Chapter 16 Manicures #2
“Just because they’re terrible, doesn’t mean you still shouldn’t treat them well,” I say with a shrug. “I mean, it’s customer service.”
“Still,” Lilith grimaces. “If you want me to hex her…”
“That won’t be necessary, Lilith,” I say quickly.
“Oh, Lily,” Arun says, buttoning up his shirt. “I have some suggestions for the hotel I wanted to tell you about!”
“Um, all right,” I say, tentatively.
“Envision this.” He gestures grandly out at the lobby. “Fountains. We have one outside the hotel, but what about inside the hotel?”
“Well, that seems a little expensive…”
“Ok, ok, you could start with like, a really small fountain,” he says. “And then gradually work up to a big one. Maybe even a waterfall!”
I decide to humour him. “I’ll pass it along, Arun.”
He gives me a big smile.
I see Hallie coming out of the elevators at the end of the lobby. It must be late, if she’s already up. I pull my phone out of my pocket to check the time, but it’s dead.
She walks over to the three of us, giving Lilith a kiss on the cheek over the concierge desk. “Hi guys!”
“Hey, smart vampire,” Arun says.
“Hallie, how long have you been up?” I ask her.
“An hour or two,” she says. “Sorry, was I supposed to come here first? I thought my shift didn’t start until now.”
“It didn’t, but I should get back to my desk,” I say. “It’s been such a hectic shift, I’ve spent most of it away from the office.”
“We can take care of things down here,” Hallie says. Then she spots the book in Lilith’s hands. “What are you reading?”
I chuckle, and wave goodbye to the three of them as I head back to the emergency staircase.
Renata was concerned about the Elmwood Inclusive Magic Academy summer internship program, and there have been some speed bumps, but all of the students have good hearts.
And with Hallie there to watch over them, I feel better about going back to the office floor.
I hurry up the stairs. Usually I have an alarm on my phone that notifies me when the sun has set, but I must have missed it because of all of Dylan’s calls.
I get to the office floor and plug my phone into the charger at my desk.
I open my email, and see a message that Renata canceled her donor for this evening. That’s odd. For a moment, I wonder if…
No, what a silly thought. For a second, I almost thought that maybe she canceled the donor because she liked my blood so much. But that would be ridiculous. All blood must be the same, to her. I’m sure mine wasn’t special in any way.
But there’s a little spark of delight in my chest knowing that she canceled her donor. I have to admit, I felt a little jealous when I scheduled the appointment in the first place.
I go to her office door, and knock twice. But there’s no answer.
“Ms. Espina?” I say, pressing my finger print to the keypad and to open the door just a crack.
Her office is dark, and empty. That’s strange. Maybe she canceled her donor because something else came up.
I sit back down at my desk, and pick up my cellphone.
There are at least twenty voicemails, all from Dylan. With a frustrated sigh, I scroll through the transcripts.
Lily, I have a right to see my son, and you’re keeping him from me…
If you had never gotten this job, we would still be together…
You’re never going to find anyone who will put up with you…
But then there’s a message from another caller. One I must have missed.
Ms. Harper, this is the Respite hotel daycare center. We have your son here, and nobody has come to pick him up…
“Oh my god!” I shout, reading through the message. Immediately, I find my mother’s contact and I call her.
It feels like an eternity before she picks up. “Yes, Lily?”
“Mom!” I shout. “Did you pick up Eli from daycare?”
“From…what, honey?”
“Daycare. You were supposed to pick him up from daycare tonight, and take him back to the suite.”
“Oh, was that tonight, Lily?”
“Yes, mom, that was tonight!”
Furious, I hang up the call, and call the daycare back. But it goes to voicemail. I call again. Voicemail again.
Panic mounts in my chest. The worst feeling any parent can experience - not knowing where your child is.
I get up from the desk and sprint down the office hall. I have to go to the daycare. He has to still be there.
As I run past the reception desk, the receptionist calls out to me. “Lily! They dropped off your son here, at your desk.”
“They…they did?” I look around frantically. “Where is he?”
“Well…” the receptionist frowns. “He was waiting for you at your desk and…Ms. Espina found him.”
My stomach drops. “Where are they now?”
“I don’t know.”
I exhale. At least he’s safe. But I’m definitely in big trouble. I turn around and ram my finger into the elevator button. “Thanks!” I shout to the receptionist, before boarding the elevator.
My claustrophobia doesn’t help the increasing panic rising in my chest. I’m not going to be able to relax until I see Eli.
Even if I’m in trouble, at least he’s all right.
That’s the important thing. I can’t believe my mother didn’t pick him up, but I shouldn’t be surprised.
If I confront her about it, I’m sure she’ll just lecture me about how mothers should stay at home and families should have two parents.
I think about the voicemails on my phone from Dylan, and frustration mixes with my anxiety.
But I can’t think about that right now. One thing at a time.
I get off the elevator on the residential floor and race down the hallway to my suite.
It’s still weird to think of it as my suite.
Especially because it already came fully furnished, and there was no way I was going to replace the new, suede functional with my own worn, hand-me-down couch, so the hotel staff offered to store my furniture for me.
The beautiful furniture really makes it feel like I’m living in a fancy hotel room.
I quickly let myself in. There’s nobody in the living room or kitchen, so I hurry up the stairs to Eli’s room. I swing the door open, breathing heavily.
I’m not prepared for what I find.
Eli’s red mushroom night light is on, casting a bright glow over the bedroom.
He’s fast asleep on his bed, his little eyelashes brushing his rosy cheeks.
He’s wearing his favourite pajamas, with an image of Princess Pony on them.
His hair is brushed and I bet if I checked the toothbrush in the bathroom, it would be wet.
He’s curled up on top of Renata, his peaceful face against her chest. She lies against the bed with one arm around him. When she spots me, she puts one finger to her lips, then points to my sleeping son.
I’m stunned. A warm, tingling feeling envelopes my entire body. This is the last thing I expected to see. There’s a stack of books on the side table. Ones we definitely didn’t pick out last night. Did my boss…read my son a bedtime story and put him to sleep?
Renata carefully extricates herself from the slumbering Eli. I know that she’s a powerful vampire and whatever, but getting up without waking up a five-year-old is a whole separate skill set. Is she just good at everything?
She rises from the bed and tucks Eli in gently, then we tip-toe out of the room. Well, I tip-toe. Renata glides.
We go down the stairs and into the hallway.
“Ms. Espina,” I whisper. “I’m so, so sorry…”
She puts a hand up to stop me. “No need to apologize, Lily. When I arose this evening, I found your son at your desk. The receptionist said that no one had picked him up…”
“My mother was supposed to.”
Renata gives me a knowing look. “I assumed something must have happened, and you weren’t picking up your phone, so I knew you must be busy.”
“There was an issue with Mrs. Harrigan,” I tell her. “But I am very sorry, Ms. Espina. Thank you so much for looking after Eli.”
“It was no trouble, Lily.” She pauses, an unreadable expression on her face. “I shouldn’t have been so harsh with you, before. The first time you brought him in to the office, I was taken off guard. Vampires don’t…have much experience with children.”
I think of her, curled up beside Eli on his bed. It certainly didn’t seem like she doesn’t have any experience with children. But I’m not going to argue with her. I’m just so relieved that Eli is all right, and that I’m not in any trouble.
“Oh, and one more thing,” Renata says. She frowns, and her brow furrows slightly.
“What is it?” I ask.
“He asked me to paint his nail bright red,” she says. “And obviously I couldn’t do that.”
My chest tightens. Renata told me she was hundreds of years old. She must have out-of-date ideas about gender. “Well, he…he likes having his nails painted…”
Renata shakes her head. “No, I mean that obviously red would be a terrible choice, given his complexion.” She raises her hand, showing me her fresh manicure, her nails a soft rose pink. “I took him to the spa, and we got matching shades. I hope that was all right.”
There’s a tender, aching feeling in my chest. For a moment, I feel like I’m going to burst into tears.
“Yes,” I whisper. “That’s all right.”
She gives me a nod. “I’ll see you tomorrow night, Lily.”
“Good night, Ms. Espina.”
Then she exits my suite, leaving me with the ache in my chest.
As I get myself ready for bed and slip below the covers, I can’t stop thinking about her, curled up beside Eli.
Even Dylan was never so tender with him.
And my mother…well, my mother never would have taken him out to get matching manicures, that’s for sure.
When I opened the door, I think I saw Renata brush the hair out of his eyes before she realized I was standing there.
I feel like my heart is going to explode.
I never would have thought she’d be that way, especially after how she reacted to him the first time.
It’s so strange. And yet…it doesn’t surprise me.
Renata might seem harsh and unforgiving, to someone who doesn’t know her.
But as I’ve worked with her, I’ve realized that she’s just very protective.
She works hard at the hotel, and holds herself to a high standard, because she wants to take care of it for her family, and for all of the staff.
She might seem intimidating, but I can tell that she cares very deeply about other people.
Like when she rescued me from that elevator, and saved my life with her blood.
My cheeks are hot, and I realize that I’m crying silent tears.
Nobody’s ever cared for me the way that she does.
My mom loves me, in her own way, but she always expects me to do things for her.
And Dylan only liked me because I put up with all of his crap, and made him feel good about himself.
He promised that he would pay for me to go to law school once Eli was born, but of course, that never happened.
It was all about what he wanted. It was never about me.
But it’s different, with Renata. She sees me, and values what I do.
I thought it was just a silly crush on my boss.
But it’s not. It never was.
It’s much more than that.
And that breaks my heart.