Page 100 of Take Me With You

“No reason.”

“Nicky,” I say softly, pulling back and staring into his eyes.

“She said she was glad I was back because your behavior had changed lately. She didn’t know why, but she was worried about any new friends you may have made recently.”

I hold my arms up as he makes a knot in the towel at the front and then hold my hand as I climb out of our clawfoot tub.

Nicky leads me back to the bedroom, where he towels me off. I’m struggling to maintain my temper, but I’m pissed. How dare she say something to Nicky without first discussing her concerns with me?

My mother has always been out of line where my private life has been concerned. For some reason, she saw Nicky as more of a father figure than a husband in my life. It was as if just because he was older, he could control me and make my decisions for me where she no longer could. As if my own father, who is a very present and real force in my life, wasn’t enough.

“Hey,” Nicky says, lifting my chin with his index finger. “It’s okay.”

“It’s not, Nicky. She had no right. She’s my mother, and if she has concerns, she should bring them to me first.”

His eyes hold mine as he nods and say, “I understand, but give her the benefit of the doubt. She wants what’s best for her only child.”

“I’m an adult.”

“As if you have to tell me,” he says, his eyes growing dark as they drop to my breasts as he removes the towel from my body.

I lay on the bed, and Nicky lies beside me. For a while, we don’t speak; we just watch each other. He doesn’t touch me as I expect him to, and I know there’s something on his mind.

“What was life like? While you were in Rio?”

He sighs and pulls his hands down over his face.

“Scary. Lonely. Confusing.”

“Did you ever make any friends over there?”

He shakes his head.

“What about the group home?”

Sighing, he says, “I uh...I met a few people there.”

There’s a hesitation in his voice and something he isn’t saying.

“Did you meet someone special?”

Nicky’s eyes close, and his blonde lashes are so light they almost look invisible.

“I won’t hold it against you, Nicky. I’m not in a place to judge,” I say, laughing lightly.

“Yes...” he clears his throat and opens his eyes. “Yes, I did. My nurse.”

My eyebrows lift. “Was she beautiful?”

He nods.

“How long?”

“The last year until...I remembered that I had a wife. I broke it off.”

“November,” I say, doing the calculations. Until four months ago, my husband was involved with someone else.

“Yeah.”

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