Tessa
I was planning to go for a bike ride first and come in around seven.
Benjamin
Do we really need to tell you not to do that?
Tessa
No. But I would still like to be in around seven.
Luke
I’ll have Faith drop me off at 6:45. Don’t shoot me. And check in when you get up.
Benjamin
And if you wake up during the night.
Gil
Maybe you should take Luke up on his offer.
Tessa
Maybe you should all go to sleep now. I’m fine. I’ll text you when I wake up. And I won’t leave until Luke arrives.
Zane stared at his phone and forced himself not to open theUber app. She didn’t need help. That didn’t mean he didn’t want to help. Or just be in the same space.
He opened a separate text to Tessa.
Thanks for including me. You know I’ll be there in a heartbeat.
I know. But I’m good. Why are you still up? You should be asleep.
Whatever. Swing by here after Luke gets there. We’ll ride in together. Spoke to Carver. He and Rodriguez don’t plan to arrive until 8.
Will do. Go to bed.
Bossy.
I’m putting my phone down. Good night.
Night.
He dropped the phone on the nightstand and ran his hands over his face. He’d expected sleep to be elusive, but he slept hard until three. He checked his phone and found that the group text had continued after he’d gone to sleep, mostly with the guys checking on Tess at random points after midnight. The last text was from her and had come through ten minutes earlier.
You’re all idiots. I’m fine.
With that confirmation, he rolled over and slept until his alarm jerked him to consciousness three hours later. He hit snooze, then checked for texts. Nothing. Good. He rolled over and fell back asleep until the alarm went off nine minutes later.
He forced himself to get out of bed. Still no text from Tessa. She was supposed to text when she woke up. He stared at the phone.
He was being ridiculous. An idiot. What was wrong with him?
He didn’t need to answer that. He already knew. With a frustrated groan at the cruelties of the world, he called Tessa.
“I literally just opened my eyes.” Her sleep-smudged voice confirmed her statement.
