“I’m starving. Any chance you have some sour beef hidden somewhere?”
Brynn smiles at me. “No chance. I don’t have much for groceries either. I guess I could’ve walked to the store while you were sleeping.”
Oh. Right. My truck. We left it at the bowling alley.
Brynn’s phone sits on the table beside a glass of water. “Can you order an Uber for me? I need to get my truck back and get us some food.”
She picks up the phone, presses a few buttons, and sets it back down. “It’ll be here in fifteen.” She looks back out at the tree line, her fingers running over her neck and lightly pinching the skin at the base of her throat.
“What’s wrong?” I come out of the house, holding the towel in place with one hand, and sit down opposite her.
“Just thinking about Walt.” Her head tips to one side and she looks at me. “He lives alone. What if something happened to him?”
“He has a phone.”
“I know.” Her voice is thick with worry. “Yesterday when I went over there he had a gash on his forehead. He told me it was from tightening screws on his rickety TV stand. The screwdriver slipped and cut him. He has so much junk over there. What if something really bad happens?”
I like Brynn’s concern. Beneath the sarcasm and playfulness is a massive heart. It’s giving me an idea.
“My ride will arrive soon and I’m naked beneath this towel.” I stand and lean over, kissing the top of her head. “Let me get my truck and pick up some food, then we can talk more about how to help Walt. Deal?”
She nods, looking less worried than she did a moment ago.
I change back into last night’s clothes and step out front, just in time to see my ride pulling up.
The driver says three words the entire drive. Fine by me. I’m not interested in small talk at the moment. Once I’m in my truck, I make a snap decision and stop at a home store. I have one specific thing in mind.
When I’m finished loading it, I hop back in my truck and go to the grocery store. Supermarket Sweep contests have nothing on me. I race through the place and pay, tossing the groceries into the backseat. Brynn is going to love what I have in my truck bed.
I’m so excited that I try to stride right into her house and get shut down by a locked front door. My forward momentum nearly takes my nose right into the door.
“Brynn,” I call out, knocking.
She turns the lock a moment later. “Hi,” she says, opening it all the way. She looks down at my empty hands and frowns. “Did you forget about your hunger?”
“Come on out here. I want to show you something.” Turning, I lead the way to my truck. When Brynn is beside me at the tailgate, I lower it and show her the boxes.
She leans over, her hips pressing into the world’s luckiest tailgate, and peers at the picture.
“A TV stand?” Confused eyes meet mine.
“For Walt,” I clarify.
“Oh,” she says softly, her hand resting on her chest. “This is just so…so…kind. He’ll never accept it, but the gesture is lovely.”
I frown. “Why won’t he accept it?”
She shrugs. “I know him, and I know he won’t accept generosity like this. Unless…” Her lips twist while she thinks. “Unless we put it together here and tell him you took it from someone’s front lawn. Say that it was meant for bulk trash.”
“You think he will accept something that was on its way to the landfill?”
“You haven’t seen his backyard. Before I helped him clean it up, it could’ve been mistaken for a landfill.”
“Alright. We’ll set it up here and carry it over there.” I reach for the first box and drag it toward me. Brynn’s arms shoot out to stop me.
“You can’t. He’s super nosy and watches this street like a hawk. He’s going to see us carrying these boxes.”
“Seriously? What are we supposed to do?”
