Page 69 of Until He Confesses
"What do you mean?"
"Your parents," she said. "I can't believe I never met them. Even your mom. I only knew one time I was at your house that she had returned from work but, as you said, she was fast asleep and didn’t really care to meet anyone."
I smiled as I remembered the incident.
"Yeah, they're both still well, though none of us speak to each other much anyway."
Her eyebrows shot up in surprise to hear this.
"Really?"
"Yeah. I was never really close to my dad, and when my brother died, it sort of worsened. My mom and I are fine but just distant. I get too busy to keep in touch, she wasn't ever really one for affection. I remember her birthdays sometimes, she remembers mine, and I always receive a call every year. She's remarried now, so I try to stay out of the way of her new family. I'm sure she's doing great."
At her silence, I looked at her, and I could once again see the shock in her eyes.
“What is it?” I asked.
"Your brother died?" she asked, and I nodded.
"A few years ago."
She seemed immensely sad by this.
"I'm so sorry," she said.
"It's alright," I replied. “I think I mentioned to you that after my parents got divorced and he took my father’s side, we more or less became enemies. I couldn’t understand why he would do that, and my mom felt the same way.”
“I'm sorry for making you talk about it,” she said. “You’ve never really liked the topic.”
“It’s okay,” I replied. “I’ve gotten a lot stronger since then.”
“Yeah,” she smiled incredibly sweetly and once again my full attention was on her. But this time around it was on the beautiful smile on her face and the inviting curve of her lips.
33
CALLIE
He was doing it again.
Watching my lips as though they were the most beautiful and delectable things he had ever seen. Years earlier, it caught my attention and led us both down a path that I still wasn't able to disentangle myself from. But here he was again, almost a decade later, and it was the same. At this point, I didn't know whether still being associated with him was a good thing or a bad thing. Given how he had stepped in for me and my mother during this emergency, the answer was a no-brainer. But this constant back-and-forth, fighting and making up, I couldn't stand it.
I wondered if the best thing was to ignore it and him. After all, he would be returning to the city soon, so we wouldn't have to be in contact. But I wasn't that shameless. I knew I couldn't just pretend that he hadn't helped me immensely and look away, so once again, I was attached to him.
I set my chopsticks down, almost done with my food, and now fueled with the energy to think. I thought of how I could pay him back, but eventually, only one option came to mind. I watched him for a little bit as he completed his meal until eventually, I decided to be as straightforward with him as was possible. He knew I wanted to speak to him but didn't act the least bit curious. Instead, he gave me the time to build up the courage with what I wanted to say.
I narrowed my eyes at him.
"You know what I want to say, right?" I asked, and the corners of his lips tilted in a smile. He set his cutlery down, took a sip of his water, and settled his attention on me. God, he was so fucking handsome. Currently, he was wearing a very loose vest shirt and jogging pants, and his hair was brushing his shoulders and away from his face in waves. What a fucking gorgeous man was all I could think, and it brought me just as much pain as it did pleasure because I hoped to God, for what had to be the millionth time now, that things were as they should have been between us.
"You're looking for a way to pay me back, aren't you?" he said.
I didn't respond.
"Why don't you let your mom get out of the hospital first?" I asked. “The bill awaiting you is a hefty one. Handle that first, and then we can talk about what you owe me.”
I sighed and shook my head.
“That’s why we need to talk because as much as I'd like to, I really can't spend the rest of my life paying you back, and I can't have the fact that I owe you hanging over my head.”