“Ooo,” Gabi sang, “what if it’s Heavy?”
Cyren rolled her eyes so hard it almost hurt. “Why and how would he be calling me?”
“I don’t know, maybe to talk. I mean, you did give the man some pussy. Was he a gentleman about it?”
Cyren cackled. “Yeah, I’m not telling you anything else.”
“Aww. Don’t be that way. You’re the one who said it was good. Maybe he thought it was great,” Gabi joked, deepening her voice like Tony the Tiger.
Cyren laughed as Gabi went right back to questioning her decision-making skills. Plus, she wanted more details about her night.
“So let me get this straight,” Gabi said. “You cried, got comforted, then got your back blown out? Something is missing.”
Cyren nearly choked. “Now, why’d you have to say it like that?”
“Becausethat’sexactly what happened.”
“Yeah, but it sounds worse when you say it like that.”
“It sounds amazing when I say it like that,” Gabi persisted.
Cyren laughed, shaking her head. She was about to change the subject when her phone vibrated again. This time, in one long pulse. She glanced down and saw a text notification banner appear at the top of her screen, and her smile faded.
Frowning, she picked up her phone. “Now they’re texting me,” she mumbled.
“They must have the wrong number,” Gabi assumed, knowing if anyone had her friend’s number, theirs was more than likely saved as well.
Swiping out of FaceTime, Cyren opened her messages. She fully intended to read the text and ignore whoever sent it, but seeing what they sent made her open it completely.
I was just checking on you.
Her confusion deepened as wrinkles graced her forehead. She reread the text, as if the words would suddenly make more sense the second time. Her fingers moved across the keyboard before her brain could stop her.
Who is this?
The typing bubble appeared almost immediately.
. . .
You got that many people checking on you?
Cyren’s face hardened. Sadly, she didn’t. That was an honest answer. But the slickness in the tone of the text irritated her more than it should have. Mostly because whoever this was seemed committed to being vague for no reason. Her mind immediately drifted to the one person capable of getting under her skin with minimal effort.
“I know this better not be my punk-ass daddy,” she hissed.
“That’s who’s texting you?” Gabi asked with pure disgust in her tone.
It was no secret how horrible a father and person Vincent was. He was the same man who hadn’t called in months and somehow managed to disappear every time Cyren needed him the most, especially when Nicole passed. The bastard didn’t even have the decency to call and check on her on her mother’s birthday. If this was him trying to pop back up with dry humor and no accountability like always, Cyren was going to snap.
Her jaw tightened as she made the FaceTime screen bigger. “I’m gonna call you when I get off work.”
Gabi’s eyes widened. “Wait...what’s going on?”
“I don’t know yet,” Cyren muttered, annoyed. “But if this is him, he’s about to get cussed the hell out.”
“As he should,” Gabi agreed. “Love you. Call me later.”
Cyren told her she loved her, too, and hung up. Before she could second-guess herself, Cyren dialed the unknown number and placed it on speaker. Her irritation grew with every ring.
