Page 57 of Call Out
She throws her head back, tipping the empty glass to her lips, capturing a shard of ice. “I don’t believe you.”
Frustration sits on my tongue. I hold it in. The last thing I want to do is break the woman completely. Even if she’s clearly delusional. “I’ve been clear about my feelings for a long time, Zoe. Last year you were in love with that guitar player. He was your everything—isn’t that how you described him?”
The glass thuds down. “I was trying to make you jealous,” she grits out.
For five months she disappeared with her musician boyfriend while they toured every bar in Texas. There was zero sign of a green-eyed monster on my part. I was relieved more than anything.
“I’m in love with Viv. She’s the bright spark to kick start my life. I want a future with her. I hope you find happiness of your own one day. You deserve to grow into the best version of yourself. Drugs and alcohol mask your fear of being alone or losing someone else. Stop hiding behind it and take your life into your own hands. I want that for you.”
When her chin wobbles, she glances out of the window. Flicking her head as if studying the view, she angles back to me. “I’m a little lightheaded. This is so much to take in. You’ve always been there for me, and after tonight I’ll be all alone.”
I lean closer, covering her icy hand with mine. “It’s a new beginning for both of us.”
Rejection sinks her shoulders. She dips her head so onlookers would assume we’re having an intimate conversation. “I’ll call it a night. You can wait for Viv on your own.”
“Where are you staying?”
“The Cottages.”
“I’ll order you a cab.” And I back away from her nonsense. “Have a sip of water.” Ice cubes pelt the bottom of a clean glass as I pour.
“Don’t worry. It's okay. Will you help me stand?” She holds out a shaky hand. “Suddenly I don’t feel so good. My legs have gone fuzzy.”
I rise and round the table, taking her clammy palm and carefully hoisting her upwards. Immediately, she lifts to her toes and presses a kiss to my jaw. “Thanks for sticking by me, big guy.” Her lips linger, too close for comfort, then she drops and holds my gaze from under slow beating lids. Her once dazzling baby blues appear jaded and lackluster. The failed attempt to stir affection only dampens her mood further. “I’m happy for you, honestly.” She slays me with the emotion thick in her throat and liquor heavy on her breath.
Nuzzling her temple to my chest, she slides her arms around my waist. “I can’t feel my hands. Is that normal?”
With one arm, I circle her shoulders, propping her upright as she leans into me. “Why do you do this to yourself?” I mutter. I tilt her chin back and press the pads of my fingers to the slow pulse in her throat. Her eyes roll. “Zoe, did you do something stupid?”
“I haven’t eaten since this morning. I’m tired and emotional.”
All eyes land on the spectacle. A pale faced drunken woman and an off-duty paramedic holding her up. My clothes tighten around me. This will give the small town a new rumor to blow up. I’ve been in the headlines with vicious gossip for years. I will not allow Viv to take a lashing from pronged tongues when they assume I’m cheating.
My arm drops to the base of her spine, and I try to put distance between us. When I move, she glues herself to my side. I glance at my wristwatch, wondering when Viv will get here. The text message said to meet her at six-forty-five. and now it’s close to seven o’clock.
A chorus of cheers mutes when we burst in the evening air and the door slams behind me.
“Danny?” Zoe gazes up at me and angles her torso into my chest. “Did you ever love me? Back then, when we made out on your porch?”
“Stop this, Zoe.” She snakes her arms beneath my jacket. “I don’t feel well. Maybe I took more than two pills. I can’t remember.”
Fuck! She’s overdosed. I cup her cheeks and stare into her eyes to check her pupils. “What did you do, Zoe?
“Just get me a cab. I’ll be okay on my own.”
I’m standing outside McClintocks, suffocating in dumbstruck silence. My pulse ebbs. My eyes sting. How my heart is still beating is a mystery, because I’m witnessing betrayal. A treachery so cruel that I swear my soul has literally withered and expired. I never thought it was possible to hear your own heart break until tonight. The earthy musk of a burnt orange sunset, cooling a day's worth of warmth, seeps into the putrid stench of gasoline. The odor imprints this precise moment to my heightened senses.
I see Zoe’s lips land on my man.
I feel the pain of his arm drawing her close.
I taste the duplicity of their date.
I hear Nonna lamenting my stupidity.
What casts the final blow is how he jerks her into his side like she belongs there, like she’s precious to him.
This morning I was soaring high straight for the clouds. Now I’m falling below the earth’s surface, plummeting into the fires of hell. He lied to me. What I thought was made of gold, was really made of stone.
