Page 109 of Outside The Wire

“I’d carry it for you, Holly Bear.”

“That’s sweet of you, but not necessary,” I smiled. He helped me into the truck as always, then grabbed his phone as he shut the door. I noticed he got a lot of calls lately that he didn’t answer, but I never asked him about them. I wasn’t ready to break our bubble yet. I knew the time would come that I’d have to make a decision, but since the night we’d talked and made up, I hadn’t been able to bring myself to really think about it again. The pain of him leaving would be devastating.

“So, have you ever been to this restaurant?”

“Nope. I hope it’s good. Noelle can be quite picky about her food.”

“No,” he said sarcastically. “Not Noelle.”

“You laugh now. Wait until you see her in action,” I grinned. “This one time, she ordered from a fast food restaurant and they brought her fries that were crunchy. She threw such a hissy fit that we got kicked out. Like, literally kicked out. The manager grabbed us by the arms and I’m pretty sure his foot hit my butt on the way out.”

“And yet you keep going out to eat with her.”

I shrugged. “Well, she keeps it entertaining.”

“Such a good reason to stay friends.”

“What about Wyatt?”

“What about him?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow at me.

“Have you ever gone out with him?”

“Nah, he’s not really my type.”

I smacked his arm. “You’re such a jerk. You know what I mean.”

Still laughing, he shook his head. “No, never hung out.”

“Why not?”

“Because.”

I rolled my eyes. Such a guy answer. “Would you care to elaborate?”

“Would I care to or you would like me to?”

“The second.”

“We’ve never hung out because we work together.”

“And?” I asked, waiting for him to give me more.

“And when I leave work, I go home. I thought that was pretty self-explanatory.”

“But don’t you guys talk about things?”

“Like feelings?” he grinned. “Do I bare my soul to him?”

“Or maybe just ask how his weekend was?”

He sighed heavily. “Why is this so important to you?”

“That you have friends? I don’t know. It’s a normal part of life.”

“I have you. That’s a pretty normal part of life and all I need.”

“And while that’s a completely lovely and wonderful answer, I will get sick of you eventually and need you to leave me alone for an afternoon.”

---