24. 24
24
Ava pulled up to the front of Will’shouse, equipped with her lowest-cut V-neck shirt and a bottle of wine, hoping to spend some time gazing intothose blue eyesof his. After a sleepless night and a long day of unsuccessful job interviews, she needed comfort.Needed stolen kisses in the hallway. Needed the eye contact that made her want to tremble.
So when Will invited her over for dinner, she jumped at the opportunity, no longer caring if her lack of hesitancy seemed a little desperate or eager. After what he’d done to her the night of the charity prom, she wanted more .
She loved the rush she got from knowing he desired her , too. It was all-consuming.
The streetwasquiet. Most had settled into their warm homes away from the blistering winds. The night sky was wide open, allowing an unimpededview of the millions of brilliant stars that sat like a dusting of glitteron a blanket of black.
She grabbed the unopened bottle of pinot noir from the passenger seat and steppedout. She looked up at the house and froze. On the stoop stood a woman, one a similar age as Ava. The woman was talking to Will, hands stuffed into the pockets of her tattered jeans.
Will stared at Ava, still talking to the woman, face creased with annoyance and frustration.Ava got out but stayed by her Denali.
“Everything… okay here?”
“Yes,” Will said curtly, leading the woman off the porch with a gentle hand. “She was just leaving .”
A wash of jealousy and anger bubbled to the surface, displaying on Ava’s face like a movie on a theater screen.“Who is she?”
Before Will could answer, the woman pivoted quickly, spinning out of his grasp and bolting back into the house.
Will scrambled to grab her. “Goddammit!”
But the wily woman was through the door already, shouting, “Star?”
Will chased the woman inside.
“What the hell…?” Ava followed with caution. Once inside, she watched Will disappear down a hallwayand gritted her teeth. She was a fool to think someone like Will would want tobe monogamous. They hadn’t technically said they were exclusive,but part of her still felt betrayed. She assumed they had something uniquely intimate, but suddenly, she wondered if she was just one of many.
In a haze of anger, Ava rounded the corner.
Willstood, gripping the shoulders of the woman,just outside of Starla’s bedroom. Ava watched the flurry of waving hands and arms and heard the stream of whispered growls.
“And who the fuck is she, Will,” the woman growled, face contorting to a look of disgust.
“ She’snone of your business!Nothing in this house is your business, ” Will whispered.
Willtugged her down the hall and into the kitchen.Beneath the warm pendantlights,Ava finally saw the woman clearly.Her face hosted gaunt features, sunken cheeks,and black rings around her eyes. Her skin was pockmarked with scabs, divots,and scars. Her rumpled T-shirt hung loose on the emaciated form beneath. In the light, irritated track marks painted a clearer picture of the woman’s life.
“What’s going on? Who is she,” Ava asked. Her burning stare bore into Will, demanding an answer.
Eyes pinched closed and clenched his jaw. “This is… Sarah .”
“I’m Starla’s mother! Who the fuck are you, bitch?” The woman was ready to attack, face fierce and wild .
Avatook a step back into the living room, anger slowly dissipating.
“I want to see my fucking daughter,” the woman howled.
“We’ve been over this! I won’t let her see you like that , Sarah.”Will pointed to the red markings in the crook of her arm.
“Pfft.Those are fucking old.” She waved her hand, “I’ve been clean for months.”
“Bullshit, those are fresh,Sarah!You don’t even have a coat, for God’s sake. It’s freezingout there!”
“I’mimmune to the cold. It’s invigorating .” She lunged at him with a smile. Herteeth were chipped, eachstained the color of mustard.
“Jesus, Sarah, you’re a mess . I don’t want her to remember you like this. You shouldn’t either . Get clean, and then we can talk.”
“I’m her mother . A girl needs a mother.”
“You signed over your rights!You don’t get to be here!”
Ava couldn’t help but stare,standing at the entranceto the kitchenwith a bottle of wine,at a loss for what to say.
Will looked at Ava. “I’m sorry you had to see this.” He turned back to Sarah. “Get sober. Go to meetings, Sarah. When you get that six-month chip, we’ll talk about visitation, okay? But right now, she’s doing her fuckin’ language homework with headphones on, and I won’t have her knowing you showed up like this. I need you to leave .”
“I want to see my daughter!”
“Do you really want her to see you like this? Pupils the size of dimes? Lookin’ like you haven’t showered in weeks?Is this how you want your daughter to know you?”
Sarah’s eyesfilled with tears. “She’s all I fucking have , William!”
“So quit ,” he growled.
Sarah pressed her tongue against her cheekand shook her head at the ceiling. “You’re a real piece’a work, you know that?”
Sarah started to storm out and stopped when she was level with Ava. “And I don’t want this cunt pretending to be her mom .” She looked back at Will. “Starla has one mother. And that’s me .”
“D-daddy, who’s that?”
All six adult eyes whipped to the source of the noise in the hallway.
Ava looked at Will. “I got it. You take care of this.” She pointed to Sarah and then hurried down the hall to Will’s daughter.
“Baby,” Sarah cooed, stepping toward the girl.
“Absolutely not.” Will darted in front of her.
Ava whisked Starla into her room and shut the door .
“Miss Ava? Who is that?” Starla asked.
Ava kneeled down in front of the girl.“Hey, sweetie. She’s just afriend of your Dad’s.”
“She looked… scary.”
“No, she wasn’t scary.” Ava thought fast. “You know what’s really scary?”
Starla shook her head.
“Vampires!” Ava curled her index fingers by her face like giant vampire fangs.
Starla tried to fight the smile. “I don’t like vampires.”
“Oh.” Ava heard the front door slam aggressively.
“I like werewolves !”
“Werewolves?!”
Sarah’s frantic screams bellowed outside, finally stopping, followed by the slam of a car door. Starla looked out her window toward the rattling car engine as the vehicle peeled out. Finally, she looked back at Ava.
“Yeah, like the Wolfman movie I saw.” Starla howled. “Awwoooooooo!”
In tandem, Ava and Starla howled together like wolves.
Will openedthe doorand leaned against the frame, managing a smile.“What the world is going on in here?”
“I’m the Wolfman ! Awwooooooooo ,” Starla shouted.
“Yeah, we’ re werewolves, can’t you tell?” Ava winked.
“I see.” His expression softened.
“Is that lady sick,”Starla inquired.
Willsighed and looked at the plush carpet. “Sort of.”
“I hope she gets better.”
“I do,too,” Will mumbled. “C’mon. Dinner should be ready in a minute. Come get washed up, kiddo.”
“Okay!” Starla scurried off.
Ava rose and looked at Will. “Are you okay?”
He stared at the ground, shrugging gently. His eyes seemed so pained. Ava’s heart ached at the sight of it. She caressed his cheek with her hand, and his eyes finally lifted to hers.
“I’m sorry you had to see that.”
She smiled and shrugged. “Life is messy.”
“Yes, it is.” Will snickered and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.
He pulled back and held out a hand. She took it.
“Come on. Let’s eat,” he said. “I don’t know about you, but I need a glass of that wine.”