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Eli shrugged. “Do you want to talk more about it?”

Bridget stayed put, staring off at the far wall before she answered. “I want to see my cruiser.”

“I can take you down there soon if you want, but I’m warning you, it’s not pretty.”

“I know. I just…I want to see it.”

“Then we’ll go next time we have to go to town, all right?”

Nodding, Bridget finished off the bottle of water and set the empty plastic container on the nightstand. “I’m sorry I woke you up.”

“Don’t be. That’s what I’m here for, remember?”

Bridget didn’t answer. She wasn’t sure what to say. Instead, she settled her head on Eli’s shoulder, closed her eyes, and tried to relax her still-racing heart. She supposed the nightmare had been more of a doozy than she’d thought, but at least this time, she hadn’t tried to take off someone’s head or beat them up in the process.

They stayed there, quiet, for some time. Bridget wondered if Eli had fallen back asleep before she realized she didn’t even know what time it was. Shifting around, she grabbed her cell phone, glanced at the time, and saw a text from Jerica.

“I think she’s good for you, you know,” Eli murmured.

“Do you?” Bridget remarked, only halfway paying attention as she tried to unlock her phone through her sleepy haze and read the message.

“Yeah.”

“I’m not so sure about that.”

“Why?”

Bridget gave up on the text, not able to read and have an intricate conversation at the same time. She sighed and put her head back on Eli’s shoulder. “Because I’m so fucked up.”

“What’s to say she’s not equally fucked up?”

Bridget was glad Eli wasn’t looking at her and couldn’t see her face because there was no doubt in her mind Eli would be able to read between the lines of what she was thinking, and that scared the living shit out of her. It was part of why she’d pulled away all those years ago. Eli was too good at reading her, about knowing what she was thinking and feeling before she knew it herself.

“Bridge?”

“What?”

“What’s to say she’s not equally fucked up?”

“I don’t know,” she mumbled. “But my kind of fucked up isn’t exactly what people want when they go to find the love of their life.”

“Who said anything about love?” Eli shifted, and Bridget assumed she was trying to look her in the eye but didn’t quite manage it because Bridget refused to move. “I thought you two were just dating.”

“We are. Maybe. I don’t know. I’m not sure I should continue it. I mean, the other day was fun and nice. She’s a very sweet girl.”

“Girl?” Eli yawned, covering her mouth with her hand. “I don’t think I’d call her a girl.”

“Why’s that?”

“Well, she’s a nurse. She’s got to at least be in her early twenties.”

“I guess.”

“That doesn’t make her a girl,” Eli countered.

“Well, she’s an adult. I’m not dating a kid.” Bridget scoffed. “But she’s young.”

“How old do you think she is, really?”