“Sorry this fucked our night,” he said quietly.
“No night is fucked when I’m with you,” I replied.
“Christ, Amy.” This came out as a groan right before I felt his lips at the top of my hair.
We held each other for long moments before I pushed my head back, his came up, and I caught his eyes.
“You gonna be okay?”
“Got no choice, but yeah, baby. I’m always okay.”
I hoped he wasn’t lying but to do my bit (the only thing I could do), I gave him a reassuring smile and a gentle squeeze.
He dipped down and touched his mouth to mine before he let me go but grabbed my hand and walked me to the front door.
I got another lip brush before he was out the door on his, “Talk to you tomorrow, babe.”
I stood in the door and replied, “Okay, Mickey.” I watched him take five steps away from me before I called, “Mickey!”
He turned to me.
“You’re a great guy, a wonderful father, and walking away from just you, she made the worst decision of her life. Walking away from your family, it’s mean to say, but that’s just crazy.”
In the outside lights I saw his face go soft before he ordered, “Don’t be sweet and make me wanna make out with you to the point I’m fuckin’ you in your foyer when I gotta go get my boy.”
“My apologies,” I said through a smile.
“Now get outta the fuckin’ door wearin’ only that robe,” he kept ordering.
“No one can see me, Mickey.”
“Babe?” he called.
“What?” I asked.
“Get outta the fuckin’ door.”
I squinted my eyes at him and got out of the door.
But before I fully closed it, I stuck my face through and blew him a kiss.
Thus, the last look I had of Mickey was him shaking his head wearing a grin that might not have been easy, but at least I’d managed to give it to him.
* * * * *
Late the next morning, I walked into Maude’s House of Beauty and went right to the pedicure chairs.
I bent to touch cheeks with Alyssa, who was working on Josie’s toes, gave a “Hey,” got a “Yo, babe,” back and then moved to do the same with Josie.
“Careful, her fingers are still wet,” Alyssa warned.
I was careful as I gave Josie her greeting then lifted up the arm in the next chair and climbed into it.
“How’s Jake doing with Conner gone?” I asked Josie.
She tipped her head to the side, sadness seeping into her eyes and answered, “Amber and Ethan aren’t good. They miss their big brother. So he has his chin up for them.” She drew in a breath and lowered her voice. “But I found him in Con’s room the other day, just sitting by himself on Con’s bed. I left him to it and didn’t mention I found him there. But I know he’s melancholy.”
I nodded. Having lost my kids in my own way, I understood Jake and it didn’t thrill me that I got them back just in time to have Auden for two years before I’d be going through the same thing.
“How’s Mickey?” Alyssa asked.
I shook away my thoughts and smiled down at her. “He’s good.”
“I’m sure he’s good, havin’ a hot neighbor who puts out,” Alyssa returned (incidentally, they were my friends, I didn’t go into details—much to Alyssa’s despair—but they knew how things were progressing with Mickey and me). “But I’m not talkin’ about that. I’m talkin’ about his ex gettin’ hauled in for drunk driving,” Alyssa went on.
I stared at her in horror. “How do you know that?”
“Babe,” she replied, then threw out a hand holding the brush of a bottle of nail varnish.
I took in the salon, mumbling, “Right.”
“He’s probably used to it,” Alyssa said, turning her attention back to Josie’s toenails.
He wasn’t used to it.
I looked to Josie. “Do you know about Rhiannon?”
She looked apologetic as she answered, “I’ve never met her but Jake’s told me about her, and I’ve…heard things.”
“Small town,” I noted.
“Yes,” Josie agreed.
“If I were Mickey, I’d haul her ass in front of a judge,” Alyssa remarked.
“I don’t want to share Mickey’s business,” I told them. “But I’ll say he isn’t happy.”
“I’ll bet,” Alyssa muttered.
“Are his kids okay?” Josie asked.
“No,” I answered. “But they have Mickey so they cope.”
“Very sad,” she said softly.
“Yeah,” I agreed.
I heard my phone in my purse chiming to tell me I had a text, so I dug it out and looked at it, the pall of our conversation lifting when I saw it was Auden.
Can I come over tonight, hang and catch some of my shows?
I texted back, Of course. Do you want me to make dinner?
To that I received, That’d be cool.
To which I sent, Is your sister coming with you?
And while Alyssa announced to Josie, “You’re done. Don’t move. I’ll sort you after I get started on Amelia,” I got a return text.
Don’t know. I’ll ask her. Gotta go to class.
Thus I replied, Okay, kiddo. Talk to you later, and got back, Yeah. Bye.
I set my phone aside as Alyssa grabbed my hand armed with a cotton ball and polish remover.
She started going at my polish and I shared, “That was Auden. He’s coming over for dinner and to watch TV.”
I got two beaming smiles from two beautiful blondes as well as Josie’s, “That’s fabulous, Amelia,” and Alyssa’s, “Right on, sister!”
They were correct.
It was fabulous.
It was just sad that my life with my family was shifting to fabulous while Mickey’s seemed to be careening down an unknown path that was dark and forbidding.
Josie stayed while we did girl talk and I got my mani-pedi. Then Josie and I left and she took me to The Shack on the wharf, which was just that. A dilapidated shack that I’d noticed when Mickey walked me down the wharf weeks ago. With Josie, I found during the day it served coffee, breakfast and lunch, and it was run by a friend of Josie and Jake’s, a man named Tom who was all Magdalene: warm and friendly.
He also brewed excellent coffee.
Josie went her way, I went mine, mine being to Dove House.
But before I went in, I took out my phone and rang Mickey.
“Hey, baby,” he answered.