Page 10 of Force At Third

Whit moves to the other side of the island and sits on the barstool beside me. “What’s the plan with CeCe?”

“Chloe wants me to move in with her for a while,” I answer, glad we’re back on task.

“Until she’s done with this round of fertility treatments?”

I nod then take a sip of my tea.

“And CeCe?”

“She will find out everything you did tomorrow.”

“How are she and Danny doing?”

“They’re Chloe and Danny.” I smile softly.

* * *

Tuesday

I hardly got a minute’s sleep last night with texts from Frankie, who was clearly intoxicated. I reminded him that it’s been over a year since last we drunkenly hook-up and only five or six of those nights in nearly a decade, and the phone calls and texts didn’t constitute a relationship; it was a convenience and a connection.

He offered one, with the possibility of “more.” He texted that if I’d stop playing cops and robbers, he might even give me his last name.

I kindly declined.

Then, I eventually stopped responding.

I plan to block him when he has a sober moment to reread the nonsense he sent and hope he realizes how ridiculous he’s being. Shutting down my phone was not an option, especially not right now, so I endured the alerts.

All. Night. Long.

Chloe and Danny came over to the Paul family home after CeCe went to work at her veterinary clinic. Aggie didn’t want to leave and wanted me to stay with her. This worked out because that way, Chloe and CeCe would be able to chat without Aggie interruptions, which, in normal circumstances, are adorable, and Danny was armed with instructions to begin setting up a real security system at CeCe’s, not that damn doorbell cam she has.

With Aggie asleep in my arms, her little head on my shoulder, I yawn as I stare out the window.

“Tired?” Whit asks.

“I’ve spent the day with six wonderful kids. All smart and funny and so much more, but they’re still kids. So, yes, Whit, I’m freaking”—I yawn again—“exhausted.”

We then see Chloe pulling down the driveway.

Whit leans her lead on my free shoulder. “York, she’s got to be more exhausted than all of us.”

* * *

Everyone is quiet during the thirty-minute ride from Whit’s to CeCe’s house. CeCe looks a bit shaken but, more than that, concerned. To me, that’s a true sign of strength and shows how much these two love one another.

Chloe breaks the silence. “Wait until you see CeCe’s place.”

“It’s especially nice in the late spring and summer,” CeCe says.

“She loves her flower gardens,” Chloe clarifies, no doubt just to keep the conversation going.

“You and Whit should get together and talk flowers,” I add to the conversation. “She and Pope are obsessed with theirs.”

“Do you garden?” CeCe asks.

“I respect plant life too much to partake,” I admit, and they both laugh politely.

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