“I’m sorry. Who are you?”
“I’m a friend. Nina.”
“That name’s not familiar to me.”
“Who are you?”
“Winston’s girlfriend.”
“You’re Chloe?”
She nodded. The look on her face went from hesitant to relieved.
“Do you know when Maya will be home?” At least Chloe wasn’t looking at her like she was casing the place anymore.
“They’re out of town until Sunday. If you’re friends, wouldn’t she tell you that?”
Chloe’s words hurt. Nina pushed the flash of pain down. “We’re, uh, having trouble communicating right now.”
“Well, I hope you get that worked out. I’m here to check everything. Have a good night.” She entered the house and Nina knew she had just been dismissed, so she eased out of the driveway.
Two more days. That meant four days for this latest estrangement. Not long, and Nina was still determined. Yet her confidence and belief that this situation was going to work out wavered. Maybe she really should just let it go and stop trying so hard, since it was clear Maya didn’t want to talk to her. Maybe she needed to think about letting go and doing things differently. Heart heavy, she drove home.
Chapter 15
“So, your mom stepped things up a notch,” Rachel said as she picked up her chopsticks. “Ballsy, showing up at school.” She used her utensils to point at Nina’s food. “And are you gonna eat that egg roll?”
Nina pulled her plate closer. “Yes, I’m going to eat my egg roll. What’s wrong with you?” She picked up her egg roll and took a bite and despite Rachel’s food finagling, it had been nice to come home to a good meal and a rational, caring person after the day she’d had.
Rachel shrugged. “They’re really good egg rolls.”
“Check the bags. I’m pretty sure there was supposed to be four of them. I’m surprised we both haven’t gained ten pounds since you’ve been here.”
Rachel got up from the table to rifle through the bags on the kitchen counter by the sink. “I don’t mind adding to my curves. And I don’t see anything in here. Maybe I ate them already.” She sat back down.
“Now can you focus, please? How do you go from talking about my mother to food?”
“I’m special.” Rachel grinned as she picked up a piece of Mongolian beef.
“Clearly. Your stomach and my mother aren’t pressing issues right now.”
Rachel chewed slowly but amusement showed in her eyes. “I really like this new you. Telling old women off, putting your hand down people’s pants, and getting sassy with me. It’s like some sort of weird trifecta. I think you hit the jackpot.”
“Then what’s my prize?”
“Is that a rhetorical question?”
“I don’t know. Is it?”
Rachel took another bite, her expression teasing. “So, the only thing on your mind right now is fixing things with Maya.”
She toyed with her sweet and sour shrimp. It was good, but she wasn’t that hungry. “If she ever talks to me again.”
“God, don’t be so dramatic.”
“I’m trying to be realistic.” Okay, maybe she was being dramatic. Or maybe it would take three years before they talked this time. Maybe longer than that.
“I’ll give you real. Your mom has upped her game and I’m leaving in a few days. So, who’s gonna run interference for you?”
Nina managed to swallow the small bite she had just taken as the beginnings of panic set in. “You were serious? You’re going home Thursday?” Her heart thudded. “Maya’s leaving next Sunday.” The anxiety solidified into bricks on her chest.
“I have work and we’re both just a few hours away.”
“But only one of you is able to look me in the eye.”
“Give it time. Your mother, on the other hand…”
“I don’t give a shit.” Nina slammed her hand on the table, and the sting made her wonder when Maya had become more important than keeping the peace and maintaining Sarah Sterling’s false narrative.
Rachel raised a hand in a placating gesture. “You don’t give a shit about your mom. Got it.”
Nina exhaled, fighting for calm. “I’m sorry.”
“Why? Not like you don’t have a right to your feelings.”
“The thing is, I do care about the shit with my mom. But this thing with Maya feels more urgent.”
“I can understand that.”
She pushed her plate away. “She’s read every text I sent, so she knows how I feel and what I want. What if I’ve pushed her too far?”
“Didn’t you just tell me the other day that you had to be patient? That you knew she’d call when she was ready?”
“Yes, but—”
“No buts. You either have to be patient or bug the shit out of her. Which do you think she’d prefer?”
Nina scowled. “Was that a rhetorical question?”
“Why, yes. Yes, it was.”
She made a frustrated noise in her throat. “Fine. I just hope we can reach an understanding before she goes home.”
“Maybe.” Rachel speared a piece of sweet and sour shrimp from Nina’s plate.
Nina shook her head. “You really are a bad influence. Food wise, I mean. I haven’t eaten—”
“Regular food in a long time. I know.” Rachel finished for her. “I don’t know why you worry about it. You should lean into your curves more. You’re fucking gorgeous. Like one of those women from Botticelli paintings.”
After looking down at herself, Nina murmured, “I don’t know about that.”
“Don’t you feel good right now?”
Nina searched herself for a moment. Despite everything that was happening, she’d never felt more alive. “Yes, I do.”
“That’s all that matters, then. Plus, Maya obviously thinks you’re gorgeous, too, if she let you put your hand down her pants.” She grinned, slow and evil.
“Shut up.” Nina threw her chopsticks wrapper at her, but she smiled as well. Maya had always encouraged Nina to embrace her curves, and she clearly enjoyed them, too, demonstrating it the one night they had shared. Maya had made her aware of nearly every single inch of skin with the help of her hands, her mouth, and teeth. Her brain overheated for a minute with the memory.
“Uh, hello?”
Nina looked at her.
Rachel chuckled. “Where did you just go? Was it somewhere hot?”
“Somewhat, yes.” She bit her lip to keep from smiling. It didn’t work.
“Nice.”
“Mm-hmm. And thank you, by the way.”
“For what?”
“For not letting me fall into some kind of funk.”
“You’re welcome.” Rachel stabbed at another piece of shrimp on Nina’s plate.
“Are you going to eat your own food?”
Rachel held up a finger while she chewed. “Yes, and some of yours. But I’ll leave you some. You need to eat.”
Nina pushed her plate again, closer to Rachel. “No, I’ve had enough.”
“A few more bites.” Rachel moved the plate back toward Nina. “You need your energy.”
“For what?”
“You’re taking us for a nice long drive that might involve Coca-Cola cake at Rocky’s afterward. I’m having cravings.”
“I’ll just eat something there. Where are we going on this drive?”
Rachel shrugged. “Blue Ridge Parkway before it gets totally dark. Since you’re still hiding from your mom, we should at least have some fun. We could even make an appearance at one of the lesbian hangouts.”
“I’m not hiding,” she said, petulant, but she knew she wasn’t convincing.
Rachel gave her an “oh, really?” look.
“Okay, I’m hiding,” she admitted. “I’ll deal with my mom after I talk to Maya.”
“Well, hopefully I’ll be here to see that. If not, just record it. I don’t mind if it’s audio only. I can imagine the look on her face.”
&nbs
p; “You’re horrible.”
Rachel laughed. “So is she.”
“True. Very true, and maybe I do need some fun. It’ll help me to deal with going back to school Monday. I feel like the next time I walk into the main teachers’ lounge, everyone will stop, stare, and point at me.”
“Um, that’s not creepy at all,” Rachel said, tone sarcastic.
“Try living it. Maybe this is what the people who escape Scientology feel like.”
“Yikes. Maybe you should record your journey.”
“Or maybe I should start looking for another job.”
She looked at her, surprised but also pleased. “Well, maybe you should.”
Not that the thought hadn’t occurred to her several times in the past few months. Strange, how one thing could lead to another and every step was a victory. She wanted Maya to be a part of it all. “And maybe Maya will call.”
Rachel groaned.
Nina’s cell phone began to vibrate. They both stared at it as it hummed and danced near the plate of sweet and sour shrimp. Nina looked at her, pleading with her to make a decision for her.
Rachel shook her head emphatically. “No. No way. You’re not looking at it. Right?”
“But just to be sure.” She peeked at the caller ID and was utterly disappointed. “It’s Drew.”
“Ew.” Rachel made a face like she had smelled something rotten.
Nina set her phone down. She couldn’t think of any logical reason for Drew to call her at this point, especially after their most recent conversation. Besides, it was probably concerning her mother and she was damn near positive she had ended up at Drew’s house where they were plotting some sort of weird intervention, as if she were the one who needed help.
“Hope he wasn’t dying or anything,” Rachel said.
“Are you kidding me?”
“Sorry, bad joke. Too soon?”
“God, I wonder about you—” Her phone vibrated again. She checked it and gasped, disbelieving.
“Jesus, what?”
“It’s Maya.” She reached for her phone, then pulled away, flustered.
“Well don’t just sit there. Answer it.”
“What do I say?”
“That the male opossum has a two-pronged penis?”
Nina glowered at her. “Not helping.”
“Just answer the phone. You’ve been wanting to talk to her, for fuck’s sake.”
She did. “Hey,” she managed to say, but her mouth felt like she’d swallowed a bag of cotton balls. Maya didn’t say anything, and Nina heard bickering in the background.
“Remind me to lock the door that connects our rooms,” Maya finally said, but it wasn’t to her.
“I’ll think about it. Is that Nina on the phone?” T asked. “That better be Nina on the phone.”
Nina smiled at the exchange.
“Can I have some privacy, please?” Maya said. “You don’t like her, remember?”
“I told you twice already, that’s not true. Hey, Nina,” Terrance yelled. “You know she’s probably listening to our whole conversation at this point, right?”
“Shit. Uh, hello?” Maya said, tentative. “Hey.”
“Hey back.”
“Good God.” Terrance groaned in the background.
“Ignore him,” Maya said.
“I’ll try.” Nina glanced at Rachel who twirled her finger in the air and mouthed, “Get on with it.”
“Chloe said you came to the house looking for me.”
“I did.” Nina didn’t know what else to say. She fidgeted in her seat.
“We’re in Chicago until Sunday.”
“Yes, Chloe told me that.”
“Yeah, sorry.”
“No need to apologize,” Nina said.
“Yeah, I have to. I’m sorry and I should’ve called sooner.” She paused. “I got your messages.”
“The voicemails, too?”
“Everything. I heard you.” Maya’s voice was soft.
That could have meant anything. Nina bit her bottom lip to keep from asking deeper questions, but it didn’t work. “What does that mean?”
“It means I’m listening, and I’m hoping we can talk when I get back.”
Abruptly, Nina stood. She couldn’t contain herself any longer. Excitement and anticipation bubbled inside her. She met Rachel’s gaze and tried to transmit as much of it as possible through her expression. “Yes, that sounds good.”
Rachel grinned. “Told you.”
Nina smiled, practically giddy. “Okay. So—”
“I can come to your apartment. Or you can come to my house or we can meet somewhere in the middle. Wherever you want.” Maya said the words in a rush.
Nina’s heart did a weird fluttery thing and it was really nice to be given a choice, even with something seemingly so small. “My place. What time do you get in?”
“I should be home after two o’clock. How’s three thirty for you?”
“Okay.” Nina gripped the back of the dining room chair.
“Okay. Great.”
Not wanting to hang up, Nina asked, “Why Chicago?”
“Oh, T was looking into a company for a post-graduate internship.”
“How did it go?”
“Great. I think he’s very interested.”
“He is.” Terrance said in the background. “I guess I’ll stop eavesdropping now. See you downstairs in a minute.”
Maya didn’t reply.
“You have to go?” Nina hoped she didn’t sound terribly desperate.
“Yeah, I…” she paused. “Yeah, we’re going to get drinks.”
Nina wondered about what Maya didn’t say. She wanted to ask if she could call, if she could text, if she could fly out and meet her, but instead she settled for “Have fun.”
“Okay, it’s Friday.”
“I know,” she said, confused.
“I won’t be home until Sunday.”
“I know that, too.”
“I mean, can I text?”
Overwhelmed, but in a good way, Nina sat back down. “Absolutely. You can call, too.”
“Okay, bye.”
Seconds later, Nina stared down at her phone. Hope was a really good four-letter word, and she was suddenly feeling it in abundance.
**
Maya practically ripped the door off the Uber as she tried to get out, and winced because her hand burned and still stung slightly, but she powered through it. Of course they were late. It was past three, and she needed to get over to Nina’s. T and Winston caught up with her as she unlocked the door.
“Will you slow down? You think she’s gonna care if you’re late?” T asked.
“Yeah, just call her and let her know,” Winston said as he joined her at the door.
“I already texted her.” She opened the door.
“Then what’s the problem?” T pushed past her into the house.
“I don’t know. I’m just—I don’t know.” She was pent up and, at the same time, overrun with energy. Instead of going to her room, she went to the kitchen, Winston and T following.
“But you were on the phone with her over the weekend, right?” Winston went straight toward the refrigerator.
“Yeah, a couple times, but we kept it light. Talking about us feels like something that needs to be done face to face.” She set her bag on the island and pulled out a stool.
Winston pushed a bottle of water her way and opened his own. He threw one toward T as well and turned his gaze back to Maya.
“What?” she asked. “You getting cold feet?”
Maya sputtered. “I’m not getting married or anything. I’m just gonna listen to what she has to say.” It was weird to say that out loud. She already knew Nina was going to say exactly what she wanted to hear. A big part of her was happy as fuck, but the rest of her was still scared as shit.
When the wedding was approaching, Maya had planned to do the noble thing and try to be Nina’s friend, despite her own individual wants and needs. She coul
d see now how stupid that plan had been and doomed to fail. When Nina and Drew imploded, all it took was a look, a touch, and a damn hot kiss from Nina to put Maya back to square one. Now, she wanted Nina more than ever, and this time, she could really have her. Somehow, that was also terrifying.
T touched Maya’s shoulder. “You okay? You look a little spaced out.”
She nodded. “Yeah, sorry.” Winston’s expression was full of concern. She had all the love and support in the world around her, so no matter what happened, she’d be okay. “I just—I can’t believe this might actually be happening.”
“Believe it. Are you staying over there for dinner? Bringing her here? Or what? Chloe’s coming over and I thought I’d make my lasagna. In fact, I think Sunday dinners need to be a thing.”
Maya glanced at T. Then, they both turned toward him. “Sounds good, I guess,” T said.
“No, I mean it. I texted my office manager while we were on the plane. Sunday afternoons will be clear from now on and at least an entire weekend a month, too, even when Maya goes back to Chattanooga. I don’t need to be at work all the time. I’ve been doing it for so long I think it just felt like I needed to. I want to stay plugged in to you guys. Besides, who the hell works on Sundays in the first place?”
Maya believed him, and T would, too, given some time and consistency. “I don’t know if I’ll be home by dinner,” she said, “but I’ll let you know.”
“That’s fine. Now, get outta here.”
Maya didn’t need to be told twice.
**
Maya couldn’t decide whether to ring Nina’s doorbell or knock. She didn’t do either so she could give herself a little time. “You’ve wanted this for years. It’s okay to have it,” Maya whispered and rang the bell. When Nina opened the door, Maya nearly forgot what breathing was because she was fucking beautiful, her hair loose. There was something in her eyes and smile that was so foreign that it took Maya a second to place it. Then, it clicked. Desire. The affection was normal. The desire was not.
Shit. She had no idea what to say. Nina started to grab her hand, then stopped.
“What happened?” she asked, looking at the big Band-Aid Maya had put on to keep the burn covered.
“Dumb cooking accident.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. It’s nothing. Just keeping it clean.”
“I’ll still be careful with you, but please wear welding gloves or something when you cook.”
Big Girl Pill Page 19