Red Alert/Red Notice (The "Super Jerk" Prequel)

2 - The Chain

{Raina}

I wake slowly after I hear Geoff leave. I know last night I hadn't said what he'd wanted me to say, but how else am I supposed to cope with the constant disapproval from the New York socialites? I'm from the gutter, and I always have been. I can't deny what I can't change.

After a few minutes I sigh and roll on my back. I cover my face, rub my eyes, and then drop my hands again. I love Geoff, and I wouldn't want our lives any other way. And I love our daughter, seeing more of both of us in her every day.

But in the back of my mind, I was always suspecting he was someplace else. Even last night, as he kissed my scars and skimmed his hands over my body, I sensed a preoccupation weighing on his mind. I wonder if he knows I know it's there.

I hear Ettie making noise on the baby monitor. With that I roll out of bed, pull on my robe, and pad down the hall to her room. When she was first born, she slept in a crib next to my side of the bed, because it was unthinkable to banish her to another room. Now that she's older, she has Geoff's old bedroom, but I still keep the baby monitor on. She could walk now, which meant she could get into a lot more things.

"Hey, sweetie," I say when I see her sitting up, peering over the gate that keeps her from falling out of bed. "Sleep well?"

"Where Dada?" she asks as I lower the baby gate.

"He left early this morning, Ets, I'm sorry." I hardly saw him during the week, and last night was his first show of intimacy in over a month. I would have to think of something soon, or I'd go crazy spending this much time in this big house alone.

"Dada gone?" She climbs out of bed herself, but still holds onto my hand for support. "Why gone?"

"He works very hard, honey. Just like Grandpa used to." I still think of Daniel sometimes. Initially, he'd sized me up right away, and had called me white trash. But then, when we found out he had cancer, things started to change. He'd begun to accept me, and had even changed his will because of the relationship I had with Geoff. That, in my opinion, made up for everything he'd ever said about me. Because, like Ridley, he was right.

"Look Mama. Nana." Ettie points, and I follow. Mila's coming up the stairs at the end of the hall, and when she sees us, she smiles. Mila doesn't have any children of her own, and having her here is a blessing, really. She cares for Ettie like her own child sometimes. "Hi, Nana!"

"Hello, little miss Ettie." Mila smiles as she picks Ettie up, and then glances at me. "How are you this morning, Miss Raina?"

"Just fine, Mila." I smile back at her. "Where's Geoff?"

"Left early, Miss Raina. Did not say why."

"I see." His job is demanding, yes. And he has to drive to downtown Ithaca every day to get to his office. But this news of Ridley coming back had changed him again. He'd barely spoken last night, and I'd even had to coax him. It was usually the other way around.

"Miss Forbes called," she says over her shoulder as she carries Ettie downstairs. "She wonders if you would like to meet for lunch."

"Yes," I answer right away. The last time I'd seen El was on Ettie's first birthday. After that she'd gotten too busy with school and finding a job. And besides, it would get me out of the house for a little while. Commuting from here to Manhattan and back was not a short trip, but I'm glad El's making the effort again.

≈

By the time I've showered, changed, and generally freshened myself up, it's getting close to noon, the time I agreed to meet El downtown. Geoff's driver, Roberto, has already pulled the car around when I step outside. It's already pretty warm outside, with summer only a little over a month away. In fact it's so warm I don't need the coat I brought.