Stone In Love

Chapter 41

I decided not to tell Sylvie about the gollum thing. I didn't want to bring her down from the high she was on thanks to Colin and his limitless stamina, and I managed to reassure her that Vincent and I would work our problems out. When she left for home, she was already planning her next trip to Manhattan. As for me, I took to sulking in front of the television, flicking through the Netflix menu without a clue what I wanted to watch. It wasn't until my phone rang that I remembered I still had a life, and when I looked at the caller ID and saw Colin's name, my chest tightened painfully. Why couldn't it have been Vincent?

"Hi, Colin. What can I do for you?"

"How are you, Reese?"

"How do you think I am? I've just been dumped. And not by one person, by an entire family."

"We haven't dumped you. A situation came up and we thought it would be better if you weren't around while we dealt with it."

"You keep using the word 'we'. Are you sure it isn't Vincent giving the orders? He seems to be good at that."

"Don't be angry with Vincent. He hates the idea of you living alone, but the situation is beyond his control. It affects the entire domus, and he is the magister. It's protocol to protect the family at all costs."

"Gee, that's nice. I thought I was included in that protection."

"You are." Colin sighed into the phone. "Listen, Reese. I'm on my way to your place. We can talk more when I get there."

I glanced at the time on my phone. "It's almost one in the morning, Colin."

"Yeah, and your point is?"

I wanted to tell him not to bother coming over. If the Valentinos were willing to throw me to the wolves, in this case the demons, I would deal with them myself. But I had to admit, I had gotten used to being surrounded by a family, and my apartment felt terribly empty. Had I been that lonely before the Valentino brothers waltzed into my life?

"Okay, Colin. I'll see you soon."

When Colin arrived, I was working on a box of cheese crackers that had been shoved into the back of my pantry. They were not part of my current diet plan, but my choices were slim at the moment.

"What are you eating?" Colin said as he scowled at the box in my hand. "They look like something you would feed a hamster."

I stared at the picture on the box before plunking it onto the counter. "They taste like something you would feed a hamster, but I haven't been home in a few days and pickins' are slim."

"We can fix that. March's Market is open all night. Grab your keys and grocery bags. Don't worry about bringing your wallet."

I didn't argue with Colin, having gotten used to the Valentino's generosity, but I grabbed the twenty Mr. Pearlman gave me for cigarettes. I didn't expect Colin to pay for the old man's nasty smoking habit. Colin was a fun shopping partner, and as we perused the aisles, he told me how much he liked Sylvie. I could tell he wasn't exaggerating just to appease me. He really genuinely liked her, which I found easy to believe. Sylvie was a gem.

Of course, Colin insisted on paying for everything, including Mr. Pearlman's crap, and we returned home with all the fixins for a batch of aloo gobi. Colin had no problem in the kitchen. He cut up the cauliflower and potatoes, while I heated the frozen choley we found in the freezer section. Half an hour later, when we had eaten our fill, Colin broached the real reason for his impromptu visit.

"Did Amelia tell you I would be teaching you self-defense?"

"Yes."

"Well, I'm not. At least, not in the way she explained it. The only way for you to learn to defend yourself against demons is to embrace your gollum nature. I'm going to teach you how to do that."