More like a rule bender.
Jason: Christmas or New Year’s Eve?
I get a random text out of nowhere and my heart hammers.
It’s him.
Me: New Year’s Eve
Jason: Me too!
Me: How can we always have the same answers? Lol!
Jason: Good friends often have a lot in common. I’m not surprised.
Friends.
My heart settles down.
Me: How’s your shoulder?
Jason: That’s why I’m texting.
Me: Oh?
Jason: I’m going to need surgery. I’m going to have to push the second date back.
My heart plummets.
Me: Just let me know when it will work for you and good luck.
There’s a long pause between my last text and his eventual response.
I eat three more meatballs as I wait.
Jason: Thanks.
Twenty
Three Weeks Later
ADRIENNE
One of myfavorite things about this time of year is the fall foliage in Central Park. My father and I used to make a point of walking one of the park trails every year just to enjoy it. The leaves turn beautiful shades of red, orange and yellow and remind me that time is the one constant in this life. For some, it’s moving at warp speed and they want to slow it down as much as possible. For others, it’s moving at a snail’s pace.
Right now, life is in snail mode. I haven’t heard a peep from Jason and it’s bringing all kinds of crazy out of me. It’s not the same type of crazy I felt when I was stalking Troy’s social media accounts. Rage fueled that crazy. This is something different.
I think I miss him a bit.
“Dr. Hodges, your last patient didn’t show up,” Penny announces.
“How long has it been?”
“Forty-five minutes and no phone call. I don’t think they’re showing up. I called them but got voicemail.”
“Who was it?”
“The Kazinkski family.”
