I laugh. "Believe me, that's not what I'm doing. I'm just trying to keep the wind out." I scoot away from him, to the other side of the tent. "There. Is that better?"
"I was kidding." He turns to face me, his legs crossed in front of him. "You don't have to be that far away."
I scoot toward him a little and cross my legs like his. "So what do you want to talk about?"
"Would you let me get you a new one?"
"New what?"
"Backpack. You can have the old one but I'm worried you'll get sick eating anything you put in there. And if your friend is old, it could be even worse for her. Old people don't have great immune systems."
I hadn't even thought about that. I could be making Gladys sick and not even realizing it. I found that backpack a few months ago on the street. I have no idea who it belonged to, but I took it because I needed something to carry stuff in.
"Okay, fine," I say, "but it has to be cheap. Or get a used one. There's a thrift store a few miles from here. You could get one there."
"I'll get a new one. They're cheap. In fact they're on sale now that the stores are clearing out the back-to-school stuff. Should I get one for your friend too?"
The fact that he's considering Gladys makes me like him more. Maybe he really is just trying to help us without any ulterior motives. I wish I could believe that but I can't. Everyone has a motive.
"One is enough," I tell him. "Gladys and I can share."
The wind blows into the small opening I left in the tent and I shiver.
"Want me to close it?" Miles asks.
"You really trust me enough to do that?" I tease.
"I think I could escape if I really needed to." He zips it all the way closed. "Oh, I have something for you."
"What is it?"
"Found it in your backpack," he says, reaching in the pocket of his coat. "Actually, you should be the one to take it out."
He takes off his black puffer jacket and hands it to me. "It's in the right side pocket."
I reach in and pull out my knife. "Oh. Thanks."
"I thought you might need it. I didn't want to take it out myself and have you think I'm pulling a knife on you."
"Good idea." I smile. "You're not scared I'll use it on you, are you?"
"I wasn't, but just to be sure, I'll buy you an apple fritter in exchange for my safety."
I laugh. "Deal."
"And this time I won't eat half." He gets serious. "I wish I hadn't done that. If I’d known—"
"Don't," I say, interrupting him. "Don't treat me differently because I'm homeless. If you do, we're done. I won't talk to you anymore."
"Are you saying you'll talk to me after tonight?"
"Maybe. I haven't decided yet."
"How do I make it a yes?"
"You don't. I make my own decisions."
"Doesn't mean I can't try to persuade you. I'm a lawyer. Persuasion is what I do."
"Lying is what you do. Everyone knows lawyers lie to get what they want."
"I'm not that kind of lawyer."
"Who was that woman you were with? Is she a lawyer?"
"Yeah. Lisa. She's making me do research on a case she's assigned to. We were out talking about it when we saw you. I'm really sorry for the way she treated you. If it helps, she's like that with everyone. You should see how she treated the girl at the coffee shop we went to."
"Do you like working there?"
"I thought I would, but I'm starting to regret taking the job."
"Why?"
"I think they do whatever it takes to make the most money instead of doing what's right."
"All lawyers are like that."
"A lot of them are, but some really do want to fight for what's right."
"So what are you going to do?"
"Keep working there and hope it gets better. Today was just a shitty day." He smiles. "Until I saw you."
"Yeah, right. That was the worst part of my day. I didn't want you to find out that way. Actually, I didn't want you finding out at all but I figured you would if you worked around there."
I look down at my pocket knife, running my fingers up and down the smooth case. I'm relieved to have it back. It's the only thing I have for protection.
"Do people ever bother you here?" Miles asks, watching my fingers move across the knife.
"In the alley? No. We're pretty much on our own here, which is why we like it."
"How about during the day, when you're on the streets? Do people bother you?"
"Not really. For the most part, people ignore me. If they talk to me, it's to tell me to get a job."
"I meant are you safe? Big cities can be dangerous, especially at night."
"I haven't had any problems. Sometimes a guy will harass me but that happened even before I was homeless."
He's quiet a moment, then says, "How did it happen?"
"What?" I slip the knife in my pocket.
"How'd you end up here?"
"Long story."
"You don't want to tell me?"
"No." I feel my muscles tense and my throat go dry as the memories come back. I quickly shut them down. "I really don't."
He nods. "Understood."
I look to the side, then back at him. "What happened to your dad?"
He looks confused. "What?"
"Your dad. You said you never knew him. Did something happen to him?"
"He knocked up my mom and left town."
"Had they dated long?"
"Maybe a few weeks? I'm not really sure. My mom doesn't like to talk about it."
"So you know nothing about him?"
"No. And I never want to meet him. I'm better off without him. How about you? You mentioned your dad but not your mom. Did something happened to her?"
"She's an addict. Took off one day and we never saw her again. For all I know she's dead. I was so young when she left I don't even remember her."
"Did your dad do drugs too?"
"Not that I know of. I'm not even sure where he is anymore. He moves around a lot. Has a hard time keeping a job. He's a drinker. And a gambler." I half smile. "My family has a problem stopping once we start. It's a Brockton trait."
I wish I hadn't said that. Why did I say that?
"Brockton. Is that your last name?"
"Yeah, but don't go looking me up online," I say in a joking tone, although I'm not at all joking.
"Why not? Are you hiding some deep dark secret?"
"Just don't, okay? I'm not kidding."
"Raine, you're freaking me out a little here. What exactly aren't you telling me?"
I should just tell him. He's going to look me up when he gets home and then he'll know. Maybe knowing this will keep him away from me, which is not what I want but it's for the best. For both of us.
"Raine, what is it? You can tell me."