Leo Maddox by Sarah Darlington Page B

all her visits you never mentioned that she had an identical twin. A twin you loved. That’s kind of important shit to mention.”
    I nodded, sighing. “Clara’s different though. It’s like…I always have this need to protect her. So I don’t talk about her much.”
    At that very moment, my cell phone rang. I fought with my pocket, needing to see who was calling. Shit. As I struggled to get the damn thing out of my pocket, I realized that maybe I was drunker than I thought. I fumbled and squirmed—then dropped my phone on the floor. Finally, speaking of the twins, I got my shit together and saw it was only Maggie calling. Still...I was actually very happy to hear from her.
    “Maggie!” I answered with enthusiasm. “What's up, baby doll?”
    “Hey, Leo,” her familiar voice said. “Where are you?”
    “Some bar. Anyway, want to come meet me?”
    “I can't. I'm in Blue Creek.”
    Right. We were states apart. I knew that. “Fuck Blue Creek,” I mumbled.
    She giggled. “So what are you doing at some bar ?”
    “I'm out with Paul and his brothers,” I shouted over the noise around me. Paul eyeing me as he sipped his drink. “We're getting drunk and I wish you were here. What are you doing?”
    “I'm hiding in a closet, talking to you. Robby is having dinner with us. He has a daughter. They're both out on the back deck right now and I'm in the closet.”
    That Rat Bastard! What the hell! A daughter? And the asshole still had time to try to hit on Maggie? And there went the lover in me. Just hearing Robby’s named turned me back into the fighter. I tried to jump to my feet but proceeded to fall straight on my ass. Not good. I was cutting myself off after this. Paul laughed and helped me to my feet.
    “Mags!” I shouted into my phone. “I told you to wait for me. I told you I would take care of him. What the hell is he doing at your house?”
    “Good question. It's been a crazy day.”
    “I'll say. Well, get out of the closet and tell that fucker to go home. Don't say ‘fucker.’ Not with his daughter there and all, but go tell him to get his ass off your back deck—I mean it. He has no right to be there. He lost that right a long time ago.”
    “Where's Clara?” she asked. “Are you with her?” Her change of subject was obviously meant to distract me away from Robby…and it worked.
    “Brooklyn,” I muttered.
    “That's a vague answer, Leo. Elaborate, please.”
    I covered the phone with my hand, rolling my eyes at Paul. “I’ve got go talk to Maggie outside for a moment. I need air.”
    He simply nodded.
    I walked across the bar, stepping through the door and outside onto the busy sidewalk. The sun was sinking and everything had an orange tint to it. People passed me in a rush, going about their random lives, and I ignored it all and talked to my friend.
    “I don't know what the hell I'm doing,” I answered Maggie honestly. “You should have seen the way Clara ran away from me on the subway today...like I butchered her dog. Dammit. There's such a fine line between love and hate. Do you think it’s possible to fall for someone after you've spent a lifetime hating them?”
    It took Maggie a moment but then she responded. “I'm not sure if it's because you're drunk or what, but what kind of question is that? If you love someone, you just love them. Flaws and all. You can't hate someone and love them at the same time—it doesn't work that way. Love is all or nothing. Sometimes your own issues get in the way, but once you strip away all the noise, you find that there is just love underneath.”
    Wow.
    “Who knew you were so insightful?” I told her, half-joking but mostly serious. “So what you're saying is...if Clara likes me, then it's not possible for her to genuinely hate me at the same time? It's an either/or kind of thing?”
    My whole life I’d assumed Clara hated me. I’d spent a lifetime saying lots of stupid shit I didn’t mean to the girl. Why wouldn’t she hate me? I was