thickens when she starts to cry heavily. She wraps her arms around his shoulders and sobs into his neck. His arms come around her as well and he rubs her back soothingly, whispering things in her ear. She nods against him.
“Go upstairs, Rain.” Kent doesn’t look at me as he leads her away.
I don’t want to see anymore. Most of me can acknowledge he’s trying to help her, so I trump down the part that doesn’t and start picking up my clothes off the ground. I take my basket to the laundry room and switch loads, putting my sheets in the drier. On my way out, Kent is coming around the corner alone.
He can barely meet my eyes. Together we walk back upstairs in silence. When he closes the door behind us he looks me in the eye. His face is sallow and he’s having a hard time keeping eye contact.
“What’s wrong with me? Did you see her? She’s got serious emotional issues. Why didn’t I see them before? All I wanted was sex. I didn’t even stop to see maybe she was hurting too.”
“She hit me. You can feel sorry for her. I’m not the one who did anything wrong here. And I’m not going to talk to you about how you treated other women. You did that on purpose,” I remind him. “You hurt her knowing you were hurting her. What makes me different?”
“If you have to ask me that…” He can’t even finish. He stomps around me and then stops suddenly. “No. I’m not going to storm off. I always do that. If you have to ask me that, then what are we doing, Rain? What are we doing?” he repeats sadly.
“We’re trying,” I remind him feebly. “I want to know what makes me different. I don’t understand why I’m more special than Auburn Hair, Samantha or Arissa. Why me, Kent?”
He shakes his head. “Because you’re different, Rain. You are. You’re just going to have to deal with it. You’re the first woman since Willow I can see myself with. You make me forget I ever felt like shit. You make me laugh when I don’t think I can. I’m not going to explain why. You’re going to have to trust me. But I think you’re going to have to trust yourself more.”
I am suddenly exhausted. I hurt emotionally and physically. To make matters worse Becca is coming home tomorrow and everything I have right now, this man and our fragile bond, could be gone. She’s not going to budge on Kent. Why am I arguing with him when I’ll have to fight for him tomorrow?
“Trusting myself?” I laugh uncomfortably and walk into the kitchen to get a fresh bag of something frozen. “I thought that’s what I was doing.”
His phone rings before he can respond. He sighs at the caller ID like this is the last thing he needs right now. “What’s up, Dad? I’m busy. Spill it. I didn’t spend that much on the credit card, did I?” He rubs the back of his neck and whistles. “Oh come on, Dad. That’s bullshit. You’ve been waiting for an excuse to drag me home for my damn birthday. I don’t want to come. I’ll celebrate here. No. Dad!” he snaps, and I can hear his dad snap too. “Do what you have to do.” Kent hangs up and glares at me. “Can you believe him? He’s threatening to cut me off if I don’t come home for my birthday.”
He’s adorable when he’s a son. A petulant boy who doesn’t want a party. “Why don’t you want to?”
“Because we’re having a special guest and she used to share my bed.” He’s exasperated at the suggestion of Willow. “Why can’t they accept my unhappiness is as real as his happiness?”
“Whose?”
“Huh?” He looks away and shrugs. “There’s some frozen peaches in there too. I’ll go out and get you some ice.” He takes my keys out of his pocket. “You want anything else from the store?”
“Why is Willow going to your birthday party?”
“Yes or no? Do you want me to pick up dinner too?” He edges for the door. “Chinese?”
“Kent?”
He’s already gone.
I sigh as I reach into the freezer to grab the frozen peaches. Back on the couch, I stack pillows around his end so I don’t have to see where he used to bag them. The thought depresses me. That makes it sound like he’s stopped; as if he’s changed in one day. Though we shared something special