Page 91 of Switch
“And have you broken up with your brother yet?”Tomás takes a sip of his wine, looking decidedly smug.
Fuck.“It all sounds perfectly logical when you put it that way.I don’t know why it didn’t before.”
“Because you’re hurt.Betrayed, even.Which is perfectly valid.I’m not saying PJ handled things the right way, but I also think with enough determination trust can be rebuilt, yes?”
“Maybe.”
Fuck maybe.My brain has already latched onto Tomás’s perfectly reasonable explanation and is running with it like a track star who’s been handed the baton.I’m so relieved to have a reason to forgive him; my head is swimming.
Actually, that could be the wine.
Tempted to text PJ some sort of begging apology, I pick up my phone from the table and put it down again.“You know, I think I should probably get some sleep.”
Maybe begging should wait until I’m sober.
Tomás nods.“I’ll see myself out.”He stands.“Thank you for coming to the gallery with me.As friends.”
“Yeah.Friends.”I almost manage to smile back at him.
On his way to the door, my new tipsy friend misjudges the location of the entryway table, banging his hip on the corner and causing an old glass sculpture of Marina’s to wobble.
“Maybe you should stay here.Sleep off the wine.”I point my thumb toward the stairs.“I’ve got a guest room.If you don’t mind the fact that I didn’t get around to changing the sheets after the last time Wes crashed here, you’re welcome to it.”
He hesitates.It’s probably weird to stay after telling me he’s had a thing for me since Marina was still alive.
“Better safe than sorry,” I add.
Tomás turns around.“Better safe than sorry.You’re right.Thank you.”There’s a single heated look, a quick up and down that I pretend I didn’t see.Friends.
Speaking of better safe than sorry, I move Marina’s sculpture over to the living room coffee table for the time being.It gives an impression of two people embracing, and was one of her favorites.At least this way if someone bumps it again, it doesn’t have far to fall.
“I’ll grab you a spare toothbrush,” I tell Tomás, scooping up Bruiser and heading for the stairs.He’s gotten much less wobbly as weeks have gone by, but I still worry about him on the stairs.Bruiser squirms as I make my way up, a strange whining noise coming out of his throat.
“Everything okay?”Tomás nods at the squirming bundle in my arms.“I’m not an expert on dogs, but he seems agitated.”
“He’s got a condition that makes him unsteady when he walks, so for safety I don’t let him go up and down the stairs.Lately he’s been trying to assert his independence, I think.”
I punctuate my explanation by giving Bruiser a firm “No” when he tries to squirm out of my
“Seems you do have a bit of dominant in you, don’t you?”Tomás takes the toothbrush I find for him.“Thanks for the place to sleep.I’ll see you in the morning.”
We part ways, and after showering and dressing for bed, I’m not surprised to find myself still very much wide awake.Not surprised, but a bit disappointed.I’d hoped the wine would help.
After reading for a while, I give up and do the thing I know I’ve been wanting to do.
I pull out my phone and send PJ a message.Can we talk?
After a few minutes of staring at the unanswered text, hoping to see the three dots that tell me he’s answering, I give up and set my phone down.“Maybe he’s busy,” I tell Bruiser.Bruiser, who obviously doesn’t understand, comes over and puts his paws on the bed, asking to get up.
“I can’t let you sleep up here, buddy.It’s too easy for you to fall off.Wouldn’t be safe.”
Except I’m too weak tonight to say no to those puppy dog eyes.Against my better judgment, I pull him up, settling him against my side.It’s a big bed.I’ll just have to cuddle him close.He’s not PJ, but he loves me, and it’s better than being alone.
I’m about to switch off the bedside lamp when I hear a creak on the stairs.Did I hear a noise in the kitchen too?
It could be Tomás.Maybe he went downstairs for some water or a snack.
But the shivers on my neck tells me it isn’t.I’d have heard him moving across the hall, I think.Shuffling on the stairs.
