One Wild Night

Chapter 373 Crush

　　"She is down with the flu, but she sounds fine," Lucy said with a small smile as she stood from the couch, ready to shower.

　　"I take it you shed some tears because you were still feeling emotional about Amy's situation with her best friend?" Tom said as she headed for the closet, and Lucy stopped and turned to look at him. 

　　"Am I that easy to read?"

　　"I don't think so. I like to believe that reading you is my superpower," Tom said with a grin as he held out his arms to her.

　　Lucy smiled as she went to meet him, "I guess I should believe that too," she said, and Tom nodded as he embraced her. 

　　"I know you love her, and you are scared of losing her. But don't worry too much. She will be fine. I'm sure Bryan and my parents will look after her well," he assured her as he kissed her forehead, and she gave him a nod.

　　"How did your conversation with Jade go?" Lucy asked when she remembered that he had left to speak with Jade earlier.

　　"She didn't know about the letter. She was surprised and asked that I give her some time to speak with Candace and get back to me," Tom said, and Lucy nodded as she glanced at the clock. 

　　"It's past 6 PM already. We should get ready if we don't want to be late," Lucy pointed out. 

　　"You can use the bathroom first. I will go down and check on the kid before getting ready," Tom said, knowing that Lucy needed space to clean up comfortably. 

　　"Alright," Lucy said as she pulled away from him and turned to leave, but Tom pulled her back and kissed her lips. 

　　"I love you," Tom said, gazing into her eyes as he brushed his knuckles along her jawline.

　　She smiled at him, "I know. And I love you too," she said, and Tom gave her a nod before walking away. 

　　Once he got to the kitchen, he saw Jamal seated on the kitchen island, munching on a piece of chocolate cookie while watching Samantha and the other maids prepare dinner, "Hey!" Tom greeted from the doorway, and everyone looked at him, including Jamal, who looked back at him with dull eyes. 

　　"Hi!" Jamal responded since he was the one Tom was staring at. 

　　"Do you mind having a word with me?" Tom asked, and Jamal shrugged indifferently as he plopped the remaining piece of cookie into his mouth.

　　Tom went to where the kid was seated and lifted him off the island to the floor, "Let's go to the Den," he said as he led the kid out of the kitchen while Samantha and the others tried to mind their business.

　　Once they got to the Den, Tom sat on one of the couches, and Jamal did the same, "Do you like staying here?" Tom asked curiously.

　　Jamal looked at him for a moment, "It used to be fun," he said in a quiet voice. 

　　"It is no longer fun?"

　　He shook his head, "Everyone else has left. It's quiet and boring now," Jamal said, and Tom nodded.

　　"I'm not bored," Tom pointed out, and Jamal looked at him for a moment.

　　"Only because you have Lucy," Jamal pointed out sullenly.

　　"That's right," Tom said, amused by the kid's perspective, "But you also have Samantha and everyone else."

　　"It's not the same. They are always busy," Jamal said, and Tom nodded.

　　"Lucy is always busy too."

　　"I don't mind," Jamal said, and this time Tom chuckled. Okay. It seemed like the kid had a crush on Lucy. 

　　"Would you like me to get you a home teacher? That way, you wouldn't miss out on your school work too much while you are here, and it might help you stay busy," Tom suggested, and Jamal gave him an indifferent shrug. 

　　"Maybe we can play games in the evening when I'm back from work and hang out over the weekend," Tom suggested, and Jamal's dull eyes lit up, letting Tom know he liked the idea. 

　　"Will we go bowling too?"

　　"If you promise to be a good boy and not cry, then we will go to any fun place you want. And you can also talk to your mother over the phone," Tom promised, and Jamal's face brightened.

　　"I won't cry. I will be good," he promised excitedly. 

　　"Good. Lucy and I are going out for dinner soon. I will ask Samantha and the others to stay up and watch a cartoon with you. We will try to come back early. If you are still up by the time we get back, I will tuck you in and read you a bedtime story. Deal?" Tom asked, and Jamal looked at him like he was contemplating something.

　　"Will Lucy be there to tuck me in too?" Jamal asked with hopeful eyes, and Tom smiled knowingly. Definitely a crush. 

　　"You want her to?" Tom asked, and Jamal bobbed his head. 

　　"We will have to ask her about it," Tom said as he rose, and Jamal did the same. 

　　By the time Tom returned to the bedroom, Lucy was out of the bathroom, dressed in a bathing robe as she searched the closet for something to wear.

　　"You didn't think that you'd need to dress up for dinner," Tom said, knowing that she hadn't packed any clothes.

　　"I'm sure my work clothes will suffice. After all, you guys will be wearing suits..." Tom watched in amusement as she spoke since he could tell that she didn't exactly like the idea of wearing formal clothes to dinner with friends. 

　　"It's not the same thing. Go to the closet in Jade's bedroom and see if you can find something you like. If you don't, we can stop on our way to get you something," Tom suggested, cutting her off.

　　Lucy opened her mouth, ready to argue, but when she saw the way he was staring at her like he was anticipating an argument, she flashed him a smile instead.

　　"Thanks," she said as she walked out of the bedroom, leaving Tom, whose chuckle escorted her out.

　　Away from there, as Sonia lay back on the bed, ready to respond to the beckoning call of sleep, a knock sounded on the door, and she opened her eyes to see who it was.

　　"Come in," she called, guessing it was probably Evelyn.

　　"Are you sleeping already?" Desmond asked as he peered into the bedroom from the doorway.

　　Sonia yawned, "Not yet. But I was about to. Did you want something?" she asked, trying to sit up as Desmond walked in.

　　"Other than keeping you company? Nah. You don't have to sit up. I will just sit beside you and watch over you while you sleep. Bryan is busy with Matt, and Eve needs to rest for a bit," Desmond said as he pulled the single couch in the bedroom closer to Sonia's side of the bed before reaching over with his hand to feel her temperature.

　　"The fever has gone down. How are you feeling now?" He asked with concerned eyes. 

　　"I'm fine. You realize I can't sleep if you are here watching me, right?" Sonia asked as she sat up, and Desmond grinned. 

　　"Why? Because I'm too handsome?"

　　Sonia threw back her head and laughed, "You spent too much time in Andrew's company. He has ruined you," Sonia said with a shake of her head, and Desmond laughed.

　　"As long as it makes you laugh, I don't mind being ruined," Desmond said as he helped her adjust the pillows behind her so that she would be seated in a comfortable position. 

　　"You are so sweet. Your family is sweet too," Sonia said as she watched him lower himself to the couch beside her. 

　　"Am I? Sweeter than Andrew?" Desmond asked, and once again, Sonia laughed. 

　　"Why? You want to steal his spot in my heart?" Sonia asked, cocking her head to the side. 

　　"Nah. I don't have to steal anything. I'm sure you'll carve my own spot soon enough," Desmond said confidently, and Sonia grinned. 

　　"Who says you don't have your own spot already?" Sonia teased. 

　　"Do I?" Desmond asked playfully, and Sonia smiled at him.

　　"What do you want?" Sonia asked curiously.

　　From the look in his intelligent blue eyes that reminded her of Bryan's eyes, she could tell he was not there to just make small talk with her. 

　　He had old eyes. Eyes that looked like they could see through you and knew every secret you were trying to hide. She liked to describe his eyes as sage eyes.

　　"I told you already. To keep you company," Desmond said as he held Sonia's guarded gaze. 

　　"What do you want to know?" Sonia asked, and this time Desmond chuckled. 

　　"Are you always this suspicious?" 

　　"No. I'm not."

　　"So why can't you just believe that I'm here to watch over you?" Desmond asked, and Sonia smiled. 

　　"I believe you are here to watch over me, but I also believe that is not the only reason you are here. I noticed the way you were staring at me on the plane earlier. I'm a writer. Things hardly get past me," Sonia said, and Desmond nodded.

　　"I want to know how you are doing," Desmond said, and Sonia smiled. 

　　"I told you already. I'm fine. I think the medication is working. All I need is to rest and..."

　　"I'm not talking about the medicine, and I know you know it," Desmond cut in, and Sonia sighed. 

　　"How are you?" Desmond repeated. 

　　"Were you a shrink or something?" Sonia asked curiously.

　　"A priest. I was going to become a priest before I met Eve, and like Adam, I let her lead me astray," Desmond said with a straight face, and Sonia's mouth dropped open in surprise before he burst into a peal of laughter. 

　　"I was just kidding," he said amidst his laughter, and this time Sonia laughed too. 

　　"I can't believe I bought that," Sonia said in amusement.

　　"To answer your question, I'm not a shrink, but I did take a couple of courses in psychology some years ago. Needed to for Eve's sake," Desmond said, and Sonia raised a brow. 

　　"Why? Did she have psychological problems?" Sonia asked curiously.

　　"You could say that. She grew up with an alcoholic mother and an abusive father. Her father used to molest her kid sister," Desmond said flatly, and Sonia's brows pulled together.

　　"Evelyn?" She asked, unable to believe that someone as tough as Evelyn could have experienced something like that. 

　　"Yeah. Eve. She always felt guilty about it, wishing he had molested her instead of her little sister. She was too young and couldn't stop him from molesting her, and their mother was too drunk half the time to do anything about it. She finally snapped when her sister died of sepsis, and she stabbed him in his sleep," Desmond said, and Sonia's eyes widened in surprise.

　　"She killed her father?"

　　"Unfortunately for him, he didn't die. But he was hurt badly enough for her mother to call an ambulance, and then the police were involved," Desmond said, and Sonia frowned. 

　　"How old was she?"

　　"She was twelve. Her sister was nine. Eve lived with the guilt for years. And even though she was taken away from them and placed in foster care, she didn't move on from it. She blamed herself for living after her sister died," Desmond said, and Sonia sighed. 

　　"That's terrible."

　　"Do you blame yourself for what happened to Lucy? Is that why you took her side against your family's?" Desmond asked curiously, and Sonia blinked at him, surprised by how quickly he had turned the discussion to her. 

　　"I took her side because my parents were wrong," Sonia said after a while.

　　"Good. So do you blame yourself for what happened to Lucy?" Desmond asked again.

　　"Jamie was my brother. My half-brother," Sonia said quietly, as though that answered the question and explained her position.

　　"So you blame yourself for something your half-brother did, just like Evelyn blamed herself for something her father did," Desmond said, and Sonia frowned. 

　　"It's different."

　　"Is it?"

　　"Evelyn was a helpless kid. I wasn't. I could have done something."

　　"Like what?" Desmond asked curiously. 

　　"She wouldn't have met Jamie had I not been her friend."

　　"Do you regret your friendship with Lucy?" Desmond asked curiously.

　　"Of course not! I don't," Sonia said passionately.

　　"So, what do you think you could have done to stop what happened from happening apart from not being friends with her?" Desmond asked again. 

　　"Better put, if you had the powers to change something in the past, what would you have changed?" Desmond asked.

　　Sonia frowned as she considered the question, "I could have convinced Lucy to tell her parents about it. I could have told my mom about it or confronted Jamie."

　　"Lucy could have done so if she wanted to. Her not doing so had nothing to do with you. Telling your mother or confronting Jamie would also not have changed anything. It wasn't your fault that your half-brother did what he did. And it wasn't your fault that Lucy handled it the way she did either. You were an innocent bystander," Desmond said, and tears filled Sonia's eyes. 

　　"Did you attend your parents' funeral?" He asked, and Sonia shook her head. 

　　"Why? Hold on, Let me guess. You didn't want to leave Lucy's side? You felt it would be betrayal on your part if you attended the funeral of the people who tried to pin their son's death on her?" Desmond asked as he handed Sonia his handkerchief.

　　"Why are you saying all this?" Sonia asked as she wiped her tears. 

　　"Because I think you have been carrying an unnecessary burden for years. I bet you haven't had a good argument with Lucy since after that incident, have you?" Desmond asked, and Sonia frowned. 

　　"There is nothing to fight about. We love each other, and we understand each other."

　　"I know you love each other, but I also know you are not as completely open with her as you would love to be. Don't you want to visit your mother's graveside? Don't you miss your mother? When last did you talk to Lucy about your mother or family? Have you even mourned your mother's death?" Desmond asked, and this time Sonia broke into a sob. 

　　Desmond stood from his seat and went to sit beside her as he gathered her close, "Stop being lonely in the midst of people who deeply care about you, and stop being a stranger when you are with family. Lucy and her family love you, and I know they don't blame you for what happened, so stop blaming yourself," Desmond murmured as he patted her back while she wept.