I slipped one earphone off my ear and waited.
He didn’t take long.
He crossed over to the food and took a bagel sandwich out and bit into it. Egg juices went everywhere, including his shirt, which only seemed to piss him off more.
“Any of you have any fuckin’ idea why the big boss is calling me in today?”
No one said anything.
“Great,” he grumbled as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, wiping his chest and big belly down. “Just what I want to do. Get yelled at. Just fuckin’ great.”
He walked out without handing out any assignments, which we all assumed meant that we were back where we were yesterday. Which fuckin’ sucked, because that meant that I was in the grappler again, and let’s just say that my head already hurt from yesterday.
I didn’t complain, though, just picked up my shit for lunch and headed out.
A couple of the guys from the other crew were also eating the food that I’d given to Meo without a word the moment I spotted him in the lot.
He’d given me a look of concern, but hadn’t tried to stop me from leaving.
Which was good, because I was still mad, and I didn’t want to take my bad mood out on him.
I marched across the parking lot and got into one of the trucks that would be taking us to the job site today. I shoved my lunch down between my legs and slipped my headphones back over my ears.
People piled in, but I didn’t pay them any mind, instead focusing on my audiobook.
Only when we pulled to a stop did I open my eyes.
My gaze went to the rearview mirror to find Meo’s on me.
He looked concerned, but again didn’t say anything as he got out and left me to my own thoughts.
Thoughtful.
He didn’t push.
I liked that he was giving me the space, even though it was clear he wanted to reach out.
I walked to the grappler and got inside, starting it up without a word.
I let it idle for a good twenty minutes before I started doing anything.
And when I did, I did it with aggression, pissed off and angry.
At one point, everyone took a break, and I kept going, seeing no point in stopping.
Usually, I was all about my breaks, but at this point, nothing was going to stop me.
At least, I thought nothing could stop me.
I’d worked right through the break and straight into lunch, fully intending to keep going until it was quitting time.
Not until one lone man started walking toward me with a look of determination.
He walked right up to my tracks and waited.
I was forced to stop or I’d have run him over.
I threw it into neutral and stared at him through my dirty windshield.
