My phone starts buzzing on the table, breaking up our moment. “Yeah?” I answer after seeing Dec’s name on my phone. Kie’s still on his honeymoon so I’m juggling both our positions.
“We got ‘em. Meet me at the warehouse in thirty.” He practically vibrates with excitement.
“Yeah, I’ll be there.” I groan before killing the call. Torturing people for information isn’t high up on my priority list, but Idid promise Kie I’d hold it down for him while he was gone.
Lee’s face looks almost somber. “You gotta go?”
“Yeah, I have to go handle something with my brother.”
“Oh yeah, of course.” She jumps up. “I’m sorry for keeping you so long. Thanks for coming over.” She looks embarrassed and a little flustered.
I stand from the couch and catch her around the waist. Her eyes dart up to mine in shock.
“Hey, don’t apologize. This is the best day I’ve had in longer than I can remember. Can I call you after I’m done?”
“Yeah, I’d like that.” She gives me a small smile. Smiling back at her, I take her chin in my hand and tilt her head up. My lips press gently to her forehead.
Pulling back, I give her one last smile, “I’ll see you soon, Beautiful. Lock up behind me.”
“Okay. Be safe.” She gives me a sad smile as she opens the door for me.
I nod, “Always. Bye, Lee.”
“Bye, Mac.”
Before I can stop myself, I walk out of her apartment and take the stairs down to the parking garage. I can’t stop until I’m in my Jeep and driving out to the warehouse. The visceral urge to turn around is almost more than I can handle. I want to call her and talk to her the whole drive, but that’d be weird, so I don’t.
I’m about twenty minutes from the warehouse when my phone rings, and I see Lee’s name light up the screen. As quickly as I can, I swipe to answer.
“Lee? Are you okay?”
“Yeah, you’re not there yet right?”
“No. What’s up?” I ask with caution.
“I’m just lonely.” The smile that splits my lips is so wide it actually hurts my face. She was lonely so she called me.She likes me.
“I have twenty minutes, let’s talk.”
8
Chapter Eight
Lee
It’s been a week since I’ve heard from Mac outside of an official work capacity. The night he left, we talked on the phone until he got to his brother. I fell asleep not long after, and he hasn’t called me since. I guess I was too needy when I called him after he left. I can’t blame him, though, I bring a lot of baggage and need to the table.
I’ve had good days and bad. Just like everyone else, but unlike everyone else, my bad days are worse than some other people’s. Today’s definitely not a good day. Days like this so rarely are. Dieter sits in a chair beside mine in my living room, scrolling through something on his phone. Hannah’s at school, so he’s decided he needs to dedicate today to staring at me reclining in this chair for hours while a machine does its thing to keep me alive a little longer.
“You okay, Lee?” Dieter peeks up from his phone to lookme over.
“I’m fine, D. You literally do not have to be here. I don’t even have to go to a facility for this because Papa made it so. You can go back to work.”
“No can do, Kostbarkeit. My job today is to sit right here and hang out with my little sister.”
“Goody.” I roll my eyes at him dramatically.
Dieter is my emotional sibling. He feels deep for us. I’d like to say that it comes from Hannah and what he went through with Michelle. That’s not true, though. He’s been like this as long as I’ve been around, and according to my parents and other siblings, his whole life. He won’t leave. He hates this shit almost more than I do. The fact that no one can protect me from this, from the ghosts of my past who find their way bleeding into my current life, drives them all insane. They’re hovering, but they can’t help it either.
