Page 75 of Guarding Glenda

He sighed. “I’m sorry. But I’ll be there as soon as I can. Promise.”

“Okay. I’ll see you when you get here.”

“Hey, I love you. I’ll see you soon.”

I almost said it back, but stopped myself. “Okay, see ya then. Bye.”

“Was that Leigh?” Linny asked between bites.

“Yeah. He’s held up.”

Bama wiped his face with a napkin. “Did he say where he’s at?”

“No, why?”

He shrugged, then kept eating. Fucking club secrets. Linny forced a smile, then told Sofie to use her napkin instead of her arm.

Even though something was up, Leigh didn’t sound in trouble, so I tried to enjoy my meal with friends. Pinkie sat at the bar, eating her own food between getting drinks for the guys that came over.

The vibes were light and the music was loud enough to enjoy, but not so loud we couldn’t talk. Sofie told me all about her day and asked me a million questions about Bruce.

I had almost finished my sandwich and got a few words in edgewise to Sofie when the phone buzzed. I looked, and it was Leigh again.

“Hey, that was fast,” I said.

“No, I’m not done yet. Couldn’t explain much before but I’m at the clinic. Manny was attacked. I’m just helping Sam. Hopefully not much longer.”

“Oh no. Is he okay?” I didn’t know Manny too well, but I knew he was the one who got me from the clinic to Leigh’s house. At first, I was mad as hell. Now, I just hoped he was going to be alright. Plus, he was just doing what he was told.

“I don’t know. Sam’s doing his thing but they’re running some tests. I just came out to move the truck real quick.”

“I’m glad you’re helping him. You don’t have to keep checking on me.” I understood there would be times I was in the dark, and he’d already checked in. It was nice, though, and very different from what I was used to.

“I wanted to. I hoped to be there by now.”

Fighting a grin, I said, “Well, I’ll be here waiting when you can. I’m really fine.”

“Well, I’m not. I want to be in bed with you.”

“Fair,” I told him. “But we’ll be there eventually. You still gonna have to go out?”

“Probably. Speaking of, I need to check in with Hammer. I’ll text you when I get out of here”

“Okay. I’ll see you soon. Bye.” I put the phone back on the bar and grabbed the last bit of chicken sandwich. “Leigh again. He’s at the clinic.”

Bama knocked his beer back then stood up. He kissed Linny’s head then said, “I need to go find Hammer.”

“Okay.” She nodded. “Just try to see me before you leave.”

He kissed Sofie’s head as he passed her and Sofie grinned, kicking her feet. “Bye, Daddy.”

My heart squeezed as I watched Sofie staring at Bama as he headed to the back. Leaning to Linny, I whispered, “That’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen.”

“It really is. No man is ever gonna be good enough for her because he treats her like a little princess.” Linny was still smiling, popping a fry in her mouth. She wiped her hands on her napkin, then washed the fry down with a sip of beer. “So, do you think you and Leigh… down the road of course… you know?”

My brows shot up. “I honestly don’t know. I just recently stopped pretending I didn’t want to be with him, so there’s that.”

“At least you’ve caught up to the rest of us,” she said.