The Boyfriend by Abigail Barnette

Author:Abigail Barnette [Barnette, Abigail]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-11-10T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

The soles of my ballet flats crunched on the salt carefully applied to our front steps and walkway by the grounds people. My breath clouded the air; my anger had probably raised my temperature enough that it looked like steam from a nuclear power plant’s cooling towers. El-Mudad hadn’t gotten far. I saw him stalking off toward the garage.

“Hey!” I called, jogging to catch up with him.

He slowed and turned, rubbing his hands over his bare arms. “You should go inside, Sophie. It’s cold.”

“Um, duh? That’s why I’m here.” I held out Neil’s leather coat. El-Mudad was a bit broader in the shoulders, but it still fit him. “Put this on, or you’ll die.”

“It’s not so bad,” he argued through bloodless lips. He took the coat and jammed his arms into the sleeves.

“Don’t take it out on the lining,” I said, trying to joke. I’d never seen El-Mudad angry before. I had no idea if humor would work on him. He gave me an annoyed glance, and I sighed. “You know, we’ve never fought before?”

“I’m not fighting with you,” he clarified. “I’m fighting with Neil.”

“No, I meant ‘we’ as in the...triple ‘we’.” I jerked my thumb over my shoulder to indicate the front door. “I think we’re all having our first fight.”

“The first of many, if Neil doesn’t stop this asinine obsession with his ex-lover’s personal life.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m overreacting. I know I am. I’m overreacting.”

“I don’t believe in overreactions.” I hugged myself in the hopes that gathering my coat closer would somehow generate warmth. “I just believe in reactions.”

“Liar.” A smile touched the corners of his mouth. “You apologize for overreacting all the time.”

“It’s different when it’s me,” I grumbled.

“It always is. And that infuriating ego is one of the many reasons I love you.” He reached up and touched my cheek with his practically frozen hand.

“What about Neil’s infuriating ego?” I asked, and El-Mudad’s expression hardened.

“I just can’t understand this...toxic obsession with Valerie. I see how you react to her. I know you feel the same.” He stopped abruptly and tilted his head back, looking straight up into the sky as though he could wish our problem into space.

“Am I that obvious?” I slipped my arm through his and gave him a nudge. “Come on. Let’s go inside the house. We don’t have to go make up all nicey-nice with Neil. We can just talk.”

“You’re right. He’s probably on the phone to her right now, anyway,” El-Mudad said bitterly.

“He won’t be.” I could state that with absolute confidence. “He’s fucked up enough with me over her in the past. There’s no way he would lie to me about calling her.”

El-Mudad didn’t say much as we followed the gentle curve of the drive. It split in two, one path arcing off to return to the main gate, the other rounding the house to lead under the porte-cochere. I didn’t have my key to the kitchen door on me, but I did have the code to the security box.

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