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She nods. “Rainbow’s immunity tonic.”
Fu-u-u-u-u-uck.
Inez chuckles slightly. “Don’t make that face.”
I grimace harder. “That shit is the worst. It literally fries the tastebuds right off your tongue.”
“But she promised that the cold doesn’t stand a chance against it,” Inez argues, giving the scary liquid a good, hard shake.
And I know she’s right. Gen has forced me to take this natural remedy a time or two in the past. It always gets the job done, but it’s not a pleasant process.
“Come on, Daddy. It’s good for you. Don’t be a baby,” Stella says in exasperation.
Inez sighs heavily, pulling out a kitchen chair. “Okay. Sit down.”
“What?”
“Sit down. I’ll help you.” She grabs a spoon from the utensil drawer.
Does this woman think I’m about to let her spoon-feed me? Yeah, right.
But when Stella starts badgering me for being a scaredy-cat, I drop into the chair with a huff.
Inez grins victoriously. I keep my eyes on her as she pours and the liquid hits the spoon in dense, yellow clumps.
Stella grabs my hand for support. “Say ‘ahhh’!’” she orders me encouragingly and I comply.
As Inez enters my personal bubble with the spoon, I get distracted by the scent of her perfume, by her soft-looking skin, by the way her breasts weigh against the neckline of her shirt.
I get so distracted that I forget all about the tonic until it makes contact with my tongue. Startled, I swallow and then the poison is burning a spicy, bitter, acidic path down my throat.
“Oh my—what—Jesus—what’s in that stuff?” I’m gasping for air.
My daughter giggles in my face.
Inez is nice enough to suppress her own laugh. “Rainbow has a secret ingredient. She wouldn’t tell what it is. But apparently, it works like magic.” She pours a glass of orange juice and sets it into my hand together with a big chocolate chip cookie. “Now, go recover on the couch. We’ll let you know when dinner’s ready.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I say, trying to wash the nasty taste out of my mouth with a gulp of the juice.
“How do you feel now?” Stella asks me. “Are you starting to feel better like Miss Rainbow promised?”
I ruffle her head. “Not quite yet. But I’ll be one hundred percent back to normal in the morning. I guarantee it.”
“How do you know?” Stella questions.
I just grin to myself.
How do I know I’ll be better? Because Inez smiled at me. And it was like the glittery sun peeking through the heavy rainclouds.
Maybe she’s not so mad at me anymore. Maybe things might get better between us.
On second thought, looking at Inez now from across my kitchen, I think I feel better already.
22
NOLAN
“How do you work this thing?” I hear my grandmother’s voice come through my phone. But I can’t see her. It’s just a blank screen staring at me.
