Page 81 of Lose You to Find Me

I can tell he’s trying to figure out what to say, but I don’t let him say anything. “If you don’t mind, I’ve got stuff I really need to do that’s going to require my focus today. I promised Mom I’d be back for lunch to help her with a couple of chores around the house while Dad naps.”

I had to sneak out of the apartment at nearly four this morning after listening to a voicemail Mom left that broke my fucking heart. Hearing her sound so tired killed me, so I left without thinking about all the shit I have yet to do.

I’m tired.

Worried.

On edge.

It makes processing anything outside of Dad hard already, especially when everyone wants to talk to me about what’s going on in my life. When I’m feeling too much, it’s difficult to properly express what’s happening in my head. I try, because that’s what I’d want from them. Effort.

The truth is I’m fuckingangry. But that’s not on DJ or Matt or anybody who simply wants to help make things better.

“That’s why I’m here, boss,” my friend pipes in, grinning at me.

I stop what I’m doing and turn to face him fully with a skeptical expression twisting my face. “What are you talking about?”

He sets his coffee down on the counter and pushes his chair in. “I saw your mom the other day and told her if there was anything I could do to help, I would, since I knew you weren’t going to accept the help. You and I are both majoring in the same thing, and I’m good with numbers. She mentioned that you needed to get the books updated and handle the inventory sheets because things with your personal life have kept you busy. I can do some of that stuff.”

I swipe a hand down my face, wondering why Mom didn’t mention any of this to me this morning. “We can’t pay you shit right now.”

“Your mom already promised to make me a ton of those pepperoni rolls that I love so much. It’s only a day here and there to take some of the load off your back. I don’t expect money.” Before I can argue, he adds, “Hell, you could probably ask Raine to come in again if you really needed the help. Jeff is the one who’s telling everybody about you two at the hospital. His new girlfriend is one of the nurses who works in the emergency department.”

Jeff is one of the town boys who loves to gossip about everybody, and apparently, his girlfriend is no different. “Jeff needs to mind his own business for once or I’m telling my mom not to keep sending them Christmas cookies every year.”

DJ smirks. “That may shut him up.”

We could only hope. “All I want is some privacy while I figure my stuff out. With myself. With Dad. With…”Raine.Because ever since I dropped her off at her parents’ house from the ER, I knew there was more to the story than she was letting on. Something big.

But because DJ knows this area almost as well as I do at this point, he snorts. “If privacy is what you want, then I hope for your sake you get it.”

Humming, I smack him on the back of the shoulder and head toward the back room. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I hit Mom’s number and put my cell up to my ear, waiting for her to answer. She always does, so when it goes to voicemail, I know she’s purposefully ignoring me since she didn’t bring up my friend’s sudden appearance here.

Sighing, I deposit my phone back into my pocket and grab the closest pile of papers for my helper of the day. “Look, I feel bad that she got you in here, but there’s no point in convincing you to leave because I know you won’t. And I…” Taking a deep breath, I say, “I appreciate that you’re here. Really.”

His grin turns into a soft smile. “Anytime, man. You know that. All you have to do is ask.”

I poke the top paper. “These are receipts from the past two months. I usually try getting them counted and filed at the end of the month, but I got behind. Dad has a system that he explains in writing right here.” I point toward the aged Post-it taped onto the counter with faded handwritten instructions on it. “I swear, the second I don’t do something the same exact way, he instantly knows, whether he’s here or not.”

“Spidey-senses,” DJ remarks, wiggling his fingers theatrically.

I huff out a dry laugh. “Or he checks the video cameras.” Which I’ve made sure to erase certain footage from since Dad nonchalantly told me to. We haven’t spoken of the incident since, and I think a big part of that is because his memory isn’t what it used to be. In this case, that’s probably not a bad thing. “Look, if you can get that done, I can do some things in the back before it picks up. Ronny is supposed to be here around two unless he calls in again.”

“What about asking—”

“No. Just…no.”

DJ sighs. “Look, I know you want to play hero, especiallyherhero, no matter what you feel about her, but the A-Team is a thing. They worked together even when they pissed each other off. Probably. I never actually watched that.”

I roll my eyes at him.

“Plus, Raine never needed anybody to save her, so you can save the hero theatrics and use the energy to focus on yourself for a change.”

The…? “Did you smoke something before you showed up? The A-Team? I have no idea what you’re trying to get at.”

“The Justice League” is his reply, as if that’s supposed to bring his point home.

I’m quiet.

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