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Sweet Little Thing(21)

By:Abbi Glines


"Her room, I believe, sir," I heard the her say as I stalked through the house to the stairs leading to the room she slept in.

I should have asked her this morning when I saw her limping. I'd been so  wrapped up in keeping my distance that I ignored it. She hadn't said  anything. How long had she been wearing shoes that were too small? Was  this something Portia did? I had more damn shoes than any man needed,  and she was walking around in cheap tennis shoes that didn't even fit  her. This was why I wasn't good for her. I was selfish and  self-involved. She needed protecting and someone to care for her.

The bartender, however, wasn't good enough. He couldn't take care of her  the way she needed. He was a fucking bartender. Frustrated with my  thoughts, I jerked the door open and started down the stairs.

"Hello?" Beulah's voice sounded worried. No one ever came down here I assumed.

"It's me," I told her as I reached the bottom step and turned right into  the room where her bed sat along with the washer and dryer.

She was standing with one shoe in her hand and one shoe on her foot. Her  eyes were wide with what looked like worry. "I was coming right back. I  just needed to change shoes."

At seeing me, her first thought was to explain herself. As if she'd done  something wrong. What kind of monster did she think I was? Had I acted  in a way that she expected me to yell at her over changing her shoes?

"How long have you been wearing shoes that are too small?" I asked turning my attention to her feet.

She curled her toes under on her barefoot but I could see the blisters  and what looked like bruises. My stomach felt sick. I'd been letting her  walk around all day, working to get ready for tonight so I could  entertain a bunch of my friends while her feet looked like this.                       
       
           



       

"For a while," she said her voice was just above a whisper.

"How long?" I repeated.

She sighed. "Since I started working here."

Almost seven months. She'd been working in those shoes for almost seven  months. "Why? Did Portia not ask your shoe size?" Portia was a lot of  things but cruel to employees wasn't one of them. Indifferent, yes, but  not cruel.

"They were new. She'd just bought them for Ms. Charlotte before she  quit. They're part of the uniform. She asked me if they would work and I  said yes. She said I could buy some if not. I didn't have money for  that. I was making sure Heidi was taken care of so I kept putting it  off. Thinking I'd break them in."

Rage, frustration, and something else pounded in my head. She was the  most selfless person I knew. She didn't deserve this-this shit life  she'd been given-but she smiled and lived it happily. I listened to  people bitch about their investments and the pressure their parents put  on them and not fucking being able to travel when they wanted to. And  here was Beulah doing all she could to take care of someone else, never  complaining.

I pointed at the bathtub. "Get in there. Soak. Rest your feet. I'll get  you some ointment and bandages and soft socks. But for now, relax. Use  some fucking bubbles. Take a long time."

"Your party, Monique needs me up there. She gave me shoes that fit-"

"Beulah. Don't. I need you to get your sweet little ass in that tub and  take a motherfucking bubble bath. A long one. I need you to get off your  feet and pamper them. Or I'm going to lose my goddamn mind."

She stood there frozen. We stared at each other and her eyes looked like  they were damp. I didn't think I could take it if she cried. I was  holding on by a thread. I wanted to undress her and put her in that tub  myself. I wanted to bath her and touch her and smell her because I'd let  myself sink. She was impossible not to love. How was I supposed to  fight this?

"I'm going to get you some things. You're going to bath while I'm gone.  I'll be back down in an hour with the things I said. You just . . .  please just soak in that tub. Do you have body wash? Bubble bath?"

She shook her head slowly. "I have a bar of soap."

"Let me get that. Don't get in there yet. Unless you want me to come  down here and see you naked. If that's the case, I won't argue."

Her cheeks flushed, and she ducked her head. "I'll wait."

I was able to laugh then. Not a deep laugh because my heart was hurting  so damn much right now that laughing seemed unnatural. But I did laugh.  "I'll be right back. Take off that other shoe."

I didn't wait for her to argue again. I went upstairs to get her some  things that would ease her pain and make her more comfortable. I'd take  all that expensive shit that Portia had upstairs she'd shipped in from  France. Beulah could have as many baths as she wanted.





Beulah

THE SMELL THAT FILLED THE room was heavenly. I knew this was Portia's  bath supplies just like I knew the large white luxurious towel was one  from her master bath. I had been sitting on the bed with bare feet when  Jasper came back downstairs carrying a basket full of bath items, a pair  of soft plush socks, bandages, and ointment. He'd handed it to me and  said, "Please use all of this." That had been it. He didn't say anything  else before he left.

I was worried about Monique and Jerry handling the crowd upstairs, but  Jasper had been very clear he didn't want me going back up there. I  didn't know how he found out about the shoes for sure, but my guess was  Monique told him. She was very unhappy about the situation when I  explained. It wasn't Jasper's fault. I was the one who didn't buy new  shoes that fit.

Slowly, I eased into the water wincing when the warm water covered my  feet. I sank down into the bubbles and leaned back against the  porcelain. I always took showers. I'd never soaked in a bath here. I had  when I lived at home. Mom had a bathtub in her bathroom and every once  in a while, I'd go put some shampoo in the running water to make bubbles  and enjoy a bath. This reminded me of those times.

Nothing about those baths compared to this. I hadn't met Jasper then. My  mom was still alive and I was safe. I wasn't alone. Although tonight,  for a moment, I hadn't felt alone. Jasper had cared. He was upset, but  he had cared. He didn't want to see me in pain. I closed my eyes and  listened for the music and footsteps upstairs. I felt guilty about not  helping Monique. I hoped Jasper got her some help.
                       
       
           



       
I couldn't hear the music though. It was quiet up here. The footsteps  had slowed to almost nothing. I wondered if they had taken the food  outside for the last time and started to pack up. The night was still  early. I didn't think they'd stop serving food so soon.

Because of my stubbornness about the shoes, I'd let Jasper down tonight.  He'd helped me so much and I had to sit down because of those stupid  shoes. Tomorrow I'd buy new ones. I had sent the ones Monique gave me  back upstairs with Jasper. He didn't want me leaving this room tonight  or walking around.

Within the hour that I soaked in the bathtub, the entire upstairs had  become silent. The water had cooled, so I stepped out of the tub and  wrapped myself in the towel that he'd brought me. Every time I washed  and folded these towels I had wondered how they must feel to use after a  bath. They were the softest, fluffiest towels I'd ever seen. Now I knew  how luxurious they were. They were very close to being magical. I ran  the tip of my nose over the delicate cotton and inhaled.

This was really nice. I didn't need to get used to it, but right now I  would enjoy it. Putting on my pajamas didn't seem as appealing as it  normally did. So, I sat down on the bed still wrapped in the towel and  took a few more minutes indulging because when I took this towel off, I  was washing it and never using one of these again. This wasn't my life. I  was a cheap thin towel kind of girl. Towels were to get dry and nothing  more. Wanting and desiring this kind of pampering was a waste of my  time. But for just a few more seconds, I pretended like it was okay.

The moments ticked by, and I finally stood up and took the towel off. I  went over to the suitcase that held my belongings at the foot of the bed  and pulled out clean panties and the faded pink pajamas I'd had since  Momma had given them to me for Christmas when I was sixteen. Heidi had a  matching pair. I had a picture of us in front of the tree wearing these  pajamas. Heidi loved it when Momma had given us matching pajamas for  Christmas. She did it every few years when she could afford it. Because  these were the last we had gotten, I cherished them. Sleeping in them  made her feel close to me.

I packed all the bath items back in the basket and put the towel in the  washing machine. Then I sat down and bandaged my feet. The ointment  soothed them, and the bath had helped immensely.