“Sorry,” she said, casting her eyes downward as if in shame.
“Hey, it’s okay, baby girl. Everyone has nightmares sometimes. Now, can I see that smile of yours again, please?”
She gave me a halfhearted one so, I tickled her stomach and made her giggle until she begged me to stop.
“There’s that smile. Now let’s hurry up and get you changed. Mark is here to see you.”
“What?” she asked, sitting up quickly. “He didn’t see me, did he?” She sounded panicked.
“No, baby, he didn’t. I wouldn’t allow that because I know you aren’t comfortable with it.”
“Good.” Her entire body sagged in relief. “Can we change my pajamas too? I don’t want him to see these,” she said, gesturing towards her footie pajamas.
“That’s fine with me, Princess. Let me pull out some clothes for you to change into and then we can take your jammies and diaper off.”
“Okay.”
I stood up, walked over to her dresser, and pulled out a blue sports bra, a blue pair of cotton panties, and some gray sweatpants. I walked over to her closet and took out a blue long sleeve shirt.
“Alright little one, lie back please.”
She did and I had her out of her jammies and diaper in under a minute. I helped her into her new clothes and said, “Okay, let’s go see Mark.” Hand in hand, we walked out of her bedroom and into the kitchen.
Chapter Fifteen
Robert and I were walking into the kitchen when I said, “I’ll be right back. I have to go to the bathroom.”
I let go of his hand and went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth and hair, and then went to find Robert and Mark. They were both sitting at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and talking.
“What’s going on, Mark? Why are you here so early?” I asked, sitting down next to Robert.
“Robert called me last night about you being sick. I wanted to come over right away to check on you myself, but he told me that you were too tired and so I said I’d come over today.”
“Oh.” I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to have to tell them about Boyle, but it looked like I was going to have to.
“You do look like you haven’t been feeling well. The dark circles are back under your eyes.”
I brought my hand up to my eyes, as if I would be able to feel the dark circles.
“Can you tell us why you started having nightmares again and decided that eating wasn’t a smart thing to do?”
I felt my heart speed up at the thought of having to tell them.
Robert must have noticed my problem because he jumped in and said, “How about if I make us some breakfast first? Though I don’t know what’s in the refrigerator.”
He stood up and walked over to the refrigerator as Mark said, “I brought groceries over for you guys. I figured you could use them.”
“Thanks,” Robert said as he pulled out a bunch of food. “How do big fluffy omelets sound?”
“Delicious,” Mark replied.
I just shrugged my shoulders, sure that I wasn’t going to be able to eat much. Ever since Boyle called, my stomach was just not in the mood for food. Even the thought of food made me feel ill.
So as Robert made omelets for all of us, Mark and I talked about the weather and how my work was going.
About fifteen minutes later, Robert placed three plates of omelets on the table, along with two buttered pieces of toast on mine and a big glass of orange juice for me to drink. I started to take small forkfuls of the omelet and when I got through about a fourth of it, I put my fork down because I was full.
“Juliana, you need to eat more,” Robert said.
“I’m full,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Come on, Juliana. Just eat a few more bites for me.”
“Fine. Just a few more,” I said, picking up my fork again and taking another bite.
After three more bites, I put my fork down as I was officially stuffed. I pushed my plate away from me and looked up at Robert and Mark, who were both watching me. I looked at their plates and shockingly, they were empty. How do they both eat that fast?
“Now that you’re done eating, why don’t you tell us what upset you so much,” Mark said.
“I’m actually feeling hungry again,” I said, reaching for my plate.
“No, baby girl, it’s time for you to talk to us. Trust me, if you talk to us about what happened, it will make you feel so much better,” Robert said, grabbing my left hand and giving it a squeeze.
“Fine. I—on Tuesday, I got a call.”
“From Boyle?” Mark asked.
I nodded.
“What did he say?” Robert asked, giving my hand another squeeze.