I turned around, remembering Drew was there. He was on his phone, standing back in the hall. I knew he’d witnessed my outburst, but I hoped whoever he was talking to hadn’t heard me. When he was off the phone, he came up to me.
“Wasn’t that the poster they used to have up in the window when we were kids?” he said.
I nodded, “Yeah, it wasn’t the same one—that one was too bleached out from the sun. I special ordered this one, just like it. Now it’s garbage,” I said.
“How can I help?” he said.
“I need—to do a thousand things. I need a tarp to cover the hole in the roof in case it rains again or in case, like, squirrels try to move in here.” I shook my head.
“I just got off the phone with a friend of mine. We’re gonna get some industrial blowers in here to dry out the carpet and books the best we can, see what can be saved and keep it from molding.”
“You did? Oh my God. Thank you, Drew. You’re my hero!” I said. Then I looked down at my feet, kind of embarrassed I’d made such a big deal about it. “I mean, that was very thoughtful of you. Thank you. Let me know what I owe you.”
“Nothing. I called in a favor. Want me to give Noah a call to see if he can come patch that roof up temporarily?” he offered.
“I can do that. Thanks.”
I got on the phone and convinced Nic’s husband to head over and cover the massive hole in the roof for the night. I couldn’t help being touched that Drew had thought of bringing in blowers, and that he was helping me take care of things. By the time I was off the phone with Noah, Drew’s friend arrived. Under my direction, they set up three huge blowers and a generator to run them. I was so relieved to have that set up. By the time Noah had a couple tarps covering the opening in the roof, I had taken hundreds of photos documenting the damage and filled four contractor’s bags of trash. Sodden ceiling tiles, leaves and limbs that had blown inside, paper and other garbage. I was dead on my feet when Drew found me in the storage room throwing out holiday decorations that had been soaked beyond usefulness.
“Hey you,” he said. “Get over here.”
“What?”
“We’re leaving. You’re overwhelmed and you’re only one person. There’s a lot of things that need to be fixed, but you can’t fix it all tonight.”
I nodded. “I need a shower or three to get me cleaned off, and I want to get some sleep.”
“I’ll take you home.”
On the way home, he stopped at the pizza place and hopped out. “I’ll be right back,” he said.
When he came back, he handed me a large paper cup and I took a drink, “Root beer?” I said, puzzled. “I can’t remember the last time I had a root beer.”
“Come on, that was your favorite. Pretend like nothing’s changed,” he teased. Then he showed me the large pizza he’d ordered, mushroom and onion and pineapple. “You still like this?”
“Oh Lord. That’s my favorite. I always said if I was on death row—"
“It would be your last meal? Yeah. I was the one you had that conversation with.”
“And your last meal was going to be an all-you-can-eat buffet,” I laughed.
He handed me a slice of hot pizza. I practically moaned it tasted so good.
“This is amazing,” I said.
We sat in the parking lot and ate pizza in the cab of his truck. I slurped my root beer. “I admit, this is better than Diet Coke.”
“I’m glad it’s hitting the spot,” he said as he started the engine and drove back to my house.
“Look, I wasn’t going to pressure you, but I have to ask,” he started, pulling into my driveway.
“Ask what?” I said, taking a deep breath, bracing myself.
“Can I come in? I want to spend the night. I’ll just stay with you and hold you. I won’t even take off my clothes if you don’t want me to,” he said.
It hit me right in the chest like an anvil, loving him and knowing it was a terrible idea at the same time. I shook my head. I wanted to say yes more than anything, but I knew too much had happened too quickly. I needed time to think, time to myself.
“That’s really sweet of you, but I’m tired. I’m just going to take a shower and go to sleep. Thanks again,” I said.
“If that’s what you want. I’ll come check on things tomorrow if that’s okay.”
I hopped out of his truck and went inside. I didn’t watch him drive off. I locked up and took my shower, scrubbing my belly, my thighs, every place on my skin that he had kissed and licked and touched. I washed my hair and then I went to bed without even drying it. I was asleep almost immediately.