while. I told my boss it was to start learning ASL—and it was. But I also wanted to make sure this guy stayed away. And so far he has, right? No contact since then?”
He looks at Denver, who nods. ‘Nothing since right before he was charged, but I swear, sometimes I feel like he’s watching me.’
I set my hands down and feel my stomach sink. I can’t believe Denver never told any of us about this. We could have been there for him.
He must know what I’m thinking because he almost looks sorry. He doesn’t need to be. I just feel bad none of us knew.
‘Anyway, I just have shit luck with men. I may take a long break for a while.’
‘Good idea,’ I say, looking back toward the door. The man who was bothering Denver left, thank god, so we can eat our food in peace. Although Denver doesn’t look like he can stomach anything, and I don’t blame him. ‘Do you want me to get you anything?’ I offer just in case. ‘You can have half my wrap if you want.’
Denver pulls a nauseous face. ‘Think I’ll stick to drinking.’
‘Same,’ I reply. Thorne nods as well.
The mood shifts slightly as we get our orders in, the excitement I had for a date night having turned out a little glum. Denver seems obviously agitated, and Thorne looks concerned for his friend.
His friend.
I had no fucking idea this guy has a history with people I know. But then again, I shouldn’t be surprised. The Deaf community is so small. Everyone knows everyone. It seemed a little weird that Thorne, with his hearing loss and knowing some ASL, didn’t know anyone.
But here we are, and I should have known better.
Our drinks are placed in front of us, and I rub my hands together. ‘This looks delicious.’
‘What is it again?’
‘A bitter navel. So like a fuzzy navel, but not as sweet.’
Denver salutes me. ‘To Leaf and his weird taste.’ He throws his shot back and slaps his hand down on the table. ‘You know, Thorne, he didn’t drink like this until he moved into his aunt’s house.’
I shake my head, taking a sip of my drink. It makes my lips pucker. ‘No, I started drinking out of boredom after I quit interpreting. I had nothing to do with my life and no idea how to run a farm. And thenMichaelshowed up…’
The name sign I’ve given him has Denver laughing. ‘That sign never gets old.’
I roll my eyes and do it again, even making Thorne laugh with the rim of his glass pressed to his bottom lip.
He got a tonic with lime. I can tell he doesn’t want to risk anything happening to him tonight, and I can respect that. He sips on it as he watches me explain to Denver what’s been going on with the groundhog. I figure since Denver knows what Thorne does, he can hear the whole story. I start with the part where Thorne thought I was keeping a man in my basement and end with how I figured it all out.
‘…so I run out of bed, thinking it’s finally time to end the torment, and I have no idea that Thorne is behind me.’ I make sure to use lots of classifiers and body shifting. I can see my storytelling is helping Denver relax a bit. He’s starting to actually smile. ‘And the next thing I know, Thorne has his gun out, and he’s telling me and the groundhog to freeze.’
