Chapter 32
Thirty-Two
I wake early, on Zevulun’s couch, wrapped in his arms, my lips swollen from kissing the man half the night. I still don’t know what came over me. He looked so sad. Giant and small all at once in that moment. He looked at me like he needed me, like I could make everything right again.
I never asked what was wrong, what happened in the ninety seconds I was gone. I just kissed him. I’ve never been so ridiculously presumptuous in my life. At least, I don’t think I have. But then he kissed me back before I had a chance to feel self-conscious about it.
Yep—he kissed me and kissed me and kissed me.
As if his life depended on it.
And suddenly, my life depended on it, too. It was strange and wonderful. Which might be hard to believe, seeing how I am currently sneaking out of his house.
I wrote a note. I left it on his chest. I pressed one more whisper of a kiss to his lips before calling an Uber and slipping out the door.
I wasn’t completely awful.
I walk into mine and Grammy’s house at six in the morning, hoping by some miracle to go undetected. But my early-rising Grammy sits in our living room, dressed, makeup on, legs crossed, staring at the front door.
Okay—she’s not that early rising. Makeup?
I jerk to a halt. “Yoh,” I squeak, flattening a hand to my chest.
“Yoh?” Grammy arches a brow. “Surely there’s more to your story than ‘yoh’. I thought I might have to come get you. Maybe Robert had stolen you.”
“Come get me? You don’t drive, Grammy.”
“You have no idea what a determined Grammy is capable of, young woman.”
I step inside and attempt to put on the least guilt-ridden face I can. “Grammy,” I protest—because I am certain her tone isn’t called for. “I am a twenty…” I think for just one single second. “A twenty-six-year-old woman. You don’t need to wait up for me.”
“I did not wait up for you, dear. You are a twenty-six-year-old woman, and I can track your location. Your father taught me how just before we moved in together.”
“That dirty, rotten—”
“Oh, please. Roger just loves you. He’s been worried about you. They all have. You know that.” She taps the toe of her crossed leg in the air.
“Well, you don’t need to track my location. I’ll call if I need you.”
“You were with the redhead?” Grammy asks. “And not Robert. Correct?”
“I was.”
And then the woman smiles, her hands clasped together. “Good.”
That’s it? I was out all night and she’s not going to call my parents and tell on me?
“It’s the only reason I didn’t come after you. I like him.”
I sigh, losing my bossy tone completely now. “Grammy, you don’t even know him.”
She lifts one brow in answer. “Well, you like him. That’s obvious. So, I like him.” She pats the seat next to her. “So,” she harrumphs. “How was the vampire? I assume you still saw him.”
“It’s Robert, Grammy. And yes, we saw him—” I stare at the ceiling. Thinking. Robert... he was nothing like he should have been. “He was… awful.”
Grammy’s penciled brow arches. “He was?”
“Horrible. He flirted with me even though he’s married, and right in front of his wife.
Right in front of Zev, even though he believes him to be my boyfriend.
Even though we have apparently been broken up for five years.
I never thought he would behave so badly.
But—” I shrug. “He did. And I am very much over him. That isn’t the man I fell for. ”
Grammy grunts. “About time. So, what about the redhead?” She crosses her arms. “I was right before—we like him?”
“We like him,” I say, my cheeks burning with guilt. Darn cheeks.
Grammy clears her throat, her bottom wiggling into the couch cushion. “How much do we like him, Rosalie? I’m assuming by the shade of your face that it’s more than a little.”
I swallow and skirt my eyes from hers. “Enough to kiss him… a lot. I possibly smothered the man with affection.”
“My. That must have been one heck of a date.” Grammy pats my leg in approval.
I shake my head and peer down at my hands in my lap. “It happened so fast. I don’t know how he feels. Or even how I feel, really. We’ve been friends, and I like Zev. But this—it just sort of happened and—”
“Rosalie,” she says. “You are not the kind of girl to kiss a boy without feelings.”
“He was crying,” I say with a gulp. “I mean, I walked in on him upset and—” I clamp down on my bottom lip, thinking. “I don’t know. It sounds so dumb, Gram, but it just felt right. Almost as if I had no other choice.”
Gram’s face softens. She looks truly sad for the “redhead” she’s yet to meet or give real approval of. “Even still. My Rosalie doesn’t kiss a man unless there is something there.” She nods.
I breathe out a sigh. “I’m sure it was a mistake.”
“Pish posh.” She stands and brushes imaginary dust from her pants. “Just because it was unexpected doesn’t mean it was wrong. It sounds as if you need to trust your soul.”
I peer up at her, waiting for her wisdom to shower down on me. “You mean my gut?”
“I mean your soul, dearest.”
“My soul?”
“Yes. Sometimes our souls know things that our minds and even hearts haven’t figured out yet. What you’re describing sounds like soul searching. Soul discovering.”
I smirk. “You’re saying my soul wanted to kiss Zev’s soul.”
“Yes, I am.” Grammy sets both hands on her hips. “And I’m a brilliant woman, whom you should always listen to. Not to mention I was married to my soulmate for sixty years.” We stare at one another for a solid minute before— “I think I’ll go watch reruns of Lovers Love Twice. Want to join?”
“I think I’m going to lie down,” I tell her.
“Yes. You had a very long and productive night. You should rest.”
I smirk out a laugh. It was quite productive.
Back in my bedroom, I change into my pjs, though the day is just beginning, and fall onto my bed. My soul kissed Zev’s soul.
That’s insane.
And then much less pleasant thoughts flit through my brain. Robert was nothing like I remember. For the first time since I woke up in that hospital, all the awful things Fran told me about Robert feel like they might be true.
They are true. I’ve been assuming that Fran didn’t have all the information.
I was wrong. Between Fran and Robert, I’m trusting her.
How could I have thought that she would have exaggerated something so awful?
I shut my eyes and remember all she said about Margo, too.
I need to remember. I need to hear and take in all that she told me.
I’ve been in denial for too long, and it’s done me no good.
It doesn’t feel good, but it must be done.
Then, I focus on Robert again—gosh, he failed me. But there’s peace in moving on. In truth. It hurts, but it isn’t the chaos of the unknown. Something I have become well acquainted with in the last seven months.
My phone on my nightstand pings and I open my eyes. The screen is lit, and since I’m not sleeping, I pick it up to see Zev’s name.
He’s awake.
Zev: You left.
Me: I also left a note.
Zev: Thanks for that.
Me: I’m sorry I stayed so late.
Zev: Don’t apologize. I’m not sorry. For any of it.
My heart thumps. Grammy, who has never met the man, was so certain about our souls connecting. Something I’ve never heard the woman say before. Yet, I wasn’t sure he actually liked me in that way, until this very minute. Until that last text.
Me: Apology redacted.
Zev: Thank you.
Me: Do you work today?
Zev: Bright and early at the bank.
Me: Ha. Ha.
Zev: Yes, I work today. PT first. Let me guess… You went back to bed.
Me: I am bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, and attempting to be productive, thank you very much.
I snicker and pull my butterscotch fleece blanket up around my face, the only light in this dim room, my phone screen and the sliver of sunshine streaming through the crack in my blackout curtains.
Zev: My apologies. Lunch then?
Me: Okay, so I might not be THAT bright-eyed. Besides, you said you had PT and work.
Zev: I do. Have you never heard of a sick day? I thought I might have the Rosalie flu. However, if I don’t, I suppose I’ll go in.
Me: Two hours of sleep never worked well for me. You were right the first time. My jammies are on and I’m in bed.
Zev: Rest well, beautiful Rosalie. We’ll talk later.
And I do. For six whole hours. In fact, I’d still be asleep except—
“Waa!” I karate chop mid-air, and the person sitting on my bed jerks back and out of the way of my smack.
“Rude,” says the voice of my best friend.
“Fran?” I squint, but it’s dark in here.
“Yes, Fran,” she says, switching on her phone’s flashlight. “Who else? Maybe… Zevulun?”
My brows knit. “Hey. Ah—”
“Grammy told on you.”
I burrow a little farther into my blankets. “Snitch.”
Fran bounces on the bed. “Why aren’t you the one telling me?”
“Um.” I hold up a hand, blocking her light that is now shining right in my eyes. “I didn’t want a lecture.”
“I heard your soul found his soul quite attractive.”
“Grammy,” I mutter. “It just sort of happened. I had no intentions of falling for anyone. I was still working on getting over Robert.”
“Yeah. Grammy told me about that, too. So, you went out with the vampire.” She pulls in a breath. “Because he is a vampire, Rose. We were wrong all along. He’s more vampire than Edward Cullen ever thought of being. He sucks the good out of everything.”
“You know, I think you might be right about that. And I went on a double date. He and Margo happened to be the other half of that double.”
“Are you okay?” She lies down next to me, wrapping one arm around my middle, her head on my shoulder.
“Surprisingly, yes.”
Fran exhales. “Are you sure?”
“I promise.”
“It’s just…” Her arm around me tightens. “It wasn’t this simple the first time around.”
“So you’ve mentioned. Well, this time around, I had separation, preparation, and…” I stare at the ceiling, attempting to make out the grooves in the dim light. “Soul kissing Zev to help me out.”
“And me!” she barks, her arm now attempting to squeeze my guts out.
“Of course, you. Always you.”