Say Forever(64)

"Coming!" I close my eyes and groan. The sound of my booming voice does little to ease my migraine. It feels like Grace's knocking is echoing inside my head.

My legs are deadweights as I trudge to the front door.

Grace scowls at me, an impatient look in her eyes. "Hey, what are you doing in your pajamas?"

I rub my hand through my hair, pulling straggly strands out of my eyes. "I didn't have to work today."

"You look like shit." She leans forward and inhales, then makes a face. "Have you showered?" She fans her nose as her scowl deepens, reminding me of my reaction whenever I drive past a dead skunk on the highway.

I shrug as my irritation grows. "Not yet."

Her jaw drops. "Not yet? Christina, it's six o'clock." Her voice rises with a sense of urgency. "Andrés will be home soon."

"I doubt it." Ever since I lost the baby he's been working later and later. There are times when I'm already in bed when he gets home. Not that it matters, since he never comes to our bed anymore, anyway.

Grace pushes past me and stomps toward my bedroom. I slam the door and follow her.

"What are you doing?"

She's already in my closet, dragging out an empty suitcase from the back. She shoots me a pointed look before hoisting it on my bed. "Packing."

"For what?"

"Andrés finally cashed in those Vegas tickets I got you. Now go get in the shower while I pack." My arms and legs ice over, and I gape at her for a long moment, my feet rooted to the floor.

"Why are you just standing there?" she snaps as she grabs a handful of panties from a drawer and throws them into the bag. "Your plane leaves in two hours!"

"Vegas? We're going to Vegas?"

"That's what I said. Do I need to throw you in the shower myself?" She points a finger at the bathroom door. "Go!"





Chapter Nineteen



Andrés

Though it's midnight Vegas time by the time we reach our hotel, it's 2 a.m. in San Antonio, and Christina is dragging her feet when we walk through the door. If this had been our honeymoon, like it should have been, I would have carried her across the threshold, but I settle for carrying all of the luggage instead. I'm not sure why Christina needed such a huge suitcase for a four day getaway.

My cellphone buzzes against my hip, but I ignore it. Tio wasn't happy when I told him I was taking Friday through Monday off. I feel bad for leaving him, but I don't have a choice. Christina needs me more than he does.

Christina eyes the two queen beds like they've got bedbugs or herpes. Heat creeps into the back of my neck when she shoots me a sour look before trudging toward the bathroom. It's been over a month since I refused to share a bed with her, and she's still giving me a guilt trip about it.

I don't bother unpacking my things. We'll only be in this hotel for one night, then tomorrow we're going to do something a little different. I'm taking her to a mountain resort a little over an hour's drive outside Vegas. I checked the weather report and it snowed there a few days ago. Christina once told me she's never seen snow, so I hope she likes it. I don't know what else to do to make her happy, and I'm at my wits end trying to make this relationship work.

Christina is already sleeping by the time I get out of the shower. I kiss her on the forehead, telling her I love her, even though I know she can't hear me, then I climb into my bed and stare up at the ceiling. I lie there for several moments, trying to piece together how our relationship went so wrong, and what I can do to fix it. We haven't had sex in over a month, not since before she lost the baby. I climbed into bed with her last week, nibbling on her ear and whispering words of love in Spanish. She started crying and pushed me off of her. I felt like a total pendejo after that and haven't tried since. I close my eyes and pray that the nightmares don't come tonight, and if they do, that I don't wake her.


***


Christina

"Snow. I'm touching snow." I stare down in awe at the white crystals as I rub them between my gloved hands. I look up at Andrés. His cheeks and nose are a healthy pink, and his chestnut eyes sparkle like quartz jewels. I take another deep breath of crisp mountain air. Everything feels so alive here, even me, which is odd, because it was only yesterday when just the thought of getting out of bed was overwhelming. "It feels so different than I imagined."

He lifts my hand to his lips and blows the crystals back onto the ground. "That's the hard stuff." He nods behind us. "We need to wander off the road and find fresh snow."

I stare at the white slope, crowded with so many tall trees, I fear we may get lost and never find our way out if we venture too far. But I take his hand and follow his lead, slipping a few times, despite the fact that Andrés bought me the best snow boots money could buy when we were down in the valley. It's a chore just putting one foot in front of the other. These heavy pants I'm wearing make me feel like I'm wrapped in cellophane. But the weirdest thing is the way the ground crunches beneath my feet. I can't help but giggle with each step as he leads me off the path and toward deeper snow.