Uh-oh.
There were so many things wrong with this suggestion I didn’t know where to start. First, she was at least two inches taller but still twenty pounds lighter than me so she had to be two sizes smaller than me. Second, I was not spending the night in her house with Sam under the same roof, in the same bed I was in (definitely!) or not. I could do a hotel. I could not do a home. Don’t ask me why, that was just the way it was. Third, that was my only night with Sam. No way was I spending a day in a boat on a beautiful lake in romantic Italy alone with him.
No way.
“I –” I started.
“Works for me,” Sam said over me. “My shit is done, got all day.”
I looked back up at Sam and opened my mouth to say something when Luci again butted in.
“Perfect. I’ll have Giuseppa pack you a lunch. Something gorgeous.” She aimed a brilliant, perfect teeth against kickass cranberry-colored lipstick lips and flawless, olive skin smile at me and declared, “Done!”
Uh-oh!
“I –” I started again but that time it was kind of me who interrupted me.
Or, at least it was my cell phone ringing in my bag.
“Excuse me,” I muttered, pushing back a bit from Sam (or, as far as he’d let me go, which, frankly, wasn’t very far), juggling my drink while opening the clasp on my bag (or I did for the nanosecond it took Sam to slide the drink out of my fingers like the gentleman he was), pulling out my phone, shoving my bag under my arm, looking at the display and seeing it said, “Paula.”
“Sorry,” I looked between Sam and Luci. “I have to take this.”
“So take it,” Sam invited but, I will note, he didn’t let me go.
The phone kept ringing. I waited for him to let me go or Luci to wander away. He didn’t and she didn’t.
Damn.
I flipped it open and greeted, “Hey, girl.”
“There’s a bidding war on your house!” she shrieked so loudly, I had to jerk the phone away from my ear and I knew, because I heard it, that Sam and Luci heard it and, probably, anyone in a ten foot radius.
I put the phone back to my ear and began, “Paula –”
That was as far as I got before more screeching that forced me to take the phone away from my ear which meant, again, Sam and Luciana could hear everything.
“Ohmigod, ohmigod, OHMIGOD, it’s been months and no nibbles, NOW THIS! My commission is gonna be KILLER AND I just heard word there’s a unit that’s opened up at The Dorchester! EXACTLY WHERE YOU WANTED TO MOVE!”
When she shut up, quickly I put my phone to my ear and told her, “Paula, honey, I’m at a party and everything you scream, everyone can hear.”
Silence then, a whole lot quieter, “Oh shit, sorry.” Pause then, “You’re at a party?”
“Yeah,” I replied and said no more.
Paula, being Paula, didn’t let it go at that. “You’re on vacation, how are you at a party?”
“Uh… I’ll explain later,” I evaded.
“Okay but, cool. Parties are fun,” she informed me.
This one, we would see.
“This is good news though,” I said softly, bringing the discussion back in hand and it was good news.
Unloading the house I hated and restarting my life at The Dorchester, which was an absolutely awesome condo complex, was seriously good news and, even better, it was very rare a unit opened up for sale.
So this wasn’t good news, it was awesome.
“Totally, babe,” Paula told me. “This is huge. I love it. Now, I know you’re vacationing with the rich and famous…” Jeez, she had no idea and when she learned, I’d have to put cotton in my ears she was going to scream so loud. “But I gotta move on this. I’ll see if they have digital shots or a web listing set up, if not, I’ll get in the unit and take some, e-mail them to you. Can you go somewhere, get on a computer and pick up your webmail?”
“Probably,” I answered.
“Good. I’m gonna do that today. And tell the two couples I have on the hook that they gotta get their shit sorted by end of business. Get that nailed down, get your deposit. If you give the go ahead on the photos, I’ll move on The Dorchester. Do we have a plan?”
I couldn’t believe this. This was amazing. This meant I got to go home, have my yard sale and get on with my life. My life. My life with Memphis that had no nuance of Cooter in it except, of course, the existence of Memphis but that wasn’t her fault.
I loved this.
And that was why I smiled at the phone and whispered, “Yeah, honey, we have a plan.”
“Killer, babe. Kill… er. I’m freaking out, I’m so happy. It’s like… I know this is gonna sound totally unhinged and so far beyond bitchy, I may go straight to hell, but it’s like Milo blew a hole in Cooter’s head and at the same time he blew you a shitload of luck. His pension, five million dollars, the vacation of a lifetime and now this.”
At her words, I closed my eyes, my body got stiff and I was so freaked, I didn’t notice Sam’s arm going tight or his body closing in on mine.
When I didn’t speak, Paula whispered, “Oh shit, I took that too far, didn’t I?”
She did.
She was right with what she said, of course. It sucked for Milo, who was a good guy who was driven to do a very bad thing, but there was no question his actions meant good things for me including getting my life back, getting a shitload of money and dodging a bullet, literally because Cooter and Vanessa were going to hire a hit man.
But still. I wasn’t ready for it to be laid out like that and certainly not when I was experiencing all that was Sam. I wasn’t prepared. I was vulnerable and her words brought shit to the surface I didn’t want to deal with unless I was in familiar surroundings and close to Memphis who would cuddle, give me doggie kisses and make me feel better.
I sucked in an unsteady breath but didn’t open my eyes when I replied quietly, “No, honey, that’s okay.”
Silence then, “No, it was too far.”
“It’s okay.”
I heard her take in breath then say cautiously, “I know we haven’t gotten ‘round to talking about this, babe, but you know we’ll have to and –”
I shook my head then tipped it down, opened my eyes and looked at the floor, whispering, “I can’t do this now.”
More silence then, “Oh God, I forgot. You’re at a party.”
Yes, I was.