Heart and Soul by Carrie Elks

4

Meghan wiped an invisible dust mote off the table, and looked around her apartment. She’d spent two hours cleaning every surface, even though there wasn’t much dirt to begin with. Isla had happily put away her books and helped Meghan hang up her clean clothes, and was sitting reading a book, her legs swinging against the sofa.

The buzzer to her door blasted out at exactly four o’clock.

“Come on up,” she said through the intercom, pressing the button to unlatch the door that led from the lobby to the bank of elevators. “We’re on floor ten.”

“You didn’t ask who I was.” Her dad sounded annoyed through the speaker.

“You’re the only people I was expecting.” She kept her voice light, because she had to endure an hour of this.

“You should still ask your visitors to identify themselves, Meghan. We could have been anybody.”

She rolled her eyes to get it out of her system, then walked over to the apartment door, pulling it open as she waited for the elevator to arrive. When it did, her parents walked out, her mom carrying an insulated bag full of what looked like home cooking, and her dad carrying his toolbox.

“Hi.” She stepped back to let them in. “Isla, Granny and Gramps are here.”

“Where’s my girl?” Meghan’s mom said, her eyes sparkling at the mention of Isla. “Come here and give Granny a huge hug.”

Isla flew into her arms, and Meghan’s mom hugged her tight. “Oh, I’ve missed you.” She kissed her head, then released her. “Look at you, I swear you’ve grown six inches.”

Isla flushed with happiness. “I just saw you two weeks ago, Granny.”

“Have you got a hug for your old Gramps, too?” Her dad put his toolbox down and held out his arms, and Isla laughed as he gave her a bear hug. “How do you like your new home?”

“It’s great.” Isla grinned. “We have a pool. Did you see it?”

Megan noticed her parents exchange a glance. “Yes we did,” her dad said. “I’ll take a closer look at it later. It was very noisy and full of young people when we arrived.”

“I saw somebody drinking beer there,” her mom added.

“Can I get you a drink?” Meghan asked them. “Or would you like the tour first?”

“I brought some homemade lemonade,” her mom said, passing the insulated bag to Meghan. “Why don’t you pour us all a glass and Isla can take us on a tour?”

“Yay! Can we start with my bedroom?” Isla asked, looking hopefully at Meghan.

Meghan nodded. “Sure. Go ahead, sweetie.”

Taking four glasses from the cupboard, she exhaled heavily, only half listening as Isla took them into each room, giving them a running commentary on her week at school. She could get through this. Her parents being here made Isla happy, and that should make her happy, too.

“I’ve brought some extra locks to install on your front door.” Her dad’s voice behind her made her jump. At least that explained the tool box.

Meghan passed him a glass of lemonade. “I don’t think you can do that. My lease doesn’t allow any changes to the security.”

Her dad frowned. “Do you have the landlord’s number? I’ll call him and explain.”

“It’s Sunday. And it’s fine, Dad. There’s no crime here, and my neighbors are very friendly. You don’t have to worry.”

“Your mother hasn’t been able to sleep worrying about Isla’s safety. I just want to put her mind at rest.”

Meghan swallowed down a sigh. “Why don’t you leave the lock here? I’ll talk to the landlord and if he says it’s okay, I’ll install it myself.”

Her dad pressed his lips together, and gave her a tight nod. “Let me show you where it should go.”

Meghan followed him to the door, where he pointed out the best location. “You want to put it here. It’s easily released in an emergency, in case of fire or anything else.” He opened the door, and was about to point out something on the other side when the elevator pinged.

Rich walked out, his eyebrows lifting in surprise as he saw the two of them standing in her doorway. “Hey.” He rubbed his thumb along his jaw.

“Hi.” Meghan smiled. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a black polo shirt, the sleeves tight on his defined biceps. “This is my dad. Dad, this is my neighbor, Rich Martin.”

Her dad eyed Rich suspiciously. “Hello.”

“He’s a doctor at the local hospital,” Meghan added. She wanted to roll her eyes again when her dad relaxed next to her, and he gave Rich a big smile.

“You are? What do you do there?”

“I’m an attending physician in the Emergency Room.” Rich caught her eye, and she widened her own, hoping he knew she was sorry. Because her dad was almost fawning now that he knew her neighbor was a doctor.

As if that mattered.

“Jennifer,” her dad called over his shoulder. “Come meet Meghan’s new neighbor. He’s a doctor.”

Her mom rushed over, her lips curling into a smile. “Hello. It’s a pleasure.” She reached out a hand and Rich shook it. He looked so confused. She couldn’t blame him. “So you’re a doctor? How lovely. And what does your wife do?”

Rich’s gaze met Meghan’s again. She could feel her face flush. “I’m not married,” he told them.

“Oh.” There were a thousand syllables in her mom’s response. Meghan could feel every single one of them.

“Have you lived here long?” her dad asked him. Were they seriously doing this?

“About five years.” Rich’s smile was polite but closed.

“And is it safe here?” her mom asked, leaning forward. “We worry about Meghan and Isla all on their own.”

This time she couldn’t help the eye roll. It came before she could even anticipate it and hold it in. Rich’s lips twitched as his eyes met hers.

“It’s the safest place I’ve ever lived, ma’am.” Rich nodded. “You don’t have to worry about them here.”

“At least the neighbors are respectable,” her mom said to her dad. “You can’t get much better than a doctor.”

“Yes.” Her dad nodded. “That’s good to know.”

“Well, I should get inside. It was nice to meet you.” Rich lifted a hand in farewell.

“And you,” her mom said. “Hopefully we’ll see you around a lot. Whenever we visit.”

Over Meghan’s dead body. She’d visit them instead. Because right now she was mortified.

Sliding his key into his own door lock, Rich looked over his shoulder, his gaze connecting with hers. He gave her an amused grin, then turned back, walking into his apartment and closing the door behind him.

“Mommy, can I turn on the television?” Isla asked.

“Don’t be silly, dear. We can do some drawing together. The television isn’t good for your eyes,” Meghan’s mom said, walking back inside her apartment. Her dad followed them, leaving Meghan standing alone in the doorway.

In an hour they’d be gone. And hopefully Rich wouldn’t hold their weird behavior against her. Thank goodness she only had to see them every couple of weeks – any more than that and she might lose her mind.

For the first time in a long while, she’d been able to breathe easy, without worrying about what they thought of her, or how she was letting them down again.

She was beginning to like that feeling.