Page 11 of Amelia and Her Prince Charming
I picked up my suitcase and headed for my old bedroom. The lights under the doorways were all off, and I walked quietly down the hall.
Quinn was a light sleeper, and she’d probably already be struggling to sleep in a bed that wasn’t her own. I used to have to sing to her three or four songs and read her a story, and then brush her hair and sing another song, just to get her almost asleep. Then I’d lie on her floor until she finally drifted off. Most of the time, I’d fall asleep as well and wake up the next morning still on the floor of her room, using a stuffed animal for a pillow, with Quinn poking my face. She loved poking my face back then for some reason, as if making sure I was real.
On those days, Amelia would still be in bed or have fallen asleep in front of the couch in a state of complete exhaustion. We were both zombies for months, surviving on snatches of sleep and the realization that Quinn needed us.
I eased my bedroom door open and rolled my suitcase against the wall. Exhaustion was hitting me hard. Hopefully, a quick shower wouldn’t be enough to wake anyone up. But if I didn’t get the dumpster and travel washed off of me, I’d never sleep.
I unzipped my bag and pulled out my shower bag and pajamas. I’d gotten efficient travel procedures down to a T afterthe last year of going all around Alaska. I thought I would love living the nomad lifestyle, but I was finding that the loneliness wore on me. There were people everywhere I went, but no one who really knew me.
I took a quick shower in the hallway bathroom and brushed my teeth. My eyes looked as tired as I felt, and I was overdue for a haircut and a shave. I threw on a pair of flannel pajama pants, but I’d grabbed a collared shirt by accident. I turned off the bathroom light before opening the door and listened carefully for Quinn.
All was quiet as I went back into my bedroom. I tossed my shirt on top of the suitcase and headed for the bed. I was too tired to dig around for a T-shirt. Besides, even though it was the dead of summer, someone had turned the heater on—it was my mom. She was always cold.
I pulled the covers back and slid into bed, right next to a warm body.
“Hey, baby” Amelia said sleepily as she rolled toward me and wrapped her arm around my bare waist. We both froze as her skin touched my skin. I scrambled out of the bed, getting twisted in the blankets and falling onto the ground instead.
Amelia rolled to the edge of the bed and flipped on the bedside lamp. Her eyes widened as she took me in. “I thought you were Quinn,” she whispered.
“You thought I was Quinn?” I sputtered, still trying to untangle myself from the sheets in my panic. And trying to look anywhere but at Amelia, who was wearing tiny shorts and an oversized T-shirt that had fallen off her shoulder. Since I’d ripped all the blankets off the bed, I had a perfect view of her.
“Well, not after I touched you,” she said, a little defensively. “But when I heard you come into the room and felt someone get into bed with me. Quinn does that sometimes.” Her gazeflickered down to my chest, and then she bit her bottom lip and looked away.
“Mom said you were sleeping in Shiloh’s room,” I said.
Her cheeks turned pink. “I was going to, but I couldn’t sleep. It’s like a …” Her voice drifted off.
“Shrine?” I finished quietly. The entire room was filled with framed jerseys and trophies and pictures of Shiloh. It was a beautiful tribute to their son. But hard to casually take in while trying to fall asleep.
She nodded sheepishly. “It was making me too sad. I didn’t realize you were staying here too.” She stood, bringing her a little too close to me. Her hair still looked damp from her shower, and the floral scent of her surrounded me. I took a step back and bumped into the table with the lamp, sending it wobbling loudly. We both raced to set it right, then held our breaths, listening for Quinn.
“She still not sleeping well?” I whispered.
“A little better than before.” Amelia’s voice was barely audible. I had to lean close to hear. “But I have no desire to test out the limits tonight.”
I nodded in agreement. I didn’t know if they still had the same bedtime routine I used to have with Quinn, but it could take up to an hour.
“I’ll go.” Amelia skirted around me, but I lightly grasped her arm. Big mistake. I usually went out of my way to avoid touching her at all costs, but tonight, that had all gone out the window.
“Stay,” I said. She blinked, and I realized how that sounded. “I’ll sleep in Shiloh’s room,” I rushed to say.
“Oh.” Her eyebrows were furrowed in an expression I couldn’t read. “Are you sure? This is your room.”
“I’m sure,” I insisted. I stepped back from her, making sure to avoid tripping over the blankets again. I grabbed my suitcase and headed toward the door. I felt Amelia’s gaze on me as I left.
I went into Shiloh’s room, and this time I turned on the light to make sure there weren’t any unexpected visitors in this room. All clear. I set my bag down and accidentally knocked over a hockey trophy from Shiloh’s sophomore year of high school. It clattered to the ground, bringing with it another three trophies and a box full of metals. I winced and waited.
“Mommy!” Crap. I threw on the collared shirt and met Amelia in the doorway of Quinn’s room. Quinn sat up in bed and looked around the room, confused. “Uncle Hudson! Can you sing to me?” She held her arms out and motioned her hands forward. Who could say no to that?
“Quinn, Uncle Hudson needs to go to bed—”
“I’ve got this,” I said. I wasn’t going to get much sleep tonight, anyway, thinking about Amelia sleeping in my bed. It came a little too close to a dream I’d been harboring since I was eighteen. “What song do you want?”
“The one from tonight. I liked that one.” She lay back and closed her eyes. I stretched out on the floor with my hands behind my head and started to sing. Amelia stood in the doorway for another minute, and then slowly backed away. Through the shared wall, I heard her go into my old bedroom, get into my old bed, and turn off the lamp. She was tossing and turning.
I started into the second verse, and then another song, and another, my voice getting quieter with each new song, until Amelia stopped tossing and turning, and Quinn fell fast asleep.
Chapter 7
