“Not too bad. She works nights so she’s mostly quiet. She’s a little flaky though. I had to go unplug her flatiron for her one day because she left it on and called me in a panic. I think she doesn’t get enough sleep, honestly.”
“That’s a total mom thing to say,” he said.
“What?” I think my panic showed.
“It sounds like something my mom would say. Or your mom. Like, are you eating your vegetables? You should go to bed earlier. That kind of thing.”
“Oh. Okay. Maybe I’ll go get some sleep now. I’m pretty tired.”
“You sure you feel okay? You’ve been sleeping a lot,” he said.
This more observant Damon needed to back off. I felt like the bad guy in a Scooby Doo episode, trying to hide my antics from the gang. I stammered something about going to work early tomorrow and scampered off to my room to feel like an idiot. It was either that or blurt out that I was with child, which didn’t seem like the best option.
24
Damon
Things had been going so well before she went to Savannah. Maybe her sister had said something to her that made her withdraw from me. Maybe she was having second thoughts about playing house with me. Whatever it was, things had gone to crap since she came back. She avoided me. If I was home and came into a room, it wouldn’t be five minutes till she had to go to bed or call her mom or some other excuse to get away from me. It was upsetting, and when I asked her about it, she brushed it off. I knew something was wrong, and I wanted her to tell me what it was so I could fix it. So I could have her back.
Living with her like this was worse than being alone, I decided. Because it was so damn frustrating. I wanted to talk to her, really talk, watch a movie, laugh, take her to bed. But all I got were mumbles about work and being tired. She was stonewalling me, shutting me down anytime I tried to so much as give her a hug or make plans to hang out with her. Brody was more available than she was, and he had a pregnant wife he was worried about. I literally saw him more than I saw her because we grabbed lunch together one day. I didn’t bother him about my marriage drama, because he had enough on his plate.
“Laura’s great, man. She’s a warrior. There’s no keeping her down. Her test results are all good, and she’s back at work, bitching that I put her on desk duty. She said if I bring her one more Gatorade, she’s gonna throw it at me. Keeping hydrated is really important during pregnancy. And I don’t mean iced coffee,” he said with an eye roll that was practically affectionate. He doted on my loud-mouthed sister just the way she deserved.
“I’m glad you guys are over the scare and baby Damonette is doing well,” I said.
“We are not naming our kid after you. Have your own kid if you wanna give it a dumb name,” he said.
“We’re not doing that.”
“Last I checked y’all were doin’ a lot of ‘that’.”
“I mean we’re not starting a family. It’s not a real marriage,” I said flatly.
“You were gonna go all in, tell her how you felt. Did it not go well?”
I shook my head. “I was planning on telling her. Then she went to see her sister, and she’s been so busy since she got back. There’s not been time. We haven’t even had a meal together, much less a conversation.”
“You gotta make time, buddy.”
“I would if she didn’t run out the goddamn room every time she sees me,” I blurted out.
“How’d you piss her off so bad?”
“I didn’t. I think she’s just—done with me. Like maybe I wanted more than a fling for the first time in my life, and she didn’t. I was just—convenient but she had enough.”
“That’s crap. She’s not done with you. She’s upset about something. Quit making it about you. Find out what’s wrong and fix it.”
“I want to,” I said.
“Then quit feeling sorry for yourself and don’t give up.”
I still hadn’t found a minute to talk to her. I was wondering if I should just call her. It was easier for her to blow me off on the phone than in person, but I was about to crawl out of my skin waiting to talk to her. As soon as my shift was over, I’d go by the flower shop and corner her, tell her to give me ten minutes, kiss her into submission if I had to. It was time to hash this out, no matter how terrifying it seemed.
I only had two more hours on my shift when the call came in from dispatch about a gas leak downtown. I immediately recognized the address as Trixie’s shop. I was on that truck as soon as the address was given. We sped to the street, and I was off the side before the truck was stopped. She was standing outside the shop, arms crossed, face too pale. I went to her and started checking her over.