“Happy birthday, bug,” he says in my ear. I burst into tears and turn to hug him, wrapping my arms around his neck. He lifts me off my feet like he used to do when I was a kid and I got excited when he’d pick me up from school. He gives me a kiss on my cheek and places me back on my feet.
“I’m sure Eli will take you out to test it after the party if you like.” I glance over at Eli, who nods in agreement. Sherry places her hand on his arm, mumbling something about them having plans.
I feel the ground fall out from beneath me, but I try to hide it by yelling, “Who’s ready for cake?”
Chapter 8
Eli
“You want to take it for a drive?”
I nod to the jeep as Maggie stands there staring at it, her eyes wide with excitement. The last of the guests have left and she came outside to look at her new ride.
“Let me get my wallet,” she says, bouncing inside.
It’s not two seconds later she’s got her stuff and she’s practically jumping into the driver’s seat. I climb in the passenger side, and she spends a few minutes playing with all the buttons and adjusting them to her satisfaction. She looks so freaking adorable, like a kid on Christmas morning.
“Where to, cupcake?” she asks, bouncing in her seat.
“Why don’t we go to the lake? The sun is about to set, and the drive will be nice.”
“Oh, perfect,” she says, and we take off.
The whole way over she’s talking about the party and who showed up. How she was surprised so many people came, but I wasn’t. She’s truly a ball of sunshine, and people are attracted to that.
Too many people, if you ask me.
I think about the guys from her school who were at the party. All of them wanted to get a good look at her in that dress that showed way too much skin for my taste. I had to grit my teeth and make a conscious effort to not remove limbs from bodies. I’d been cornered by Sherry, and I was only half listening to her when she asked me about going to dinner tonight, and I guess I must have said something to make her think I agreed. I was too busy being distracted by Maggie and how fucking beautiful she looked. I would have agreed to drink a bottle of vodka and move to Russia if someone had asked me. It annoyed me even more because while I was busy looking at how happy she was after getting her Jeep, Sherry piped up and wiped that smile off her face. Maggie tried to hide it, but I’d seen it. The thought of me going on a date made her mad. And a dark place in me loved it. That she was jealous did all kinds of things to my ego.
I tried to be as polite as I could to Sherry when telling her that she was mistaken about dinner and that I wouldn’t be able to make it. She seemed let down, but she also kept looking between me and Maggie, as if she suddenly realized there was something there. Maggie and I are almost always together when I’m at the clinic, but it’s never more than playful sibling-like banter. I don’t know what Sherry got in her head, but she was really cold to me the rest of the afternoon.
“Do you need to be back at a certain time?”
Maggie is trying to ask an innocent question, but there is more there. Especially after the hurt I saw in her eyes when she thought I was going to dinner with Sherry.
“Nope. I’m all yours, sunshine.”
She bites her lip to keep from smiling. But it’s not enough of an answer, I guess. “You sure? I thought maybe you had a date.”
“Not that I’m aware of. Do you? Seemed to be a lot of boys sniffing around you today.” I can’t keep the irritation out of my voice.
“Awww, you jealous?”
“Nah. I know you love me. No need to worry.”
“Yeah, and I’m not looking for a boy.”
I glance over at her and see the serious look on her face. A moment passes, and it’s different than before. Normally she’d laugh off me saying she loves me, or we’d cover it with a joke. But this time she doesn’t. And it just sits there between us.
We pull into the parking lot of the lake, and she drives down toward the boat ramp. There are spaces off to the side that have the best view, but normally they are full. Luck is on our side and the place is empty, so she’s able to pull right in and we’ve got a perfect view of the water and where the sun sets.
“Guess I should give you your birthday present now,” I say, reaching into my back pocket and pulling out the small box.
Maggie puts cuts the Jeep off and unbuckles, turning to me with both of her hands out. Never let it be said this girl doesn’t love getting presents.
When I place the box in her open hand, she grabs it and pulls it to her chest.
“Oh my God! I love it, thank you.”
“You haven’t even opened it yet,” I say, leaning back in the seat.
“It’s a blue Tiffany box. Are you shitting me? I love it based on the wrapping.”
I laugh and nudge her hand. “Open it.”
She unties the white ribbon and removes the lid. Her delicate fingers reach in and pull out the small linked bracelet decorated with three charms.
“Eli, this is beautiful.” She looks up at me with watery eyes, but her smile is so big.
It makes my chest ache knowing that I’m the one to do that. To make her so happy that she may shed a tear.
“I thought I could add to it as time goes on. The first one is pretty obvious.” I reach out and touch the sunshine. “The second one is pretty obvious, too.” I move over and touch the cupcake charm. “And the third is one that I wanted you to have.”
She looks down at it and back to me. “A heart?”
“Yeah,” I say, and pat my hand on my chest. “Thought since it was yours you should get to look at it every day.”
Suddenly she puts her face in her hands and she’s sobbing. “Oh shit. What did I do?”
I don’t know what happened. One minute she was happy, and the next she’s crying hysterically. This was not the reaction I had anticipated.
Unsure of how to handle this, I open the dash to see if there’s a tissue inside. But it’s a brand-new car, so there’s nothing but the owner’s manual. Reaching down, I grab her purse and look to see if there’s anything sticking out of it I can use. I don’t want to go through her things, but I feel helpless.
When I see a picture of a half-naked man in her bag, I can’t help myself and pull it out. “What the fuck is this?” I think for a second it’s a photo, but then I see it’s a card, and some of my irritation goes away. But only a bit. She shouldn’t be looking at stuff like this. But Maggie is still sobbing so loud she doesn’t hear my question. Without thinking, I flip it open and read what it says. “Who are you planning on having sex with?”
The growl in my voice must be enough to get through her cries, because she lifts her head and looks at me. Her eyes are bloodshot, and tears streak down both of her cheeks. It makes my heart ache, and I want to pull her into my arms to comfort her. But I’m so mad at this card that I can’t think about it.
“It’s just a joke,” she says, reaching out for the card. But I hold it out of her reach. “Eli, give me that back.”
“Why would she say this? Are you planning on having sex? Was it that fucker with the curly hair?”