Mismatch - By Nana Malone Page 0,17
just your brother. It’s my job to worry.” Rolling his shoulders, he asked, “What did she say?”
“Well, for starters, she told me to stay away from clubs. I’m going to meet her for lunch today.”
“Sound advice.” Guilt gnawed at Eli’s gut. He’d asked Sam to move to L.A. with him when he got the new assignment. Had that been a mistake? He sure as well didn’t want a repeat of that night in Seattle, when he’d found Sam lying in his own vomit in the middle of a crack den. The memory made Eli’s stomach roll. If Sam wanted to paint, Eli knew he had to get him a chance to make a real go at it. The right way. “I’ll check out the manager for you. I’ll see what I can dig up by tomorrow.”
Sam wrinkled his nose. “Actually…” His voice trailed off.
Eli took another swig of coffee sure he wasn’t going to like what Sam had to say. “Spit it out.”
“I was sort of hoping you’d go in my place. I know art. But there’s too much riding on this. You know how I get stressed out.”
Eli knew Sam was playing him. His brother was the charmer in the family, but Eli was the one who kept a level head. “Sam, this isn’t a good idea, man. You’ve got to learn to be able to do this stuff regardless of the pressure.”
“C’mon. Just this time. Once I’m settled with a manager, they can handle all the negotiating stuff for me.”
“We’re not kids anymore. You can’t just exchange one of us for the other.”
Sam raised an eyebrow. “We’re carbon copies.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Yeah okay, I get it.”
“One of these days, Sam, you’ll be the death of me.”
Sam was busy smudging a paint line on the canvas. Eli wasn’t sure his brother had heard him until he softly said, “Hey, E?”
“Yeah, man?”
“Thanks.”
***
Jessica had awakened alone. Under normal circumstances she preferred it that way, but when she’d blinked her lids open, she’d half expected to find the sex god in her bed. What they’d done last night went so far beyond anything she’d ever done before. Hell, a one night stand wasn’t new for her—just that level of connection. And the man knew his way around a woman’s body and how to please. He also knew what got him off. He’d guided her in exactly how he’d wanted to be touched, how fast, how slow. Everything about last night had elevated her bar. Now, he was gone.
A herd of elephants stampeded through Jessica's frontal lobe, and she wished for death. But she still made it to Izzy’s place with a smile on her face, no matter how forced. She wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to see her goddaughter.
She strolled into the expansive living room. The expansive space was decorated by clean but comfy contemporary furniture. Modern art pieces as well as Izzy's photographs decorated the walls. Foamy bumpers clung to the corners and edges of every sharp corner she could see. Kara sat on the floor in all her chubby-cheeked afro glory, merrily gnawing and drooling all over a toy giraffe that was supposed to help with teething.
“Hey, guys, I see you started unpacking already. You—”
Izzy took one look at her, tossed the remote to Jason, and said, “You’re in charge.” With a mixture of determination and concern in her eyes, Izzy strode right for Jessica, grabbed her hand and led her upstairs.
As soon as she deposited Jessica on the bed, Izzy surreptitiously glanced around, opened one of the dresser drawers, and procured a box of chocolate. “I swear, if I don’t hide these, Jason and Nick will eat all of them. Not to mention, Kara will keep reaching for them saying ‘ocolate ‘ocolate. So I eat them in secret. There you have it, the shame of an old, married woman.”
Jessica giggled. Leave it to Izzy to immediately make her feel better.
Izzy frowned. “What’s the matter, sweetie? Just tell me before I start thinking the worst.”
Jessica sighed. “I, uh, I’m fine.”
“Bullshit. You’re wearing plain jeans and a gray T-shirt. You’re lucky enough that you don’t need makeup, but I happen to know you love your eyeliner like I love chocolate, and you’re not wearing any. Plus you have no wig on or feather adornment or anything. Your nail polish is even chipped. The Jessica I know is all about her fun. What gives?”
Well, if she didn’t want an emotional probing, she supposed she shouldn’t have come to see Izzy.