12. Collins #2
“It was the best fucking day of my life.” His voice is booming, the grin on his face from ear to ear. The crinkle at the side of his eyes is pinching. “Thank you for letting me come with you.”
“You’re welcome.” I linger for a second. “I’ll text you later.”
“Have a nice nap,” he says as I get out and shut the door, not turning around and heading straight into the house.
The nap never happens, and I have to wonder if it’s because I’m so excited from everything this morning.
When I finally give up and head to the kitchen to grab a snack, I pick up my phone.
“Do you think I should text him now or when I get to work? I don’t want to text him at all. But I know he’ll worry about you.”
I pull up the text thread and type.
Me:
Hey, it’s me. I’m alive.
“Is that good or too morbid?” I’m erasing the words when it pings in my hand.
Theo:
Good morning, or afternoon, really. How did you sleep? Did you eat?
I smile as my finger runs across the screen of my phone.
Me:
Good afternoon. I’m doing so much better. Just had a sandwich.
I press Send before I change my mind, and the phone goes off again right away.
Theo:
What time did you wake up?
“Uh oh,” I mumble. “Do I say I didn’t sleep?”
The phone rings in my hand, and I see it’s him. “I can’t not answer.” The phone rings again. “He’s going to probably freak out if I don’t answer.” My finger slides right, and I put the phone on speaker. “Hello.”
“Hey,” he says. There’s music and a saw buzzing in the background, then I hear a door close on his end, and it’s quiet. “Sorry about that, I was in the middle of the jobsite and figured it would be better to call you than play text tag.”
“That’s okay,” I reply.
“So you napped this whole time?” he asks me.
“Ummm,” I admit to him. “I was lying in bed.”
“So you’ve been up for three hours, and you didn’t text me?”
“Um,” I stall nervously, trying to think of an excuse. “I was hungry.” I close my eyes, hoping he buys the little lie I’m telling him, and then the conversation he had with me yesterday comes roaring back into my head.
I’ve never lied to you, Collins. Not once. And I’m not about to start now.
“Wait,” I snap out, the guilt of lying to him getting to me before he can say anything. “I mean, I was hungry, but I also figured I’d text you when I was heading out to work.”
“What did you eat for lunch?” he asks me, not even acknowledging what I just told him.
I close my eyes as I answer him: “I made a grilled cheese.”
“Did it make you sick?”
“Nope,” I reply when his tone stays the same, and not one part of him sounds angry. “I even had another apple with peanut butter.”
“Good. What time do you start work?”
“Three. I’m about to shower and then head on over and see if I missed anything big yesterday.”
“Okay, have a great shift, and I’ll see you later.” He disconnects.
“Your father sure has me confused,” I mumble, heading for the shower.
I’m blow-drying my hair when my phone rings again. “It’s about time,” I snap at Finley.
“I’m sorry. I should have checked in on you.” Her voice is low as I pull my hair into a ponytail and head to the kitchen to pack a bag of snacks. I hear her sniffling.
“Are you okay?” I ask her.
“Not really, but how are you feeling?”
“Oh no.” I stop what I’m doing. “What’s wrong?”
“Well, my marriage is falling apart.” Her voice goes higher. “He’s cheating on me.”
“Oh my god. I’m so sorry, Finley. Do you want to come here and stay for a bit?
” I look around the house and know right away that it would kill her.
She’s got one of those trust funds set up by her grandparents, so sleeping here would be like camping to her.
Not that she’s ever said anything like that, but I’ve seen where she lives and can tell.
“No, you don’t need me to bring this to your doorstep. How are you feeling?” She’s turning it around on me, and I know it’s because she doesn’t want me to harp on it. I fill her in.
“So baby daddy is sticking around?”
“That’s what he said.” I grab my clothes. “I’m not going to count my chickens before they hatch.” She laughs, which makes me feel better.
“Well, why don’t you take it one day at a time?” she advises. My eyes go to the air conditioners he bought me and then the overflowing fruit bowl. “I have to go, but I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“You call me whenever you need me,” I tell her.
“Thanks, girl.” She disconnects, and I head out. The heat hits me in the face as soon as I open the door. The humidity is a killer, and I know lots of people will be suffering. “It’s going to be a busy night,” I state, getting into the car and opening the windows.
The minute I arrive at work, Chief Scooter comes out of his office and looks down the stairs at me. “Collins,” he says, “I was wondering if you were going to show up for your shift today.”
“I would have called before ten if I wasn’t. I got food poisoning. Never going to touch chicken again.” I roll my eyes. “I mean, not for a while. I think I’ll stick to beef.”
He laughs. “That sounds like a good plan. I guess you won’t be eating dinner with us tonight. It’s chicken parm.”
I shake my head, walking up the stairs to the locker room. “You would guess correctly on that. Hopefully, I’ll be out on calls when it’s time to eat, so I don’t have to smell it, or else I’ll be eating outside.”
“Attagirl, right back up there,” he praises before he walks back into his office.
Roman arrives two seconds later. “She’s back,” he calls out as I open my locker, dump my bag in there, and get my uniform out.
“I’m back,” I retort, walking into the bathroom and changing into my uniform.
The blue pants are fitting me a little tighter around the ass and the stomach.
I tuck the matching blue T-shirt into my pants with the Montgavin Paramedic badge on the left side of the chest. It’s also written across my back.