Page 98 of Worthy

“Since when is Carmichael self-destructive? Dude is crazy about working out, his diet, and sleep. He won’t even eat pizza.” Joey stands up, looking at his teammates. The two share another look, and I’m starting to put some pieces together.

“Bad breakup or something?” I offer, watching them closely. Redhead pales a bit and bounces on his toes.

Hat Guy straightens his shoulders but shakes his head. “It’s…complicated.”

“You don’t mind?” Joey asks me. This is Captain Carpenter, not my Joey, making sure everyone is okay.

“Yeah, I don’t mind. If your guy is in trouble, I’m happy to help if I can.” I shrug and look back at the duo. “Let me get changed, give me like ten minutes.”

Hat Guy holds his hand out for me to shake. “I’m Paul,” he says before pointing at his buddy. “That’s Brendon.”

“Nick.” I shake his hand and duck out of the gym.

Once I’m changed, Paul and Brendon meet me at the curb in front of the dorms already in a blue Corolla.

I climb in the back, and Paul heads to the exit.

“Okay, tell me about your guy. What kind of shit is he likely to get into? Bars? Strippers? Drugs?”

“My best guess is he literally ran somewhere, but he’s been gone for hours, so the likelihood of him being injured is pretty high,” Paul says and leaves the university campus to head toward downtown. “If he’s high or drunk, I’m going to beat his ass.”

“What’s the deal? Why are you babysitting him?”

Brendon looks at Paul for a minute before turning to search out the window.

“Look, I get that you don’t want to spill secrets that aren’t yours, but if I have at least a vague idea of what’s going on, it’ll help me figure out where he would have gone.” I look out my side of the car and watch for joggers. “Is he from here? Family around or local hangouts he would know that you don’t?”

Paul sighs before he starts talking. “He’s not from here, though his dad lives here now too. It’s not a good situation if you know what I mean.” His eyes meet mine in the mirror, and I give him a nod. “He’s dating our friend, Jay. Jay went back home for Christmas, and Carmichael is not handling it well.”

Interesting.

The wheels start turning, and I’m thinking about the paths out of the school and where he might head. He’s new to the area, probably wants to be alone and clear his head…

“Does he like getting lost in the crowd or prefer solitude?”

“Solitude,” they say together.

“We’re going the wrong way then.” I give Paul directions to get us going the right way, and we drive around the industrial area for a while but don’t see anything.

“Hey, since we’re here, can we stop at that bakery? Debbi has the best cinnamon rolls.”And I want to eat one off your captain’s dick.

Brendon pops up. “Cinnamon rolls?”

Paul sighs but agrees. We get parked and head inside, the bell on the door alerting the amazing woman inside that customers have entered.

She’s not out in the front, but I can hear her down the hall. Paul and Brendon look around and wait patiently.

“Nicky!” The middle-aged woman smiles wide and opens her arms for a hug which I don’t hesitate to give her. “It’s been a while, how have you been?”

“Good, busy.” I step back when she lets me go. “You know how it is.”

“Of course.” She pats my cheek, and I introduce Paul and Brendon. It’s not until this moment that I notice we’re all wearing the same thing. Jeans and Darby hoodies. Wow. What a bunch of dorks.

A guy in black workout gear comes from the back of the shop, dripping sweat, beet red, and obviously exhausted. Paul looks over and freezes, his jaw tightening as he turns to face the newcomer.

“What’s going on, Carmichael?” Paul crosses his arms. Brendon and I turn to face him too.

Preston Carmichael is a beast of a man. He’s taller than me by a few inches, wider than me, and looks like there’s not any fat on his body.

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