“It’s what he does best.” I smirked. “Good detective work, sis.”
Jasmine shrugged, smiling with bashful modesty. It was so fake. “I do my best.” Then the smile slipped from her face. “I want to talk to Angela.”
I sighed as I leaned back in the chair. I started rolling back so I sat up and scooted closer to the bed. “Yeah, I figured.”
“You’re not throwing a tantrum.” My sister scrutinized me with those eggplant-colored eyes of hers. “Why aren’t you throwing a tantrum?”
“I do not throw tantrums,” I deadpanned. “Period. Exclamation point. Frowning emoji. End of discussion.”
The way her mouth squirmed, I knew she was trying to hold back a smile.
“I look out for you, that’s all. The Smiths…”
I am afraid.
I shuddered, avoiding my sister’s gaze. “They make me uncomfortable but I can tell they’re not dangerous. They’re people, just like us, with questions and fears and a stupid curse. After reading Angela’s diary, I’m sure you have questions. Who knows? You might find out more helpful information if you met with her outside of the precinct.”
“I might.”
“So, if you’re looking for my permission—”
“I’m not,” Jasmine said.
I frowned. “I’m giving it to you anyway.”
We kept up the serious staring contest for a little while longer. Then my sister grinned, slow and creepy, like the Cheshire Cat.
“I like you with a girlfriend. Esmer makes you more reasonable.”
“Esmer’s got nothing to do with this,” I grumbled, my face searing hot.
“Uh-huh.” Jasmine settled back into her pillows. “How’d it go last night?”
My mind was transported back to that half hour of being tangled up with Esmer. Her body had felt so warm and soft and perfect against mine. Beside her, over her, under her; it didn’t matter. We fit together just right. I couldn’t describe how addicted I was to her hands, how electrifying it had been to have her touch my back, my chest, my face, my hair. While her lips and tongue…
My heart was tapping some crazy hard beats against my ribs. It almost hurt. But not as much as it hurt knowing I had to wait until tonight to kiss her again.
I’d always hated pop songs featuring some guy going on and on about every little detail of his new crush. But I totally got it now. It was like my senses had been heightened, like my memory had improved by one thousand percent. Esmer’s touch and taste, and how they made me feel were imprinted onto my psyche. I’d dreamed about her last night, my mind replaying our time together on the big screen in vivid color and crisp sound. I’d woken up with enough energy to power a small town. It was incredible but also kind of terrifying.
I couldn’t be in love with her, right? We’d just started dating. We’d only known each other a few months. It was just because she was the first in a very long time. Everything was so intense because I was rusty. Yeah, that had to be it…
“Earth to Charlie,” my sister sang, waving a hand in my face.
I snapped out of my thoughts with a real smart-sounding, “Hmm?”
My sister looked so smug; it chased away the lingering effects of my titillating memories. “You were drooling a little bit there. Where did your mind wander off to?”
“Nowhere. Nothing. Shut up,” I growled.
Jasmine heaved a dramatic sigh and cupped her cheeks. That goofy smile of an enamored fangirl made me scowl. “You’re so lucky you get to kiss someone. I’ve always wanted to. Give me all the gory details, little brother.”
“Oh, gross.”
“Come on. Let me live vicariously through you,” she said with a pout.
“Knock it off, Jazz.”
My sister was still giggling when Anthony came out of the elevator with a bundle of letters in one hand and his keys in the other. He smiled real big when he saw Jasmine was awake. He crossed the apartment in three strides, dropping the mail on the coffee table as he passed.
“Good. You’re up. How’re you feeling?”
“Same as always,” my sister said, flashing a tentative smile. “Don’t tell me you stuck around just to make sure I was okay. Charlie’s here. You could’ve gone home.”
“Well, to be honest, I was anxious to hear more about your theory.”Anthony sat on her bed with his back to me. I could only see his profile but he looked deliriously happy.
What was going on with him?
Jasmine must’ve noticed the doctor was acting a little weird because she gave me a look which clearly said, “Give us a minute?”
I rose from the rolling chair. “I’m going to see if we got any letters from Mom.”
Honestly? I couldn’t care less. Which had me stumbling on my way to the coffee table. I used to look forward to those letters, no matter how disappointing and insufficient they were. When had that changed?
The last one I’d read had been shortly before Esmer and I had run into each other at my favorite taco truck. Coincidence? Probably not. Life was more bearable now. The desire to escape was so minuscule, it was practically nonexistent. I guess it might’ve had something to do with the new lifeline I had now, the one that trumped empty promises and halfhearted declarations of love from the woman who’d given us up.
I still flipped through the envelopes until I found the one with my mom’s handwriting on it. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw my sister leaning forward as she spoke to her doctor in hushed tones. She reached out to grip his hand. I set Mom’s letter down, apart from the rest, so Jasmine would find it easily. Then I went looking for my uncle.
Thinking about my past and remembering everything my uncle had done for me made something very clear: I was an ingrate and a jackass. I’d already apologized for scaring him last night, but I’d been a little pissed at him for unnecessarily sacrificing his happiness for us, so it
