Chapter 26 #2
“And that, folks,” Danica starts as Roman moves to start wiping her up, “is one of many reasons I sure as hell won’t be pushing anything out anytime soon—so you have nothing to worry about with me, Mom,” she says, tapping her hand.
“I’ll be well on my way to the Supreme Court.
” This earns a collective chuckle from everyone, and Jahlani can’t help the slimy feeling in her stomach when she looks up to see Roman looking at Audrey.
It’s not long before they all start to clear the table and spread out into their respective locations as Gwendolyn waves away everyone’s help.
Jahlani turns from the kitchen, mumbling about needing to use the restroom.
Once inside, she locks the door before pressing her forehead against the cool wood.
Lowering herself onto the edge of the bathtub, she bites at the skin on her thumb.
Dropping her hand, she then laughs to herself at the sheer stupidity of the entire situation.
She didn’t fight girls over boys.
And she sure as hell wasn’t about to start now.
Especially considering that nothing could happen. Not again.
Turning the tap on, she lets it run over her hand before she presses them to her cheeks, cooling the warmth that had spread through from the wine.
Opening the door, she almost collides with Audrey.
“Oh, sorry—”
“It’s okay.”
“Did I—”
“—totally, my fault. I was standing too close,” she says breathlessly.
Jahlani nods, wiping her hands against her shirt as they lapse into silence. She starts to move to the side, but Audrey steps in her path.
“Hey, I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to come off like that. Well, I did, but it wasn’t right, and I’m sorry.”
Jahlani exhales slowly. “I really wish I knew what you were referring to,” she says in mock seriousness.
Audrey’s lips lift slightly before dropping.
“The holidays are a difficult time for me. I don’t know what I was thinking back there,” she says, shaking her head.
She meets her eyes before looking away. “My mom passed away a few years ago, and I guess … I just assumed you had this perfect family … and yeah,” she says, exhaling shakily. “It’s stupid.”
Jahlani shakes her head, the muscles in her neck loosening. Thankful that for once, she didn’t assume the worst.
“Not stupid, and I’m sorry about your mom, Audrey,” she says. “Were you close?”
Audrey inhales, tilting her head in thought. “She was a complicated woman, but she was my mom, you know?”
Jahlani nods, thinking about her mom and her own complicated feelings toward her. She thinks about how she should try harder. Be better.
Audrey sighs, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. “Anyway, I’m heading out. Happy Thanksgiving, Jahlani.”
“You too, Audrey.”
She watches Audrey slip on her shoes silently and speaks before she can process what she’s saying.
“Audrey,” Jahlani says, crossing her arms over her stomach.
Audrey’s eyes flit to hers as she starts on the other shoe.
Jahlani scratches her forehead. “If you … if you ever want to talk about your mom, I don’t mind listening.
I know a thing or two about complicated mothers,” she says, shrugging. “I mean, I’m sure you have other—”
“That would be nice,” she says, smiling as she stands to her full height. “I … thanks, Jahlani. I appreciate it.”
“Sure,” she says, giving her a small wave as she walks out the front door.
Slipping back out into the living room, she finds Danica setting up a game of Catan. She looks up when she sees her, smiling brightly.
“Hey, what color do you want? Typically, I’m blue, but you’re a guest, so you can have first pick.”
“I’m not staying,” she says gently. “It’s getting pretty late and my car isn’t too reliable these days.”
Her face falls. “Oh. Dang it. I wanted to impress you with my road-building skills.”
Jahlani lets out an airy laugh. “Maybe next time,” she adds, unsure of why she would promise such a thing.
Danica smiles, pulling her into a quick hug. “Sure, it was nice meeting you.”
Slightly taken aback by the gesture, she slides her bag onto her shoulder in a daze, waving goodbye to Taylor, who helps Danica set up the pieces.
She moves into the kitchen, and is forced to wait two minutes while Gwendolyn packs her a little bit of everything.
She’s pulled into another hug before she walks out of the house into the darkened street.
Dropping the food into the back seat, she slams the door shut before moving to the driver’s side.
She looks up, feeling his presence before he can say anything.
For a moment, they just stare at one another, and she’s tempted to get in the car and run him over. But she’s also tempted to tell him to run up to her and take care of her against the car.
She points back at the house when Roman starts down the driveway toward her. “I figured you were busy with Lucy—I didn’t want to interrupt—”
He stops a few feet in front of her, his eyes dark. “Jahlani?”
“Yes?”
“Give me the keys.”
“What are you doing?” she murmurs when he invades her space, the front of his navy sweater brushing against her fingertips.
“You’ve been drinking. You can’t drive yourself home.”
“Oh. Okay.”
She doesn’t say anything else when his palm wraps around hers to pry the keys out. With a hand on her back, he guides her to the passenger side, where he opens the door. She turns back to face him.
“But Lucy—”
“In, Jahlani.”
“Yeah. Okay.” She drops into the seat, and when he shuts the door, she buckles herself in. He slides in on the other side, and if she wasn’t so warm, she’d laugh at how cramped he looks against her steering wheel. She leans her head against the cool glass.
“You know how to get there?” she murmurs through a yawn.
“Yeah. Close your eyes, Jahlani. I know where we’re going.”