Page 8 of Hard Focus
“I drove you.” He shrugged. Putting special emphasis on the little girl’s name, he told her, “Adrianne’sasleep, so I can’t take you home.” A sly grin lifted one corner of his mouth. “Seems like you’ve got to stay now. Still time to give me my present.”
Are you kidding me?He seemed entirely oblivious to her mood tonight. She lifted her phone between them when it looked like he would have taken a step towards her. “I called a ride.”
He stared at her for a moment, then sighed. “Do you love me?” Connie’s stomach dipped, and she focused on keeping her breathing slow and even, because his sudden demand was startling, especially after the near fight they’d just come through. He stared at her with nostrils flaring and pulled in a deep breath when she didn’t respond. “That’s the answer then, isn’t it? Is that the answer? Is that a not yet, or a not ever? I think I deserve to know, seeing as how I’ve put a lot of work into this relationship, Connie. I want it to work.”
“I don’t know.” She answered him honestly, unsettled by his direct attack over her nonresponse. “I’m not someone who’s had a lot of relationships, Jonas.”
“I know,” he said, expression turning earnest. “That’s one of the things that I find most charming about you. There’s none of the stupid luggage for us to get past. I hoped I’d be it for you.”
A horn sounded from the street at the same time her phone buzzed in her handandshe turned away. “Car’s here. I have to go. I need a couple of days, but I’ll call you.”
He didn’t say another word when Connie walked to the door, but as she closed it behindher,she heard Adrianne’s voice lifted in a familiar nightmare-riddled cry of, “Mommy.”
***
Connie settled back against the pillows, tablet nearby. She shifted and winced at a sudden pain, lifting her nightgown to stare at the purple circles riding both hips. Nothing made sense after today, and the entire ride home she’d tried to sort out not only what had happened, but how she felt.
I’m not happy.
Her phone pinged,andshe glanced over to see a text message flash across the screen.If it’s Jonas, I’m going to be pissed. It had been less than two hours since she’d left him standing in his apartment, fury radiating off him.I told him I needed some time.
It chimed again, and she snatched it off the nightstand, her scowl slowly turning into a smile as she tapped the image sent, blowing it up larger to see more detail.
That’s too cute!She typed out her response and sent it, then looked at the picture again. Her mom had managed to capture her dad and sister in a moment that didn’t scream fight or frustration. They were standing alongside the family dining room table, bent nearly in half as they searched a jumble of puzzle pieces scattered across the surface. Heads close together, the resemblance was strong. While Connie had inherited her mother’s coloring including hair so dark it was nearly black, her sister, Nelly, had taken after their father.
Good to see them getting along.She sent that message without guilt, because Nelly had a mind of her own, and their father didn’t always see eye-to-eye with her.
We miss you.Connie’s lips curved in a soft smile at her mother’s message.
I miss you too.
Her phone buzzed in her handandshe opened the message to see another photo, this of her father and mother mugging for the camera, clearly taken by Nelly.
Shouldcomevisit sometime. We don’t have cooties.Connie grinned at her sister’s commandeering of their mother’s phone. This was more like the playful little sister sherememberedbefore adulting had taken its toll, sending them in different directions.
You could come here.I’vea cootie-free guest bedroom.She shook her head, even as she sent the message. Nelly wouldn’t come. Connie hadn’t seen her sister in years. Nelly had arranged to be unavailable every time Connie had returned home for a visit.We were close once.
Maybe I will.
***
Jonas
He stared at his phone. Connie hadn’t called him for a week, and then only to explain she had a work conflict with their next planned date night.She has the worst timing ever. He sighed, already dreading more long nights without her.
Are you sure-sure you have a work thing?His thumbs tapped across the surface of the phone, sliding letters into place on the message. He studied it for a moment then sent it and waited.
Yes, I have to work that night.She was still typing, he could see, so Jonas waited. When it finally came, he tried to smooth the scowl he knew twisted his features.If you don’t trust me, we have bigger problems than I thought.
Jesus.It’s not that I don’t trust you.He sighed.I just miss you.
It took a few starts and stops of her typing, butfinally,she sent him something. Not what he wanted, but something.
What do you have planned for your next day with Addy?
He frowned because that text meant she was avoiding his message about missing her.
Can I call you?
