“Yes, Matt. I have built a luxurious life for us. Isn’t that enough?”
“I don’t care about these things. Not like I care about you.”
The room fell silent for a few breaths. My heart was nearly racing as my fingers trembled. Leandro flustered me beyond words, but I had to be clear. I had to try and get through to him or our relationship may not last.
I went and sat at his side. His eyes lifted to mine in a soft expression that told me he was tired of fighting as much as me.
“I remember when we first met. That evening on the pier, remember?” I drew a smile thinking about the night.
Leandro had a straight face as he said, “I’ll never forget it.”
“It was cold out, and you and I had just met at Felicia’s party.”
“Yeah, Felicia knew how to throw a party,” he laughed.
“Not anymore.”
“Well, not since the kids.”
I turned a little in my seat and faced him directly. “You gave me your sweater and offered to drive me home because I was tipsy, and my phone had died. I didn’t even realize then that I was attracted to men. You showed me kindness, and you genuinely cared about me.”
“I always have.” Leandro took my hand and held it tight. “That’ll never change.”
I held my tongue for a second. I didn’t want to ruin the moment, but I hadn’t yet said what I wanted to say. “It does change.” Leandro’s brow lifted. “It changes every time your mother calls, or the press makes an assumption about your sexuality.”
Leandro sighed as he took his hand from mine.
“Don’t deny it.”
He set his glass down and then rubbed his temples before getting up.
“I’m exhausted. We can talk about this tomorrow.”
“Why not now?”
“I just came in from a ten-hour flight, Matt. I’m jet lagged and I’m hungry.”
I got up from the loveseat and walked past him. I was exhausted too, but he just couldn’t see that.
“Matt?”
I kept going, up the stairs and to our room. And Leandro just stood there alone.
JOURDANNE
“He did what?” Parvati was helping me clean up a guest room. She knew I wasn’t getting paid for the work at the Inn as of late, and that meant she was stepping up her best friend duties. I loved her for it.
“Yeah. Leandro walked in on us.”
“So, did you?”
“Did I what?”
“Did you finally have sex?”
“No!” I had to laugh, even though the memory of the whole mess left a sour taste in my mouth. “I would have, though.”
“He is sexy.” Parvati rolled down the sheets from the bed and threw them into the rolling cart by the door. I was over by the window looking out at the street. The café was still a huge mess of ashes and unrecognizable materials, even from a block away.
“What are we going to do?”
She waved her arms in a shrug. “I have no idea, girl. I mean, I’ll probably ask my parents for a little cash until the café opens back up. I have a bit in my savings too. Not much.”
“No. It never is.”
She and I redressed the bed and tidied up the room. I sprayed a floral air freshener around the place, then we closed the door and headed down to the laundry room behind the kitchen. My dad was out that day talking to contractors about the roof.
“Can’t your dad just have the landlord handle the repairs?”
“That’d be nice, right? The original owner died a while back, and his trust is now handled by the family’s lawyers. They made my dad sign a new contract that even though he leases the building, and has done so for almost thirty years, he’s responsible for anything that happens while he’s renting.”
Parvati made a face. She popped one hand on her hip and then shook her head. “I hate rich people.”
I laughed. “Not all of them are bad. Besides, I can help pay for the repairs the inn needs soon enough.”
“So, you’re totally agreeing to the contract and everything?”
I shrugged. “Guess so.” I added the detergent to the linens and then started the washer. “I just wish Leandro wasn’t so cold about it all. I mean, he really made me feel pathetic.”
“Rich people.”
“No,” I laughed again. Parvati and I were making our way out to the kitchen then. “He just acted like I was an object, like a new plaything that he was buying for his boyfriend.”
“Well, Jourdanne, you are. You’re a prostitute, for lack of a better word. We talked about this already.”
I sighed. I took a seat at the table and slumped down to my elbows. “I mean, I wouldn’t call it that.”
Parvati lifted a brow.
“Matt’s not like Leandro. He’s kind and sincere. He cares about me.”
“He cares about himself. Trust me, all men do.”
“No, he isn’t self-centered like that. He took the time to make me comfortable and have a real conversation with me. When’s the last time you had that with a guy who only wanted sex? And…” I paused to sit up tall. “He didn’t even want sex in the contract in the first place.”