Page 52 of Anything To Be With You

That’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it?

I never heard back from Luke for the rest of the night. Not even in the middle of the night like usual. As I get ready for the day, I put a little more thought into my outfit, hair, and makeup. Something I never do, but after talking to Erin last night, I figure why not.

I pull out a maroon skirt that hugs my hips and sits mid-thigh. I slip it up my legs, pairing it with a plain white button down, and finish up my makeup. I crawl into my closet, my hand searching under boxes and bags to find my favourite pair of pumps, when it connects with something too big to be in my closet.

I wrap my fingers around it and yank it out from under a box labeled 'Mason’s old clothes.'

"What the shit? Mason!" I holler. When I don’t get an answer, I yell for him again. "Mason Christopher!"

His bedroom door creaks open. "Yeah?" he yawns.

"I found your other shoe."

"Awesome sauce."

I throw it out into the hallway. "Why was it in my closet?" I ask, climbing to my feet and meeting him in the hallway.

He’s leaning against the door frame, asleep, with his mouth hanging open and drool on his chin.

"Mason!" I yell.

He doesn’t move. Sighing, I grab the shoe and throw it again, hitting the door with a loud bang. Mason jumps, tripping over his massive shoe and landing on his back with a grunt.

"Bubba," I sing, "why was your shoe in my closet?" I ask again, coming to stand over him.

"I was looking for something." He groans, rolling onto his side.

"What were you looking for?"

"I have no idea." Mason pushes to his feet, staggering a little.

"Go back to bed Bubba," I touch his stubbled cheek. I don’t like that one bit. He’s my baby boy, he’s not supposed to have stubble. "I’ll see you when I get home from work."

"Okay," he kisses my cheek. "Love you, Ma."

"Love you, Bubba." I head downstairs as his door closes.

I pop a bagel into the toaster and grab a glass. Surprisingly, Axe left a mouthful of orange juice in the bottle this time. I down the juice and pack my lunch, finishing just as the toaster pops. Buttering the bagel, I wrap it in paper towel and head out the door.

The office is locked when I get there. It’s quarter to eight, Luke is usually here by now.

"Hey girl," Carrie says.

I turn to her with a smile.

She pulls out a set of keys and opens the door. "We missed you yesterday."

I snort. "You mean you missed me."

Carrie giggles. "Nah. The office wasn’t the same. Too quiet. There was no yelling coming out of Luke’s office."

"Speaking of Archer. Where is he? He’s usually here by now."

Carrie’s face drops. "He ah, slept here."

"Serious?" My heart twists in my chest.

She nods. "Yeah. Yesterday was a…a difficult day." She smiles but it doesn’t reach her hazel eyes as she flips on the lights. "But today will be better. Now that you’re back."

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