Love on the Ledge (13 page)

After I shower and as I drift off to sleep, I close my eyes and think only of his face. I don’t know if it was love at first sight. But now I can’t deny that it sure is something.

The only thing that can bring me down from the Cloud Nine that is Hayden’s lips is sitting down to breakfast with my family. My mother gives me a curious eye. I scroll through my emails and try to avoid it.

“When did you get to bed?” she asks.

“Way before these clowns got home,” I tell her. You’d think that because I’m the one who stayed home, I’d be off the hook. You’d think wrong.

Las Viejas give me their side-eye, and Maria holds her hungover head with both hands. Her skin is a pale green, but not as green as Andrea and Juliet. The only one who doesn’t look the worse for the wear is Elena. I remember her defending me, sort of, against Maria’s words. She gets a smile from me.

Some of the roofers walk across the backyard, and my heart jumps when I wait for Hayden’s blond head. Then I remember he’s banished to building the wedding gazebo.

My mother watches me stare at them, and calls for my attention. “You have to stop being so rude to Xandro. He’s an old family friend.”

“Just because we lived in the same building together,” I say, talking with my mouth full, “doesn’t mean we’re friends.”

“
Escuchame
, Sky,” my mother says.
Listen, Sky.
“I raised you better than to be so rude. Give the boy a chance. He’s from a good family. He goes to church. He’s handsome. He’s a doctor.”

Everyone is nodding.

“I’m sorry, I thought we were having breakfast, not discussing my love life. It’s nobody’s business.”

“Don’t talk to your mother that way,” Maria says.

Anger fills my mouth and threatens to turn my fantastic mood into kindling. Then I see him, Hayden, walking past the glass doors that lead to the backyard. He can’t see me through the reflection in the glass. He looks at his own image and rakes his hair back. His body drips with sweat as he carries a stack of boards over his shoulder.

My mother follows my eyes to Hayden. He turns around and makes his way back to his station.

“Sky, give Maria some of your pills for her headache.”

I have the good kind of painkillers. That’s a benefit of being a nurse. None of that over-the-counter sugar-coated medicine. I look at Maria and remember her words. None of them are dying. They need a sports drink and some sleep. My family doesn’t realize that being a nurse doesn’t mean that I’m a pill factory. They also don’t realize that treating a hangover isn’t why I went into medicine.

I pick up my plate and decide to take my food to my room.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” I say, my voice sickly sweet so they know I’m lying. “I ran out.”

• • •

After I scarf down my breakfast, Leti knocks on my door.

“You look thoroughly fucked,” I tell her.

She sits down next to me and eats the remnants of my toast. “You should try it.”

“Where’s River?”

“She didn’t come home last night?”

I shake my head.

“Do you think she’s getting into trouble again?”

Leti and I stare at each other like we’re trying to convince ourselves that everything is all right. A bright orange leaf flies in from the balcony and lands at my feet. It’s the first sign that the summer is going to come to an end soon, and for the first time in three months I’m not ready.

“No, I think she just wanted to get out of the house.” The truth is, I
hope
River isn’t getting into any trouble. The last time she hit rock bottom, it was hard to pull her out of it. I’ll be there for her no matter what, but she’s never been one to ask for help.

“Would she tell us if she was?”

I shake my head. “Probably not.”

“Well,” I say, picking up my empty plate. “We can’t wait for her. We have to get the seashells for the centerpieces.”

Leti rolls her eyes and mumbles, “I bet that’s why River’s not here. Hiding from your wedding chores.”

“Shut up,” I say. “It’s nice.”

“Why can’t we just buy a bunch of seashells?”

“Because,” I say, “this way they’re special.”

I don’t tell her that when I conceived this idea, I was drowning myself in Pinterest. Nothing makes you wallow in the feeling of being dumped as much as looking at pretty things on the internet. Wedding things. Wedding things you’ll never have with the guy who broke your heart. But wedding things you can gift to your favorite uncles.

I scroll through my email to find the picture I want, but my inbox is full of wedding stuff. I remember I flagged the email from the DJ and read it.

I stand up from the bed, forgetting that my plate’s on my lap. It falls to the floor and smashes in half. I shut my eyes and hope that I’m reading correctly.

“Sky, you’re freaking me out.”

I give her my phone and wait for her to read the email.

“That little shit!” she shouts.

“Can he even do that?” I ask. “We paid the deposit.”

Leti shakes her head. “I’m going to one-star his ass. Who names themselves DJ Dee Troyt?”

“I think I’m having a heart attack.”

Leti looks at me, unconvinced. “No, you’re not.”

I press my hand on my racing heartbeat. I can hear my voice rise in pitch. “First, there’s a hole in the guest room so everyone’s getting shoved into one basement. Then, the caterer doesn’t tell us they’re going out of business. Now, the DJ is cancelling on us. I’m supposed to be putting this together, Leti. This is all on me! What am I going to do when Pepe and Tony find out? Oh, sweet Mother Mary, I’m going to have to tell them about the caterer right now, aren’t I?”

“Sky?”

“This is horrible. I’m the world’s worst wedding planner. No, I’m the
worst
niece in the world.”

“Sky!”

Leti’s hand smacks me across the face.

“Thanks, I needed that.”

The floor creaks outside my door. I run over and stick my head out to see who it is, but the hallway is empty. I shut the door and press my body against it.

“Get a grip,” Leti says. “We can’t panic.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You get to come and go as you please.”

She sasses me with a sway of her head and a purse of her lips. “Excuse me, Pepe and Tony are my uncles, too. Have you stopped to think that the reason why you ended up planning all of this by yourself is because you wouldn’t let anyone really help?”

I let myself slide to the floor. “I’ve been pretty crazy, haven’t I?”

Leti nods. “You’re kind of like bridezilla, except you’re not even the bride.”

“You’re right.” I take a deep breath. “Know any DJs?”

“Actually, a few. They’re all in Sweden though. I’m going to email my contacts because we all know that out of everyone in this house, I have the best taste in music. We’ll fix everything. Have a little hope.”

“Okay,” I say, because in reality, there’s not much else for me to do. I’ve always been the kind of person who needed to be able to fix things, and when I can’t I get really down on myself. But now, I’ve got River and I’ve got Leti.

Leti’s furiously typing messages into her phone. When she sees me staring, she snaps. “Come on, now. You get us a ride to the beach so that even if we don’t have a catered dinner or music, at least we’ll have the Hampton’s most beautiful and cost-effective seashell centerpieces.”

Hayden:
I’m outside whenever you’re ready.

Me:
I’m coming!

Hayden:
You have no idea what that just did to me…

Leti gets a good look at the smirk on my face and gasps. “You bitch. You’ve been holding out on me.”

“I don’t kiss and tell.”

She shakes her head. “Lies.”

“I’m going to get some water bottles to go,” I tell her.

“I’ll go ogle your man in the car.”

When I shove three bottles in my basket and shut the refrigerator door, my mom steps forward from the hallway. I put a hand on my chest. “Jesus.”

“Where are you going?”

“Seashells. Beach. Centerpieces.”

“With that boy, Sky?”

“Ma, his name is Hayden.”

“I don’t like it,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest like she means business. “Boys like that only want to get in your bed.”

I’m counting on it. Yes, I’ve decided. Probably.

“You always think the worst of people,” I tell her. “And you’re wrong. Just because a guy is shiny on the outside doesn’t mean he’s a good person.”

“But,” she grabs my hand to pull me back from the front door. She’s not listening to a single word I’m saying. “Xandro is coming to visit today. You should give him a chance, Sky. You could still be a doctor’s wife if you play your cards right.”

I pull out of her grip so fast, I bump against a side table. One of the photos falls off and the glass cracks. It’s my high school graduation picture. God, look at that hair. I set it right and keep heading for the front door. She calls and calls my name. My own mother doesn’t care if a guy cheats on me or is controlling, as long as he’s got MD plastered over his forehead.

“Fuck my life,” I say.

I deflate when I see Xandro’s shiny convertible parked in front. I love cars, but not when they’re shaped like penis rockets. Xandro is already halfway up to the house wearing a thin blue t-shirt that hugs his slender muscles.

Behind him Leti and Hayden are waiting for me at his truck. If only I could get to them while avoiding the plastic surgeon in the white linen pants.

“Sky! Just the girl I was coming to see.” He pulls me by my shoulders and scoops me into a bone-crushing hug.

“Ouch. Can’t breathe.”

He lets me go and smiles down at me. “You missed an amazing party last night.”

“Yeah, I was beat.” I shouldn’t feel badly for missing his party. I loved being with Hayden. But even from out here I can feel my mother’s pressure on me. Actually, that would be her eyes peeking through the curtains.

“Don’t worry, babe. I’ll be throwing my own shindig soon enough. I’ve already told my friends about you and your situation. I know Dr. Claremont, the head of trauma at Beth Israel.”

“I’m in pediatrics.”

He shrugs, throwing away something I specifically chose for myself. Bradley was the same way. He didn’t understand why I cared about taking care of children. He wanted me to switch to the ER once he was done with medical school. To him, it didn’t matter as long as he was going to get paid.

“I really have to go.” I wave and duck to the right.

He grabs my hand and pulls me back so I’m facing him. For such a slender guy, he really is strong. I hear a car door open and boots hit the ground. Xandro looks over my shoulder, like he’s daring Hayden to come over.

“Where you going?” he asks.

“Wedding errands.”

“I can take you if you’d like. You won’t ruin your dress in that dirty old truck.”

It’s not old. The only dirty part of Hayden’s truck is along the bottom where it treads over mud and sand. But Xandro doesn’t need an explanation.

He’s the second person today to not listen to my words. To just keep talking as if I’m not even here.

“We’re fine. Besides, you might get sand on your slippers,” I tell him, motioning to the white leather boat shoes. I make a move to go again, but this time he stands in front of me as a barricade. Something in my belly twists in a warning sign. I do
not
like Xandro.

His smile is smug and his teeth are so straight and white. It’s like an illusion and I don’t want to see what’s beneath that. “Come on, Sky. I’m sure your mother doesn’t care for your choice of company lately.”

I take several steps back. Who does he think he is? I smile and pat him on the shoulder. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Xan. I’m sure my mother cares for you a whole lot.”

With that, I get in the passenger seat of the truck, and when we leave, Xandro is still at the front door, scratching his head.

“This place is fantastic,” Leti says, digging her feet into the sand. “How have we never been here?”

Hayden shoves his hands in his pockets. “There are lots of little beach strips like this. Most people don’t bother because they’re just out of the way.”

I hold my arms out and let the sea breeze spin around me. After we walk up a sandy hill covered in tall grass and polished stones, we arrive at Hart Beach. No matter where I look, it’s like we’re the only people around. The exception is a tiny shack that looks too small for anyone to live in.

“Is that a house?” I ask.

“That’s a bungalow,” Hayden says. “I worked on it last summer. The Sanders had it built when they got married two years ago, but they divorced this summer. She took the house in South Beach and he bought a bachelor pad in Hell’s Kitchen.”

“Wow,” I say. “A romance for the ages.”

Leti is sprawled on the sand with her phone in the air, texting. “Gary’s on his way. There’s no way I’m going to third wheel with you two making mooney eyes at each other.”

I kick sand in her direction. When I turn to Hayden, my breath hitches a little. He takes his shirt off. It’s like the cut of his muscles are directional arrows pointing at his crotch. Watching Hayden get undressed is my new favorite pastime. He folds it haphazardly and sets it on a patch of grass. When he walks towards me, it feels like the space between us is getting longer. Like he’s on one of those moving tarmacs and he’s walking in the wrong direction, but I don’t mind because I get to look at him a little longer.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

Me? I’m just drooling a little. No big deal.

He takes my basket. It’s the most ridiculous and endearing thing, seeing Hayden hold a wicker basket.

“Ready?”

I nod, and we leave Leti’s unhelpful ass lying on the beach waiting for Gary.

For a few minutes, we walk in silence. I pick the most obvious shells. The big ones that don’t have many chips in them. Hayden gets closer to the water. He rolls up his pants to the ankles. Digs his hands in and pulls out a brilliant set of seashells. My favorite is a tiny blue one that twists on both ends. It’s the color of his eyes.

“This guy doesn’t belong here,” Hayden says. He takes the shell and places it in my hand. “He came from a magical land, far, far away. Here.”