“Likenownow?”
“Like two minutes ago now. Noah will be up soon. Listen,Andrea rescheduled my shift so I don’t work today. Give me like an hour and a half to get him fed and off to school, and then we’ll have the rest of the day to ourselves.”
Following Jess’s lead, I was already out of the bed and dressing when she stopped mid-rush and said, “Please come back.”
God, she was so gorgeous makeup-free with that hair cascading over her shoulders. I drew her in for a quick goodbye kiss.
“I promise I will.”
“Good. Because I already can’t wait to see you again.”
And just before she slipped out the bedroom door, Jess added, “Now, don’t take this the wrong way, but you have two minutes to get your ass out of my apartment.”
* * *
My ass was out of her place with a minute to spare. The last thing I wanted was make the situation awkward for any of us, so I ducked out of her front door and drove the ten-mile distance home.
Once showered, I texted Tucker.
It was only seven a.m., early in my world, but chances were that my energizer bunny manager would be awake at this hour.
Got a minute?I asked.
I’ve always got a minute for you.
Damn. Everyone needed to get themselves a Tucker.
Do you have recommendations for a good private rehab facility?
Those dots danced on the screen for a long while only to receive a two-word reply.
For you?
What? Did he not know me at all?
No, not for me. I barely fucking drink.
Then I assume we’re talking about Brandon. I’ve already had a discussion with him about his drug use, and he’s promised to curtail it.
And note to self: never discuss anything incriminating with Tucker.
Okay. I can see I have to spell everything out in one long, detailed text before asking you anything of a sensitive nature. I want to get Jess’s father into a rehab facility.
You could’ve just said that,he answered.And yes, I can help. I know of a good private facility but it’s not cheap.
I know but I’m getting the money in from the record deal and royalties for that first song should be coming in soon too.
Look, I’m not going to tell you how to spend money you don’t yet have but are you sure you want to do this? You just got back together with her. It’s a lot of money to spend if you don’t really know where it’s going.
No offense but this is my money not yours. I’m sure.
Again, lots of little bubbles. I waited. And waited.
Finally, the reply came—a thumbs-up emoji.
I had to laugh. I knew how this probably looked to him. A young guy captivated by a girl. Of course he’d see this as a passing phase. A sowing of oats. But he didn’t understand the scope of the connection we’d made. He didn’t know that for maybe the first time in my life, I had complete clarity. It was hard to explain how I knew; I just did. Jess and Noah would be a part of my life forever.
* * *
