Mia Like Crazy by Nina Cordoba Page A

supposed to be here in thirty minutes.”
    I rolled my eyes, but he acted as though he didn’t notice .
    ~
    We managed to be on our way before the dreaded cleaning lady arrived. The close quarters of the car apparently made Drew uncomfortable. He was completely silent except for some occasional tapping on the steering wheel. I thought perhaps this was too intimate a setting for him. But I didn’t enjoy quiet car rides—they were too much like waiting—so I decided to make some conversation.
    “I guess if I’m going to be your wife, I should know some things about you.”
    He gripped the steering wheel more tightly, apparently bracing himself for my intrusion. “You already know everything.” There was forced calm mixed with defensiveness.
    “I mean other things, normal things, like what’s your favorite color?”
    “Black.”
    “Of course. How many of those black suits do you have anyway?”
    “Thirty, but they’re not all exactly the same.” He said it as if he wished they were.
    “Okay, how old are you?”
    I watched his jaw clench. “Didn’t you figure that out from all those newspaper clippings you copied of me when I was a kid?”
    “How do you know about those?”
    “When Meridith’s butler brought your briefcase over, the zipper was still open. The file with my name on it jumped out at me.”
    “Drew, I’m a lawyer. You can’t go through my briefcase. I keep clients’ confidential documents in there.”
    “I thought I was your only client, right now.”
    “Nevertheless…” I had run out of argument, so I let my voice trail off. I was starting to think he should have become a lawyer.
    After a few seconds of silence, he asked, “Why did you keep all those pictures of me when I was a little kid?”
    “I honestly don’t know,” I replied. “It was an impulse.”
    “Yeah, I have those, except they usually get me into trouble.” He didn’t go into anymore explanation, and I was grateful.
    “Drew?”
    “Yeah?”
    “You don’t want to know why I saved the other one? The one when you were older?”
    “No…I know why.” His voice was barely more than a whisper, but I could feel his pain in every word. “I let them see me.”
    I had no response. I wanted to comfort him in some way, but I knew the misery from that time in his life went too deep to be cured in one short ride.
    I waited several minutes, then asked, “Drew, did you put my files back in my briefcase?”
    “Yeah, but I burned the pictures.”
    At that moment, the car came to a stop in front of the largest home I had ever seen at such close proximity.
    “Is this Meridith’s house? I feel under-dressed.”
    He looked over at me in my snug, red turtleneck sweater and simple, dark jeans. “You look great,” he said without an ounce of sarcasm.
    I’d anticipated being greeted at the door by a stodgy butler, but Meridith herself opened it for us.
    “I’ve been expecting you,” she said cheerfully. “Mia, I’m so glad you’re still with us. I knew you had it in you!”
    “Well, I wasn’t sure there for a while.” I tilted my head toward Drew.
    “I am standing in the room with you,” he said.
    “You know I only want the best for you, always,” Meridith cooed as she patted him affectionately on the side of his face. He winced and shooed her hand away. I was surprised when she began removing his black suit jacket for him. He didn’t stop her.
    “I always do this when he comes over,” Meridith explained. “I don’t think it’s good for him to walk around in so much black all the time.” Then she whispered, “Sometimes it even seems to loosen him up a little.”
    I remembered to thank her for the migraine medicine and, of course, she was glad she could help. She turned to Drew. “Molly and I were making your favorite cookies. She’s in the kitchen waiting for you.”
    “Cool!” He sounded genuinely enthusiastic. He immediately disappeared down the hall.
    After he was out of earshot, Meridith looked at me,