by W.J. May
Chapter Sixteen
Nathan and Duncan slept on my bedroom floor that night, just in case the “specter” came back to harass me. When I woke up, it was just after nine the next morning and I was alone. I went down to the kitchen.
“Where’s Duncan?” I asked.
As usual, Nathan was stuffing his face with food. “He had to work. He’s going to pick you up after your shift again tonight. I’ll get mom’s keys and drop you off at four.”
“Did you guys ever figure out what’s wrong with the Mustang?”
He nodded. “It’s the battery. I’m picking up a new one today.”
I yawned. “Where’s mom? Still sleeping?”
He nodded. “Yeah, she’s been doing a lot of that lately. I think she should quit drinking, she just can’t handle it.”
“I agree.”
Plus, she was our mom and really not making a good impression by getting so hammered.
Two hours later, mom was still sleeping so I decided to check up on her.
“Mom?” I called, knocking softly on her door.
“Yeah,” she mumbled. “Come in.”
She had the blinds pulled shut so I turned on the light.
“You, okay?” I asked her.
She smiled, lazily. “Yeah, just tired.”
I sat down next to her on the bed. “You know, you really need to cool it on the wine, mom. The sheriff is going to think you’re some kind of lush. You never usually drink like this.”
“I didn’t drink anything last night. At least, I don’t remember,” she said with a confused look.
“Oh, come on… mom, you were trashed. I had to help you to bed last night. You had to have been drinking.”
She rubbed a hand over her forehead. “I don’t even remember.”
I sighed and changed the subject. “So, did his daughter make dinner for you?”
“I… think so.”
My eyes widened. “You don’t sound so sure.”
She rubbed her forehead. “To tell you the truth, last night was a bit of a blur.”
“I know the feeling,” I said, staring towards her bedroom window. Last night almost felt like a dream. I couldn’t explain my reaction to Ethan or the way he’d whisked me through the darkness the way he did. It didn’t make a whole lot of sense.
“What?” she asked.
I turned back to her and smiled. “Nothing.”
She stood up. “I’ve got so much to do today. I start work on Monday and have more errands than I have hours to complete them.”
“Ahem, thanks for asking… my first day went pretty good, by the way.”
“I’m sorry, honey,” she replied, grabbing a robe from the closet. “I totally forgot. So, your first day at the diner went pretty smooth?”
“Yeah. I’m working again tonight. In fact, Nathan has to use your car to drop me off at the diner around four. His Mustang needs a new battery.”
She groaned and then nodded reluctantly. “Okay. I’ll just have to take care of some things tomorrow, I guess.”
I motioned towards her neck. “So, how’s your skin?” I asked.
She touched it and winced. “Still tender.”
I got off the bed and walked over to her. “Did you put anything on it?”
“No. I probably should. How does it look?”
I examined her skin and frowned. It looked much worse. “You should really see a doctor.”
She waved her hand and shook her head. “No, you know me. I’m just allergic to mosquito bites. It usually takes a while for them to heal.”
“At least put something on it, so it doesn’t get infected.”
“Fine, Nurse Nikki,” she said with a wry smile.
I walked over to the window and opened the blinds. “It’s a beautiful day, mom, you could use some vitamin D on that lily-white skin of yours.”
“Oh, hey… close the blinds,” she gasped holding her hand up to shield her face. “The sun hurts my eyes!”
I quickly closed them. “Wow, you seriously need to lay off the alcohol, mom. Hangovers are a bitch.”
She grabbed her sunglasses from the nightstand and put them on. “Actually, I think I have an eye infection or something,” she said. “They’ve been bothering me the last couple of days.”
“Maybe you’re allergic to Caleb. Ever since you’ve been seeing him, you’ve been acting weird.”
She smiled. “It’s definitely not him. He is such a wonderful man. I’m so happy we met. It’s only been a few hours since we we’ve been together, but… I have to admit, I miss him already.”
It sounded like she really was falling pretty hard for the sheriff. “So, when’s the wedding?” I asked.
‘Oh, God, it’s too early for that but I’ll be honest, every time he looks at me,” she sighed and her eyes looked wistful, “I just want to jump his bones.”
I shuddered. “Okay, that’s something I didn’t need to hear. That’s just twisted, mom.”
She laughed. “Oh, just you wait, my dear. You’ll meet someone who makes your toes curl and then you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.”
I’d already met two guys who made my toes curl but I wasn’t about to tell her that. “Whatever,” I said.
She walked over to me and touched my cheek. “What about Duncan? Any sparks?”
My cheeks grew pink. “Well… I don’t know. I mean, we’re just friends, you know?”
She smiled, knowingly. “Friends, huh? Just make sure you use protection if he gets too friendly.”
My jaw dropped. “Mom!”
“You are still a virgin, right?”
I couldn’t believe we were actually having this conversation.
“Oh, my God, yes!” I replied, staring at her in horror.
“Although, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. Just be safe.”
“Enough! I’m still a virgin and I plan on staying one for a while.”
Her eyes softened. “That’s what a mother wants to hear. But when things get confusing or too much, you can always come to me with any questions.”
“I’m going to take a shower,” I said. “I feel dirty after talking about it with you.”
She laughed. “You’re such a smartass.”
I left her and went back to my room. Instead of taking a shower, however, I lay down on my bed and thought about everything that had happened the night before. It now seemed so unbelievable, that I wondered if it had been just a dream.
I closed my eyes and fell asleep.