Jessie & Elizabeth (abandoned)

17. Platonic Professions [Part 1]

"Mom! Jessie! Camille just put her hand in her butt!"

"I didn't know it'd be stinky! My fingers were cold."

"You're so gross."

Too early. It was a Saturday morning, eight am, and I was sitting at the kitchen table, attempting to drink from the steaming mug of coffee Elizabeth had planted in front of me a few minutes ago. The kids' voices chimed through my head, shrilly, making me bury my face in my arms. After all these years, I still hadn't learned that I was a lightweight and should under no circumstances drink more than two glasses of wine, especially not when I had to get up at the crack of dawn the next day.

"Cami," Elizabeth called out, and I flinched, groaning. When I glanced up, she was standing in the door opening, looking entirely too put together in her cashmere cardigan, drop earrings dangling dramatically as she dried a cup with a tea towel. It was almost unfair how beautiful she managed to be after the events of last night, with her perfect make-up and not a hair out of place. "Go wash your hands, love. And put on a sweater if you're cold."

I winced. She didn't seem to notice, just continued clattering about, bending over the dishwasher to gather the plates. One thing was sure: Camille had not inherited any of her natural grace. I watched her for a while, just enjoying the way her honey-brown locks bounced slightly as she moved, my half-closed eyes ending up on the strip of bare skin she showed whenever she reached for one of the higher cupboards and her top hiked up.

The wind picked up, curling around the house with a dramatic whoosh, and I sighed into my coffee. Something tugged at my heartstrings, reminding me that this, just a calm start of the weekend with an incredible woman like her and kids playing in the living room, this had been everything I'd always wanted. Minus the hangover.

Elizabeth looked over her shoulder, the corner of her lips twitching momentarily at the sight of me there. My cheeks flushed, and I wrapped my bathrobe tighter around myself, suddenly conscious of my disastrous appearance. She noticed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Just stay home, Jessie," she said. "It's not like you're going to be any help to your brother like this." Her tone was firm, but then again, it'd been the same when she'd slipped me a box of painkillers earlier, and I liked to think it meant she cared.

It was tempting. The sky was whirling with thick woolly grey clouds, the branches of the magnolia tree sweeping against the window above the sink, and she was something, with her faded jeans and slippers — I could easily spend a few hours just staring at her.

But I couldn't. I'd promised myself. She was my boss, my friend, and that was all it was, and I shouldn't spoil a good thing, not again. Not like I'd almost done last night, entirely too content to sit so close to her, laughing and talking with Hakim and his boyfriend, sharing shared stories like some married couple. We'd had several dinners like those since the grandparents debacle, and I was growing a bit too fond of them. Maybe it was time to download a few dating apps.

"Nah, I just need to take a shower, and then I'll be fine," I said, ignoring the way she raised her eyebrows at me. For some reason, she didn't seem to want me to assist my brother with the move today, just like she had silently judged me for lending him some money for a van — before vocalizing her opinion on the matter with lots of huffing and puffing.

She opened her mouth, obviously about to raise the same concerns again, when my phone buzzed. Finally. Only an hour later than he'd promised. Before she could go against me, I picked it up. "Hi, Kenny," I said, smiling automatically at his enthusiastic reply. Elizabeth, on the other hand, rearranged her face into one of her sharpest frowns, abandoning the nearly cleared dishwasher to take place across from me. "What do you mean, the deal didn't go through?" The frown curved into a suspicious glare, the brown of her eyes smoldering dangerously. "Ah, that sucks, man. Oh, another place? That's awesome. So, should I still come? Oh. No, of course." I turned my head, away from Elizabeth, who was distractingly tapping her fingers to her elbow and listening in on the conversation way too intently. "What? An extra five-hundred?" She froze, matching my surprise, then nodded at me questioningly. I shrugged. It wasn't the first time Kenny miscalculated a budget. "Where are you moving to now, Great Falls? Yeah, sure, I've got it. Of course, I'll help y—."