Page 351 of A Matter of Time

“You don’t look that happy.”

“No, I’m happy about that. I just… I want this whole thing to be over already.”

“I’m so sorry, J. If it wasn’t for me, you⁠—”

“Please,” I groaned, bumping him with my shoulder. “You have no control over the scary people in the world—believe me, I know. Some psychopath has got it out for you for whatever reason, that’s his problem, Dane, not yours. You’d hafta be crazy to think you have any control of anything but yourself.”

“Excellent observation.”

“That’s not advice, it’s just…logical,” I said, fiddling with the new cell phone in my hand. “Thanks for this.”

“You’re welcome.” He put his hand around the back of my neck.

“Did you like Aubrey Flanagan?”

“I did, and more important than me liking her—Rick likes her.”

“I know, right? It’s nice.”

“It is,” he said, massaging my neck and the base of my skull. I closed my eyes and just breathed.

“Oh, this is interesting,” he said quietly. “Sam found that doctor you used to date, remember?”

“Nick Sullivan.”

“Yes.”

“And? What about him?”

“He’s married now.”

“Oh yeah? To who?”

“Sam says to a very beautiful woman named Bailey.”

“Interesting” was all I could think of to say. I would never pass judgment on anyone else’s choices. It wasn’t my place.

“He lives in Lake Forest with his wife and little boy. Sam said he asked about you.”

“That’s not surprising. We were close once.”

“That’s weird, isn’t it?”

“What’s that?”

“Being close and then not.”

I turned my head to look at him. “I don’t emotionally connect with many people. I’ve slept with a ton of guys, but I can count, like, two before Sam that I really felt anything for, and Nick Sullivan wasn’t one of them.”

“Okay.”

“Have you been to the hospital and seen Caleb?”

He shook his head.

“Don’t you think you should?”

“I’m where I need to be. I’m with my brother and my wife.”