“Okay.” I smile, trying to hide my disappointment as I kiss him softly on the lips. “I guess I’ll see you in the morning.”
After my bath, I turn into bed and am surprised by how tired I actually am. Even though Gabriel is just down the hall, I feel an aching loneliness inside of me. He’s acting strange. I can’t remember him ever denying me before and find it especially odd considering how long we’ve been apart. As I consider all the possibilities, I drift off into a fitful sleep.
When I wake in the morning, I roll over to find the space beside me empty. Gabriel is either up early or never came to bed at all last night. There’s a gnawing feeling inside my stomach as I walk to the bathroom and wash up.
When I walk into the kitchen, I find him at the breakfast bar reading the newspaper, already dressed for work. “Good morning,” he says.
“Good morning,” I mumble. “I was wondering where you were.”
He looks away as he takes a sip from the orange juice in front of him. “I have to go in early today, you know to get all of this taken care of.” He waves his hand around at the imaginary burdens in the air around him.
“Okay, well what time will you be back tonight?” I try to contain the emotion in my voice. I’ve missed him, and I have no idea why it feels like there’s an ocean between us.
“I’m not sure,” he says, rising to his feet. “I’ll let you know, baby. I’ve got to go.” And with a quick peck on the cheek, he’s out the door.
The morning seems to drag on. I find that Gabriel has already put all of my clothes into one side of his walk-in closet, and the rest of my stuff is packed neatly in boxes. I sort through the boxes, pulling out my makeup and other necessities before I shower.
After I’m dressed and ready for the day, I call Marvin at the courier office, only to be informed that I no longer have a job there. He had to hire two other couriers while I was gone, but at least had the decency to sound apologetic. I suspect that it has more to do with my stint in the slammer than anything else, but thank him politely anyway.
I grab my camera and head into the city to take some photos. But after an hour, I’ve already given up. My heart just isn’t in it today, so I hop on the subway and make my way to Café Dolce to meet Angelina for lunch.
It’s just past noon when I walk into the small Italian themed café to find Angelina waiting patiently for me. She jumps from her seat and pulls me into a warm hug. “Hey, dollface!”
Her enthusiasm to see me feels nice, and I grin back at her. “Hey Angelina, thanks for meeting me.”
“No problem,” she says, taking a seat across from me.
The waiter appears and I order an iced tea while I look over the menu. Angelina watches me closely, and then laughs when I give her a strange glance.
“You look like you might blow away over there.” She smiles. “I’m under Gabriel’s strict instructions to make sure you eat, so you better not even think about ordering a salad.”
I laugh and roll my eyes. “He would say that.” But even as I say it, I feel a little pang of sadness. He didn’t seem so concerned about me this morning when he was rushing out the door.
“What’s the matter?” Angelina asks, noticing my sudden shift in mood.
I set down my menu and shake my head. “It’s nothing.”
“Tell me,” she demands, with the same intimidating look Gabriel likes to use. I smile at the resemblance I never noticed before. “Did he do something to piss you off?” she asks. “He’s good at that.”
“No.” I laugh. “It’s kind of weird, he’s your brother, I don’t really want to…”
“Just tell me,” she says, exasperated. “We’re friends, aren’t we? You can tell me anything, I promise I will be totally unbiased.”
I blow out a breath and shrug as though it’s not really that big of a deal. “I don’t know,” I say softly. “He just seemed kind of distant last night after everyone left, and this morning too. I don’t know what’s going through his mind.”
Angelina dismisses my line of thoughts with a wave of her hand. “He’s just worried about you honey,” she reassures me. “You should have seen him while you were away. He was so angry, geez you couldn’t say one little thing to him. And then yesterday when he knew you were coming home, he lit up like a Christmas tree. Trust me, you have nothing to be worried about, Victoria, he is madly in love with you.”
“Okay,” I say, resigned.
Angelina smiles knowingly, reaching across the table to squeeze my hand. “You’ve both been through a lot, it’s just going to take some time to get back in the swing of things.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you’re right.” I nod. “I’m just being silly.”
“Well, you shouldn’t feel weird. I’ve never seen Gabriel so happy before. Quite frankly, it’s a little creepy.” She laughs. “But seriously, he’s head over heels with you honey. You’re all he ever talks about.”