You Let Me In - Camilla Bruce Page 0,22

too was broken in the eyes of the world. That, I think, was why I let him in.

We all know now that it was a mistake.

He had approached me at work when he came in to read the newspapers and scan the job ads, or pretend to, anyway. I think the lack of attention I paid him, pushing my trolley, sorting through books, annoyed him no end. He was used to being looked at, his self-esteem depended on it. He knew all about me, of course. Knew I was Olivia Thorn’s half-mad sister who used to walk alone in the woods, talk to invisible people, and sometimes even throw things in anger. That didn’t faze him at all.

One day he came over while I was at the desk and leaned in on the wooden counter:

“Are you as crazy as they say?” His blue gaze burrowed into mine.

“Yes.” I stifled a smile. “Crazier,” I said.

“Good,” he replied, combed through his hair with his hand. Seemed a little nervous. “Do you want to go for a walk when you’re done? Have an ice cream?”

“Why?” I asked.

“Because it’s a hot day, and ice cream is better with company.” He tried to dazzle me with a smile, but it fell a little flat. I was puzzled more than anything else. I didn’t understand what he wanted.

“Why?” I asked again.

“Because sweetness is better shared,” he replied and added a wink. I didn’t get it. Shook my head in confusion.

He sighed. Fidgeted. “Look, I just want to get to know you, that’s all. I see you all the time in here, pushing that trolley around … I just thought you seemed lonely, that’s all. Wondered if you’d like some company.”

I swallowed hard. No one had approached in that way before, and he did seem sincere. Old warnings about going with strange men flashed through my mind, but of course I didn’t heed them. I was never afraid of the same things that other girls were afraid of. Had no reason to be. I was always well protected from strangers.

“All right,” I said at last, and watched his shoulders relax as he let out his breath. He rarely had to work for a yes, so my reluctance must have been hard to swallow.

He waited for me then, when I got off work; leather jacket thrown over his shoulder, to show off his abs no doubt, and the sculpted chest under his shirt, but I didn’t care about things like that. We slowly made our way down to the pier, where the ice cream parlors lay scattered like colorful beads, sporting small tables under plastic parasols. I remember a gentle breeze spinning candy wrappers and newspaper pages on the ground, the unfamiliar sensation of walking side by side with a man. Remember that I didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to act, and how that bothered me.

Tommy Tipp wasn’t tied for words, though.

“Who are you talking to?” he asked, when we sat by a white plastic table licking at our ice cream cones. “When you are talking to yourself,” he clarified. The sun was really blazing that day, licking his hair with gold. The pink ice cream melted faster than I could eat it, fat droplets ran down the sides, curling across my fingers, aiming for my wrist.

“My invisible friends,” I said, not really trying to be coy. Flirting was a foreign language to me, in which he was fluent, of course.

“Oh, really.” His eyes twinkled. “What do they have to say that is so interesting?”

“They tell me things,” I replied, still honest. Found no reason to lie, even if I knew Mother wanted me to.

“What do they say, then?” He urged me on; he had an expression on his face that I didn’t understand, a little teasing, a little taunting.

“All kinds of things.” I shrugged.

“Do they tell you about hidden treasures, or who is kissing who?”

“No.” Sometimes they did, but that was hardly the point.

“What do they tell you, then?”

“Normal things. Everyday things. Although it is mostly just one. A ‘he.’” I didn’t mention Mara then, she was precious to me and secret, even more so than Pepper-Man.

“Really?” Tommy seemed intrigued by the mention of my faerie companion. “Is he your boyfriend?”

“Not really.”

“Is he a ghost?”

“Perhaps…”

“Would he be jealous if you found yourself a real man?”

“Maybe,” I replied honestly. I really didn’t know how Pepper-Man would react. “He does think of me as his.”

“Is that a challenge?” Tommy grinned widely behind the remains of his