ANNIE'S SONG
copyright 2007 by Sabra Brown Steinsiek
Whiskey Creek Press
ISBN
E-Book 928-1593-74-810-4 Paperback 928-1593-74-810-8
ATTENTION:
This is the last of the preview chapters of Annie's Song to be posted. If you've read this far, hopefully you're hooked by now.
If you're interested in reading further (and meeting the ghost of Albuquerque's KiMo Theatre!) Annie's Song will be ready for purchase on November 1, 2007.
Thanks for helping give Annie such a great send-off. We're both grateful.
Chapter 9
Annie called Kit when she left the restaurant and arranged to meet him back at Genevieve’s on her way home. She didn’t commit to having him move in but didn’t totally squelch the idea either. That gave Kit real hope.
She was waiting for him when he got there. “Hi, Annie,” he said as he sat down. “Today’s Monday, and I remember that it’s one of the days that you allow yourself to eat. So, my treat. What decadent thing will it be?”
Annie laughed. “You must have read my mind. I shouldn’t since I just had lunch with the girls. I’m in the mood for strawberries, and they make a great strawberry shortcake here with extra whipped cream.”
“Sounds good to me,” he said as their waiter came over. “Two strawberry shortcakes, and I’ll have coffee. Annie?”
“Same, but make mine decaf.”
When the waiter departed with their orders, Kit brought up the reason they were meeting. “I’m assuming this meeting means that you’re really considering letting me move in. Before we go any further, I don’t even know if I can afford to live there. It’s a great place in a classy neighborhood. I have a graduate teaching assistant position and a part-time job at the university library. It’s enough to cover my expenses, but just barely. I’m splitting the rent with three other guys right now. I’m not sure I can handle half of what the rent must be.”
“You forget that the loft belongs to my sister, Betta. She doesn’t need to make money off the loft, so I get special treatment.” She named a figure that startled Kit because it was absurdly low for a space in SoHo. “Think you could handle half of that?”
“Are you sure you’re telling me the truth and not lowering the rent because you feel sorry for me?”
“It’s the truth, I swear. And, since I make decent money, I could consider lowering your part if that was too high.”
“No, no, I can handle it. I’m just amazed that I can!”
“I think there are a few more things we need to discuss about the idea of sharing the loft. I want to make sure you know everything you’re getting into.”
“You make it sound like you have some deep, dark secret like bodies in a closet,” he said as he raised one eyebrow.
“Nothing quite as bad as that! Betta and our sister, Meg, are almost eighteen years older than me, so it’s like having a couple of extra mothers. Since Betta works just downstairs, she checks in on me fairly often, and Meg has been known to come by. That’s not to say they don’t respect my privacy. A lot of their visits are because my dad sends them to check on me. He’s very overprotective and has never quite accepted that I’m capable of living on my own. Since he and Mom are in Albuquerque, my sisters are his main source of information. If you move in, we can expect regular visits to make sure you are behaving yourself. And I wouldn’t put it past my dad to fly in just to check you out. Essentially, this all means that you get not only me as a roommate, but my family as well.”
Kit nodded. “I think I could handle that. If I ever have a daughter, I’d probably be the same way. And if Olivia ever did this, I know I’d be coming around to check in on the brute.”
“It just goes with the territory of being the youngest in a large family. I think once the curiosity wears off, things would settle down.”
“Anything else I should know? Do you need to run this past your sister?”
“I will let Betta know, but she’s told me time and again the loft is mine to do with as I please. She and Meg give me more credit than Dad does. So does Mom, although she’ll probably have some concerns.”
“So, where does that leave us?” Kit asked as he mentally crossed his fingers and every other appendage he had.
“Well, you passed the girlfriend test at lunch, although Olivia told me I was crazy. Don’t forget she’s one of my best friends and will be an endless source of blackmail information. Dante vouched for you but will come after you with claws extended if you do anything to me she doesn’t like. So, if you’re willing to risk that and my family, I think we may have a deal.”
