“She’s a good kid,” she says.
I want to tell her Lilah hasn’t been a kid for a while, but I keep my mouth shut. “I’m just going to let her hang here until she’s good to go home.”
“Okay, Bran.” There’s a pregnant pause and I know my mom well enough to know there’s more coming. “Just be careful.”
I haul a deep breath. “Got it, Ma.”
I go back to Lilah and sit, my legs extended and my ankles crossed, my back against the headboard. I watch her sleep and only realize hours have gone by when the sun starts to set outside my window. Finally, just as the room goes dark, she stirs and opens her eyes.
“Hey.”
She pulls herself up and rubs the sleep out of her eyes. “How long have I been asleep?”
I glance at my phone screen. “About three hours. Hungry?”
“Yeah,” she says, pressing a hand to her stomach.
“I’ll pull something together.” I stand and hold out my hand. “C’mon.”
She lets me haul her off the bed and follows me to the kitchen. I open the fridge and don’t find much. “Eggs?”
She smiles a little and the sight lightens my heavy heart. “That actually sounds really good.”
I pull a pan down from the rack and crack a few into it. “Plates are behind you,” I say, nudging my chin at the cupboard behind her.
She pulls two down and stands with her butt against the counter, looking around the apartment. It strikes me at that moment that she’s never been here before.
When they’re done, I slide two eggs onto each plate and hand her one. I grab a couple of Cokes from the fridge on my way to the table.
“Mom’s covering the bar. I’ll stay here with you tonight,” I say as we slide into seats at my small kitchen table.
There’s a second her gaze catches on mine and sparks, but the spark flares out almost immediately and she just looks worn down. She pokes at her eggs, then carves off a bite. That first bite seems to fuel her appetite and she devours the rest.
“That was good,” she says, wiping the back of her hand across her mouth and setting her fork on her plate. “Thanks.”
She polishes off her Coke as I lift our plates and drop them on top of a few others in the sink. I grab two more Cokes as she heads to the couch. She picks up the remote and surfs the channels. By the time I make it to the couch and pull her tight to my side, she’s stopped on It’s a Wonderful Life.
Christ, I’d forgotten that Christmas is next week.
I sit and drape my arm across her shoulders and she settles into my side. For the next two hours, as George Bailey goes through hell and back trying to save everything he loves, I hold the thing I love close. I know she has to find her way through this, but I’ll do whatever I can to help, even if it’s only this.
As the credits start to roll, she yawns. “I slept all afternoon. I shouldn’t be tired.”
“You’ve faced down some pretty major demons today. That’ll knock the crap out of you.”
She presses against me and when her mouth meets mine, I can’t stop the shudder. I know she feels it when she draws back and looks into my eyes as if looking for something she lost in there.
I stand and pull her off of the couch by the hand. When we get to my room, I dig a T-shirt out of my drawer. “In case you want to change before bed.”
Her eyes widen slightly. “I’m staying here?”
“I’m not going to tell you what to do, Lilah, but if you need some space to deal with what you’ve remembered, you can have that here. I’ll stay tonight, because I need to know you’re okay, but beyond that is up to you. I can stay with you or just give you the place and let you decompress here.”
She takes the shirt from my hand. “Has anyone ever told you how incredible you are?”
I back toward the door. “I’ll be on the couch tonight if you need anything.”
She lunges for my hand and tugs me back to her. “I do need something. I need you with me. Please stay.” Her eyes reflect the desperation that she barely manages to keep out of her voice.
“Whatever you need, Lilah,” I tell her, and I mean it. I will give her anything.
She starts to lift her shirt over her head and I turn and pull a fresh shirt for me. When I glance back at her, she’s shucking off her jeans and my shirt falls mid-thigh. I breathe deep to keep my libido in check. Tonight is about making sure Lilah feels safe.
She pulls back the covers and climbs under. I flick off the light and slide in next to her. She grasps my arm and pulls my front to her back. I curl around her like armor, and that’s where I finally fall asleep.