Page 50 of Come Back to Me

“And you… like that?”

“I fucking lo—” When my screen flashes, I break off and immediately pull over. “Give me a minute.”

“Your dime.”

I snort then heave an impatient sigh when I see that Tee and Zee’s location has changed. Again.

With a quick glance at the time, I realize my appointment with Mike is almost over anyway and I’m ten minutes from Saskatoon.

“She’s the reason you can’t sleep?”

“I don’t…” I pause. “Guilt?”

“Maybe. They say confession’s good for the soul.”

“You think I should tell her?”

“I don’t think lies sit well with you, Cody. You’re a pretty decent guy, even if you have shitty taste in hobbies.”

Mike doesn’t appreciate organized sports.

“I-I don’t know how to tell her without fucking everything up.”

“What’s to fuck up? You haven’t tried to be overtly friendly with her, have you?”

“I guess not.”

“Then, what’s the problem?”

“Aren’t I ruining any potential before there’s even a chance to?—”

“You want to be with her?”

“I’d like to be friends with her. Bare minimum.”

“Then why did you push her out of your life?”

“Our time’s up,” I half-chirp, relieved I don’t have to bring this up today.

Even though he’s right and it’s been playing on my mind, discussing this will make my shitty day even shittier.

“You’re a brat,” he grumbles. “Speak in a couple days.”

“Yup.”

I cut the call with alacrity and find myself two minutes away from the mall where Tee and Zee thankfully remain.

Before they can leave and I have to seek them out again, I pull into the parking garage and head for the store. Midway up an escalator, their destination changes, but I’m in luck—they stay in the mall.

Because it’s a weekday, it’s not the busiest, and I quickly find Tee in their current store. She’s plunked in a chair by the dressing room on her cell and looks to be playing a game. When I approach from behind, I see she has some kind of app that lets her write sheet music.

I clear my throat to warn her of someone’s presence, but she murmurs, “Saw you in the mirror over there. Need to work on your stealth skills, Cody.”

“Stopped worrying about that when I retired,” I drawl, amused by her greeting as I take a seat by her side.

That, of course, is whenI’mgreeted with the bags they’ve collected on their journey.

“You guys have been busy,” I mock, trying not to think about how my mood perked up the second I set eyes on her.

---