Beck: Smart woman.
I set the phone down and Clarence immediately headbutts it off the couch. It hits the floor with a thud.
"Hey!" I lean over to pick it up. "What was that for?"
Clarence stares at me with those inscrutable yellow eyes, tail twitching.
"Do you have opinions about dinosaurs too?"
He yawns, showing teeth, and begins grooming his paw with exaggerated disinterest.
"Right. Silly question."
I pull a blanket over myself and settle deeper into the couch. Clarence relocates to my stomach, but not before pausing to hissat Kevin on the windowsill. The fern rustles nervously. Satisfied with this display of dominance, Clarence settles, purring.
My phone buzzes with one more message.
Beck: Get some sleep, Lockhart.
Me: You too, Captain Grumpy.
I set the phone on the cushion beside me. The tears have dried, the shaking has stopped, and the Denver memories have retreated back into the box where I keep them. Clarence purrs against my stomach. Through the wall, the house is quiet now --- Beck's house, Ivy's house, the house where I'm a temporary tenant with a six-week lease and a cat who has apparently decided I need supervision.
I let myself imagine staying.
Chapter 7
Beck
The parking lot at Copper Ridge Elementary is already full when we arrive, which means I'm about to spend the next two hours pretending I'm comfortable making small talk with people I don't know while being covered in glitter I definitely didn't sign up for.
Ivy bounces in her booster seat. "Do you think Gemma's here yet?"
"Probably not."
"What if she forgot?"
"She won't forget."
"But what if---"
"She texted me this morning, Ivy. She'll be here."
Ivy goes quiet for exactly three seconds. "Did you text her back?"
I pull into a spot near the building. "Yes."
"What did you say?"
"That we'd see her at the event."
"That's BORING, Daddy."
"It's accurate."
She unbuckles herself with the confidence of someone who's been working on this skill for weeks and is now an expert. "You should've said something NICE."
"I was nice."
