Friends With Benedicts - Staci Hart Page 0,34
me.
“The meeting was promising.”
“Thank God for Evan. I think I’m gonna pay him something whether he wants me to or not. He can use the money to hire out some of the work—there are gonna be too many man hours for him to do this for free and manage to do his job for anyone else. Wouldn’t really do to have him go bankrupt trying to keep everyone else from going bankrupt, would it?”
“No, that wouldn’t do at all.” She sighed. “When are you going up to the hospital?”
“Abuela goes in at eight, so I’m going up there in a minute to sit with Mom until Abuela is out of surgery. They say she’ll be out of it for the rest of the day. I might come by to hang out with you and Cilla later, if it’s okay.”
“Of course it’s okay. I’ll text you when I’m off work this afternoon. I was gonna make candles, but I can wait until after you’ve gone.”
“Who says I’m planning on leaving?”
She laughed.
“I mean it. I’d like to state again for the record that you promised me literally all your free time. Hope you weren’t kidding.” When she laughed again, I said, “I’m taking that as a yes. So I guess you’d better teach me how to make candles, because I’m gonna be around a lot.”
“How about I teach you and then you can reassess that promise. Think you’ll be at the hospital all day?”
“No. I’ve got to talk to Marnie today.”
Presley sobered. “Think she’s heard anything yet?”
“I hope not. Your cousins seemed to be serious about keeping it hush for a minute, but I’m not taking any chances. Best get it out of the way now.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Why? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“No, but I’m sorry you have to have this conversation with her.”
“Well, you know how it goes. Make the bed, lie in it.”
“I hope it’s not too bad.”
“I’ve got candle making to look forward to. Things could be worse.”
“You’re really setting yourself up for disappointment—it’s not that exciting.”
I shifted closer, sliding one arm around her waist and the other hand into her hair. “You really think we’re still talking about making candles?”
She smiled up at me. “I mean, there is a lot of hot wax.”
“That’s all I’m saying.”
I took the chance to kiss her, wishing this was the extent of my day instead of Abuela’s surgery, organizing a coup, and Marnie. But the truth was, the prospect of today was made easier knowing what I’d earn afterward.
And that was the thought I’d put in my tank to get me through.
Endless hours later, I found myself sitting on the Mitchell family’s front porch next to Marnie in silence. My gaze was watchful. Hers was vengeful.
Abuela had made it out of surgery, and Mom took her first full breath in three days, using it to fuel laughter when Abuela woke up talking nonsense in Spanish. I couldn’t even repeat half of it, it was so inappropriate. No one wants to see the day when their grandma makes them blush. So I left that business to Mom and texted Marnie, asking if she could meet up.
As I sat silently next to her, I played back the conversation. Nothing about it had been easy, the silted, awkward revelation that I had a child with someone else when I wouldn’t give one to her.
That it was Presley cranked the heat by a hundred degrees.
“A baby,” she said, her voice raw and brows drawn. “You … have a baby. With her.”
“Not a baby. She just turned four.”
“Which is somehow better?” she snapped.
“I just found out. I came here as soon as I could.”
“I very seriously doubt that,” she said on a dry laugh. “Everybody in town has seen you two together. You’re already sleeping with her, aren’t you?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“God, you’re predictable. She lied to you all this time. She could have found you, but she didn’t. She kept it from you, and when you find out, you fuck her. You’re not even mad at her, are you?”
“That’s none of your business either.”
She shook her head with a strange smile on her face, her eyes shining with furious tears. “If it’d been me, you’d have left me on the spot.”
“You don’t know that. I don’t even know that. But I’d like to think I’m a better man than to leave you for something you didn’t do on purpose.” Assuming you didn’t do it on purpose.
“You’d like to think.”
I shook my head at the porch planks.