“I can fly out at noon. How’s that?”
A quick look at his watch showed10:00 a.m.“Give me a sec.” He muted the phone and walked toward Erykah. “Any luck with flights?”
“No. There’s nothing going out until midnight.” She bit her bottom lip.
“So I know a guy.” Her gaze fixed on him. “He can fly you out in a couple of hours.”
“Yes. I’ll take it.” Desperation shone in her eyes.
He hated this for her. “Then I’ll get everything handled for you.”
“Thank you so much. Just let me know how much it is.”
Chris nodded, but he had no plans of making her pay for the flight. “Hey, Grier, she’ll be there. Put it on my tab.”
“Nah, man. This is on the house. I’m sorry it’s under such difficult circumstances.”
Chris glanced at Erykah. “Do you have room for one more and a dog?” Could he really let her go by herself? What kind of friend would he be if he let her walk into darkness all alone?
“You coming along?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t be late.”
“We won’t.” Chris hung up and walked to Erykah. “Okay, here’s the plan. Go get packed, and I’ll get Charlie’s stuff ready. Then we’ll make our way to my friend Grier. He can fly us out at noon. By the time you’re packed, and we drive there, we should be right on time. We’ll be in Kentucky about five thirty eastern time.”
She blinked. “We?”
“Is that okay?” Chris held out a hand. “I just want to be a support system for you. I won’t be a nuisance. I promise.”
Fresh tears fell, and she squeezed his hand. “I can’t ask that of you.”
“You’re not. I’m offering. No strings. Just a friend being there for another friend.”
She threw herself into his arms, body shuddering from another wave of tears. “I’ve never had a friend like you before,” she whispered, then withdrew.
“I’m so sorry, Erykah. I don’t want to give you any platitudes, any clichés, because you’ll quickly grow tired of them.” And how he hated that he knew that. “But I’ll be here. I’ll listen to you vent. Let you cry in peace. Whatever you need. I promise I’ll be there.”
She gave a wobbly nod.
His mind scrambled to think of everything they needed. “I hate to ask, but did your sister have a will? Any kind of guardianship paperwork for the girls? I wasn’t sure of the situation with your brother-in-law’s family.”
“Um...” Erykah’s voice trailed off. “I don’t know, but if she did, they’d probably be in her home office. And Asher didn’t have family. His parents were pretty old and died when he was in college. One from a heart attack, I believe, and the other from a stroke.”
So much tragedy all around. “I see.”
She rose to her feet. “Are we driving to your house first, so you can pack?”
“I actually have a go bag in the trunk of the Bronco. Never know when I’m going to have an animal crisis that requires a change of clothes. Sometimes you get sprayed.” He made a face likeWhat can you do?
A ghost of a smile crossed her lips. “You can’t live on one change of clothes. There must be time for you to go home and back.”
He shook his head. “Grier said not to be late. I don’t want to be responsible for you missing that flight. Besides, I have at least two outfits in there, and I’m sure there are stores in Kentucky.”
He thought about Tuck. Maybe there was a possibility he’d be able to see his friend in person. Though they’d last seen each other in May for the Kentucky Derby, it felt a lot longer than five months.
“I’ll take Charlie for a bathroom break, then be back up.” He motioned to the pup.
