I saw that look roll over her eyes, that look she first gave me when I told her I was dropping out of school. At first, I thought it was disappointment or anger masked as exasperation for what I was putting our family through. We hadn’t talked for days as that look boiled behind her eyes, but it wasn’t until later that I figured out the look was jealousy.
And Anna was jealous now.
“You want you a construction hunk, huh?” I asked.
“Who the hell wouldn’t? Oh, fuck. I bet he’s sexy, too. What’s he look like?” she asked.
“Strong. Tall. Tattoos on his arms, his back, and his chest. Rippling abs and large hands. One of his hands stretches across my entire butt cheek, Anna.”
“Oh, shit,” she said, groaning. “I wish I had your life.”
“You could, you know,” I said.
“No. I really couldn’t.”
“Yes, you really could. You could follow your dreams. Take off to Europe. Audition for opera houses and find you a wonderful bass whose notes tickle your ribcage and whose facial tickles your thighs.”
“You’re insane,” Anna said, giggling. “I can’t pack up and leave. Not like you could. I don’t have those kinds of guts.”
“It doesn’t take guts,” I said. “It
takes being fed up with the way things are. Anna, what really brought you here early?”
Just then, the doorbell rang. Anna hopped up and took the money out of her bra and opened the door for our food. The smell of pizza and cinnamon sticks wafted into my little studio apartment, and my mouth instantly began to salivate. I quickly checked my phone to see if Bryan had sent me anything regarding his parent’s dinner, but I didn’t have anything new.
Not since he told me he’d gotten there safely.
“I swear, this is the best pizza joint, and they deliver right to you,” she said as she sat back down.
“I single-handedly keep them in business,” I said as I reached for a slice. “Now, no more distractions or derailing. What’s going on?”
“Why don’t you regale me with Bryan a little while longer, all right? I’m still not drunk enough to tackle that subject.”
“Well, I mean. He’s the whole package, right? Intelligent, strong, handsome. He even has this passion for art. He draws. Designed his own tattoos. And they’re magnificent, Anna. If you come to the gallery while he’s there, you’ll see them.”
“Oh, I intend on meeting him while I’m here. I wanna see the hunk who has my sister pinned in bed,” she said.
“Hey! How did you know he pinned me in bed?” I asked.
“Holy. Shit. I meant that metaphorically, but now you have to spill every fucking detail right now.”
“How about this? I will once you tell me what’s going on with you,” I said.
“Just a few more minutes,” she said as she got up again.
“Well, he really believes in my gallery and what I wanna do in the community. You know, with my art therapy and my classes and stuff.”
“That’s good. It’s nice to have a man who believes in you,” she said. “Want some more wine?”
“Just bring the bottle over here and sit down,” I said.
“Honestly? He seems a bit too good to be true. What’s the downside to this guy, huh? What’s the nitty-gritty?”
The problem was, she was right. There was no nitty-gritty about him unless you knew what I did. Unless you’d seen what I’d seen.
Unless you’d experienced what I had with John.
“He has his hardships like everyone else but nothing that tarnishes him as a man. You know, he understands having a strained relationship with his parents, that kind of thing.”