"A few days, Nana," I said. I could afford to take a few days in West Bend, I told myself. I doubted anyone would recognize me anymore, at least from a cursory glance. The last time I’d actually set foot in the town of West Bend, I was a gangly, awkward seventeen-year-old. And even if someone happened to recognize me, it wasn't like there was a warrant out for my arrest.
There was also a part of me that craved the familiarity of West Bend. It was the only place I'd ever been truly happy, and I wanted a dose of that feeling again.
"Let me look at you, girl," Letty said, pausing, her eyes trailing up and down my body, narrowing as she looked at me. "Have you lost weight? Are you eating enough? You look like you have dark circles under your eyes. Are you sleeping? Don't lie to me - you're not getting enough sleep. I can see it in your eyes."
"Okay, Nana," I said. "Enough with the barrage of questions."
"Oh, don't Nana me," she said. "What's the helmet for? Are you riding that death trap again?"
I sighed, feigning exasperation but secretly happy with all the questions. It was a part of our routine that was familiar. "Yes, Nana. I'm sleeping. No, I haven't lost weight. Yes, I'm eating. Yes, I'm still riding the bike - I rode it out here from Vegas, in fact. Now, how are you feeling?"
"Sit down, girl," she said insistently, motioning to the upholstered chair across from her. She waited until I sat down to start in on me again, clucking her tongue against her teeth as she shook her head. "You kids these days. I don't know why you'd want to ride on something like that. You're asking to be flattened by a semi-truck."
I laughed. "Yeah, well, we can't all ride in horse-and-buggies, the way people did when you were a girl."
Letty hooted. "Horse drawn carriages," she said. "Do you think I'm two hundred years old, Tempest?"
"You don't look a day over a hundred and fifty, Nana," I said.
She guffawed, her hand on her stomach, and finally caught her breath. "Oh, Tempest, I missed you and your sense of humor."
I leaned forward in my chair. "Really, Nana," I said. "How are you doing? Be honest with me. Are they treating you well?"
"Are you kidding, girl?" she asked, gesturing toward herself. "Look at me! I'm fucking fantastic. This place is paradise."
I laughed so hard I nearly choked, hearing the words fucking fantastic come out of Letty's mouth. "Nana!"
"Oh, hush," she said. "I'm eighty years old. I can say the word fuck if I want to."
"Well, you seem like you're doing well, Nana," I said. "And you look good. I'm digging the leopard."
Letty grinned. "It's got rhinestones for added bling," she said. "You have to stand out here, you know, keep up with yourself. There is a lot of competition here."
"Who are you competing with?"
"There are more women here than men, you see, so you have to make sure you’re in primo shape," she said. Her gaze lingered on my arms. "Did you get new tattoos? That one, with the bird there, near your shoulder - I like it. I think I need some ink."
I laughed. "Nana, what the hell has gotten into you?"
She leaned forward, dropped her voice low, her tone conspiratorial. "Who hasn't gotten into me, Tempest?"
"Oh my God, are you talking about what I think you're talking about?" I asked. "Are you dating someone?"
She sat back in her chair, crossed her arms over her chest, and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Oh, honey, I'm not dating anybody," she said. "I'm playing the field. A lot. All the time."
My jaw fell open. "Nana, I don't even know what to say."
"Oh yes," she said. "This place is heaven on earth. I mean, the accommodations themselves are so-so, and the food is infrequently edible, but my social life has never been better. I wasn't having this much sex when your grandfather was alive, God rest his soul." She made the sign of the cross, even though I knew she wasn't religious.
"I'm glad you're having fun," I said, unable to stifle my chuckle.
"Fun isn't even the word," she said. "I'm having the time of my life. There are eligible men with prescriptions for the little blue pill all over this place."
"Oh, Lord," I said. "I'm not sure the staff here is equipped to deal with you."
"They aren't," she said, matter-of-factly. "And don't you go tipping them off, either. You let me have a little fun before I die."
"As long as you don't go dying on me," I said. "Not for a long time."
"I've got a few years left in me," she said. "Don't you worry about that."
"Well, if you keep partying like you're twenty-one, you might be kicking the bucket sooner than that, Nana," I said.
"Well then I'll go to the grave whooping it up," she said. "Like a rock star."
I laughed. "I missed you a lot, Letty."
"It's so good to see you, Tempest," she said. "But there is a reason I wanted you to come by."
"Not so you could regale me with tales of your debauchery?" I asked.
"Well, if you want to hear them, I can tell you all about Mr. Johnson in room 122," she said. "He snuck over here the other night and -"
I held up my hand. "Nana," I warned. "Do not tell me this story. I'll have to insist. Did you hear from my parents or something?"