Page 3 of Curious
Even bent over, he attempts to make a fist and pull his arm back, but Shelby yells, “Stop it. Both of you.”
I glance over at him and, okay,enough. I hold up my hands and address Evan. “Fine. Except. You pick on him, you answer to me.”
“Whatever,” Evan says, spitting blood. “Take that piece of trash with you, asshole, and don’t come back.”
I shake my head, wanting to keep defending Shelby, but I made my point. I’ll let Evan get the last word. That’s fine. I have nothing to prove, and Shelby seems safe.
Except just then, Evan shoves me hard on his way to, I don’t know, punch Shelby one last time. I push back, throwing my body between the two of them, but I step wrong on my ankle, bending it at a weird angle off the cement and into the landscaping. Something cracks. I catch myself before I fall, but not before I fuck up my leg.Bad.
“Oh, fuck,” I groan. I stand up and attempt to put weight on my ankle, but it crumples. So I balance on the one that’s still good.
Then I coldcock the guy, and he falls to the ground.
Shelby’s trembling. His face is gray. “I can’t believe you knocked him out.”
“I’m so sorry you had to see that,” I pant, shaking out my fist, blood pumping in my ears. “I’m sorry he treated you that way.”
“He deserved it.” He looks down and points at my ankle. “What should we do about that?”
“I’m sure it’s just sprained,” I say, even though searing fire is running through it. “No big deal. I’ll wrap it and ice it and take some Tylenol.”
“Let me take you to an urgent care.”
I shake my head. “No, that won’t work. I don’t have health insurance.” Not anymore. I lost everything because of her.
“What?”
“I’m a general contractor. I’m on my own. I have to carry workers’ comp, but this isn’t that. So I’ll go home, and I’ll deal. Don’t worry.”
“I will worry. What if it’s worse than a sprain?”
“It’s fine.” In fact, it hurts more than I’m willing to admit, and I’m wondering if this is one of those adult-type injuries like sleeping wrong or sneezing, where a little thing becomes a big-deal pain in the rear. Except, unlike those passive injuries, I was pushed.
But still—back in the day, I’d skateboard, ride bikes, snowboard and ski, jump off a roof into a pool and not think twice about it. If I got hurt, most of the time I bounced back fast.
Getting older sucks, although I’m not old. Thirty-one isn’t old.
Evan moans, and I look at Shelby. “Where are you planning on going right now?”
He comes up under my arm and helps support me. He’s sturdier than he looks, and he smells minty. “I think you need to get that looked at.”
“It’s fine,” I repeat. “Where areyougoing?”
He sighs. “I have no idea. I figured I’d get in my car and then find a coffee shop and look online for an Airbnb or a hotel.”
“Where did you move from? Can you go back?”
“No. I gave my notice at my last place, and the landlord had someone lined up right away. It’s okay. I can afford a hotel for a while.”
With his help, I kind of shuffle-limp to my truck. I pause before getting in. “Come home with me,” I blurt. “I live pretty close, and I’ve got a pool house you can stay in tonight. Or for a couple nights.”
He shakes his head. “No, it’s okay. I’ll go find a hotel.”
“Don’t,” I say. “Please. Come home with me. Let’s get you some ice for that lip.” I give him a sheepish grin. “My house is a construction zone, but the pool house is all fixed up. I just finished it.”
Shelby looks forlornly at Evan’s house and at his car. “Um. I’m not sure. Wouldn’t your … I mean, do you live with anyone?”
I shake my head. How much have my siblings told him about me? “No, I live alone. No wife or girlfriend. I’m single. No roommate. No one.”
