Free Secret Shopper by Tanya Taimanglo Page B

Lee one-inch punch t-shirt, then removed my towel. We raced downstairs and popped in a movie. It was like old times, but back then we rented VHS movies from the local mom and pop store, sat with a tub of cool whip and Oreos and a liter of pop and burned the rest of our afternoon in sugary giddiness. Oh, how I wish my metabolism now was that of my fourteen year old self. Now, we sated ourselves with stale ranch rice cakes and diet pop.
    Ten minutes into Bridget Jones’s Diary , Rachel snored. I gently removed her head from my shoulder and lay her flat on the sofa. I had her company for four more days and I was grateful. Rachel was definitely in dreamland, mouth gaping open, legs sprawled over the back of the couch-very ladylike. She looked like she was in a pixie death match with Tinkerbell and lost. I wrapped her tight in my Hello Kitty blanket and kissed her forehead. Leaving the movie on in the background, I headed to my room.
    I walked past the office, my laptop actually beckoned me. Psst. Get your butt in here and tap this , it said. I headed in and started it up promising myself that I would only be on for fifteen minutes. I unwound my damp hair. My finger hesitated on the Facebook button. It had been two weeks. I hit my e-mail button instead. I saw numerous messages from Rachel, a few from Pharaoh and three from Bradley. Hmm . Rachel was here already, so I skipped those. I didn’t want to be cursed out via her e-mails. I clicked on Pharaoh’s latest e-mail. He wasn’t a man of many words and his correspondence wasn’t any different.
     
    Hey sis, training again, dumped Caroline, parentals are cool, but call. Funeral was typical, can’t believe Uncle J is gone. Roar!
     
    I wanted to give mom and dad space during this time. Didn’t want to call them frequently, reminding them that I wasn’t coming home. It was almost three in the morning, which meant it was about eight at night on Guam. They may still be at Uncle’s post-funeral rosary, but I took a chance and called the house. They picked up.
    I finally dragged myself to bed after an hour of tiptoeing around the topic of Bradley. I thought about my parents. Dad was so proud of this new direction Bradley took by joining the Army, being an Army retiree himself. I wondered what dad would think about the new direction of my marriage. When they asked about Bradley it took all my strength not to yell out, He’s screwing Barbie now and they’re looking into adopting a bunch of kids from Korea and whatever third world country was in vogue at the moment!
    I looked at Bradley’s cold side of the bed, the place I slept when I missed him. I went to my spot instead and stared out into the starless sky, wondering for the first time not about Bradley, but about Thomas.
     
    After losing half of Monday to sleep, Rachel and I spent the second half of the day sightseeing. I was glad she didn’t care to go to the zoo or Seaworld or any other touristy spot. We dined in the city and strolled around. Monday night was filled with Chinese delivery and just more great conversation and wine.
    With Tuesday’s evaluation looming, I spent the evening in my office preparing and reviewing my paperwork for Thomas. Rachel slept again, not completely recovered from her jet lag. I felt bad when I thought about her adjusting to our time zone, only to leave back to Guam to be a zombie again for a few days. She was the sister I never had and I hated for her to suffer because of me.
    Rachel negotiated her way into going to Bag It with me. She even helped herself to a long raven wig in my closet, something I bought to spice up the bedroom which never came out of its original packaging. She wore some of my old clothes, which were baggy on her. Her mocha brown skin and the black hair made her look like her old island girl self from high school. Long hair and hot weather wasn’t a good mix, and I wondered why more Guam girls didn’t have pixie haircuts.
    I indulged Rachel’s dress up session