Bar Flys
Ella had never purchased so many outfits at one time in her entire life. Anything she even remotely took an interest in, Tim insisted she get. There were so many bags of clothes sitting on the floor near her bed, it would take her at least an hour to put them all away. But she was so grateful to have a cousin who loved her so much and wanted to make her happy.
He’d asked several questions while they were shopping, including about her friend that had brought her the phone and smuggled out her dress. Ella had been vague. She just told him it was someone she’d met who was concerned about her. He’d asked where they’d met since she hadn’t gone out since she’d arrived back in California except for at the party, and she’d done her best to change the subject but finally admitted she’d met the person at the party. He’d asked if it was a guy, and she’d said she didn’t want to talk about it, which told him it was.
Tim was slightly amused about the whole thing, though. He seemed to like the idea that she had a secret boyfriend, but then, he didn’t know yet who it was. Tim really did want what was best for her, but he wouldn’t be able to see that Rome was the answer to all of her prayers, not if Tim was hung up on his last name. Ella would have to cross that bridge when she came to it. For now, she was just glad to be free of Teresa and happy to have a cousin who loved her so much.
Lying on her bed in a pair of comfortable pajamas Tim had gotten for her, she called Rome. It was the next best thing to seeing him. He’d said he wanted to come over, and she desperately wished he could, but that just seemed disrespectful to her cousin who had done so much for her already. So instead, she’d have to settle for talking to him on the phone.
“Hello?” It was evident from the background noise that he was at a club or someplace. Ella was a little jealous, until she remembered she could also go to a club if she wanted to, and realized she didn’t, not that night anyway.
“Hi. How are you?”
Rome blew out a deep breath as the sound of music and laughter faded and was replaced by street sounds--cars, the wind, footsteps on the sidewalk. “I’m okay. God, I miss you so much, though.”
“I miss you, too. But I’ll see you soon. We’ll figure out how.”
“I’ve got to see you tomorrow, Ella. I’ll die if I don’t.’
He sounded so pathetic, part of her wanted to cry, but a giggle escaped her lips because it was just so ridiculous and wonderful all at the same time. “We’ll find a way. Tim has an audition tomorrow. I should be able to go out then.”
“What time?”
“It’s at 2:00 in the afternoon.”
“I have one at 1:30, so maybe I can meet you for a late lunch, or come and get you, if you’re comfortable with that.”
“I think I better meet you somewhere. I don’t want him hearing from a neighbor that you were here. If you weren’t so recognizable, I wouldn’t be worried. But you are.”
“Okay. Where do you want to meet?”
“Well, he said his audition is over in central city so probably somewhere else. But not near his apartment or my house either.”
Rome was quiet for a second, and she almost asked if he was still there, but then he said, “Okay. I’ve got a place. I’ll text you the address. Will you have a car?”
“Tim has one I can borrow, but Rome, I haven’t driven in the US before. I need to get a California driver’s license, too. I mean, I have one from France, so it’s legal for me to drive, but, the laws aren’t the same, and the traffic is crazy!” She couldn’t fathom trying to drive with some of the idiots she’d seen just in her few experiences on LA highways.
“Okay--get an Uber then.”
“How do I do that?”
He chuckled. “Baby, you’re so cute. I love you so much. I’ll explain it to you.”
He went through all of the steps, and by the time he was done, Ella was pretty sure she’d know how to do it, even though she didn’t have a credit card to hook up to the account so she’d had to use his, which she felt bad about. “Okay, I’ve got it. Thank you, baby. I think I should go to sleep, though.”
“You do sound tired. You’ve had an eventful day. I love you so much, sweetheart. I went out to have a beer with Mark, but I’m going to head home soon. I’m going to dream that you’re in my arms tonight. I love you.”
His sweet words brought a smile to her face. “I love you, too. See you tomorrow.”
Ella hung up and almost looked around for a place to hide her phone before she remembered she didn’t have to. In the morning, she could get up, go to the bathroom as she pleased, take a long shower if she wanted, and do her work from Tim’s laptop without having to worry about anything at all, and then she would get to see the amazing man who loved her for lunch.
“What could possibly go wrong?” she asked herself as her eyes grew heavy, and she drifted off to sleep, dreaming about Rome’s arms around her.
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