Page 34 of Forgotten Pieces

“I have been in that office for thirteen hours. I needed some Vitamin D. I think I forgot how the sun actually felt.”

I laugh at that. “You work way too much.”

“Well, I need to prove my worth here and this is how I can do it,” she yells at someone in the background. “Do you feel happier in White Creek? I might not know what was wrong with you, T, but I know you weren’t happy.”

I sigh into the phone. “I’m trying.” I want to tell her about Ryder but I know what her reaction will be. She will tell me he broke my heart once and will break it again. I know I’ve hardened my heart, but hers is enclosed in a steel case and covered with cement. I wish I had her strength. Instead, I complain about my family. “But staying with Easton is brutal. The baby is going back into a crying phase and I can’t get any sleep. Then the other night, Laney came over and we were drinking wine and East yelled at us for being too loud. It was seven o’clock, Cam. Seven! I feel like I live with a geriatric!”

Cam cracks up into the phone. “I’m sorry but that is too funny.”

“It’s not funny. I had to drive to my sisters at four a.m. this morning because I couldn’t sleep.”

“Have you had to sneak in at the break of dawn after spending the night at someone’s house yet? Since I know you wouldn’t break the cardinal rule.”

I pause, she will kill me through the phone when she hears I broke it again. “Well, actually…”

“Do not tell me you brought someone to your brother’s house! That is gross!”

“I didn’t have any other options!”

“Was he homeless?” she shrieks.

I snort. “No. But he lived with his grandma.”

“Oh my god, that’s even worse.”

“It’s not like anything happened. Theo was crying and it scared him off. Which is fine anyway since he was some loser I knew in high school.”

I hear the noise in the background get quieter and figure she must be at the restaurant where she ordered takeout. “You sound like you got it rough there, T.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Well, I hate to end our call but I need both my hands to bring this food back to the office. Hang in there. Things will get better.”

“I hope,” I mutter into the phone before saying bye and hanging up.

I throw my phone on the back bar, grab a beer and crack it open. It’s too early to start drinking but I can tell it’s gonna be a long night.

“Is it really that awful living with Easton?” Trace asks me. He was working in the office but must have heard me on the phone.

“I’ll manage.”

“If I were in your shoes, I would hate to be doin’ what you’re doing.”

“Well, I don’t have much of a choice.”

Trace crosses his arms as he leans against the bar. “You know we have that apartment upstairs. I still haven’t found a new tenant. You could stay there.”

I look at Trace in shock. “What?”

“You can have that apartment. I’ll even give you the family discount.”

“You’re serious?”

He grips his chin with one hand and smiles. “As a heart attack. It’s yours.”

I squeal and throw my arms around his neck. “You are the best person in the world.”

“He sure is. Now get your arms off my husband,” I hear Ivy say with a smile in her voice from the other side of the bar.

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