Page 99 of Rescue Me (Forget the Past 1)

“Probably should head over soon. Turkey time and all that. Also, before we go, I wanted to let you know about something.” Her fingers pinch and fiddle with a button on my dress shirt. The only one I own. I made sure it was clean, so I could look presentable for her parents. Not like a convict.

“What’s that?” I stroke my fingers through her hair because she suddenly seems agitated, in need of soothing.

“The publishing company I worked for in New York, you know the one with all my amazing writers? The one that let me go right before I moved here?”

I nod.

“Well. They called me a couple of weeks ago. Left a message, saying they wanted to talk.”

Something like a rubber band wraps around my ribcage. Only this one is a big fat mother fucker, more likely to crush me than snap from any tension.

“I didn’t know if I wanted to talk to them. But I thought maybe it was important. Or maybe one of my authors was hoping to get in touch. Or…I don’t know. I just couldn’t ignore it. Like fire ants burrowing into my brain.”

I know the feeling. It’s happening as she speaks.

“I called them back on Monday. They’re interested in re-hiring me. They want me to go to New York to talk in person.”

“What did you say?”

Fuck off. Please tell me you told them to fuck off.

“I told them I’d think about it.” She doesn’t give me enough time to relax before she pushes on. “But I’m going to go.”

I sit up, suddenly feeling too vulnerable sprawled out on my bed with her hovering over me, able to see every emotion that bleeds onto my face. Paige sits back, crossing her legs and arms as she watches me.

“You want to go to New York?”

She shrugs. “New York is where the job interview is.”

“What about that local job?” The one that wouldn’t take her away from me.

“I found out my dad set it up.”

“So?” The only job my dad ever arranged for me landed me in jail.

“So, I don’t want him to keep fixing my life for me! I screw up, Daddy is there to kiss the boo-boo and make everything better. I’m tired of it.” Paige slides off the bed so she can pace across the creaky wooden floor.

Even annoyed, she’s beautiful. Her golden hair sways around her flushed cheeks. With every step her toned legs flex beneath her skinny jeans, barely any limp today, which means she probably ran this morning. She’s curvy perfection, filling my room with her energy and that subtle scent of fresh ground coffee beans.

If she goes to New York, I’ll lose her.

My desperate mind rejects that conclusion, forming another plan.

My car is out of commission again, but a week of work and some extra parts will have Jack up and running. Question is, will he make it all the way to NYC?

Doesn’t matter. If my car dies, I can always boost another. I’ll just avoid toll roads. No photographic evidence of where I’ve been or where I’m heading.

Somehow, someway, I’ll make it to New York City.

And when I’m there I’ll…

This is where my brain restarts, and I realize how close I am to skidding off the road of sanity.

Skip out on parole? Steal a car? Stalk the woman I’m falling in love with?

I’m a piece of shit.

What would I even do when I got to the city? What kind of job could I hope to get with a warrant out for my arrest? I’d be lucky if Mr. Herbert didn’t call the NYPD and tell them exactly where to find me. And if by some miracle he didn’t, I’d end up as a bum on Paige’s couch. On top of that, I’d be making her an accomplice to my crime.

---