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Why do I feel so bad?
And then I realize I’m still wearing Tucker’s leather jacket.
I snuggle into its oversized warmth and shut my eyes.
I’m a complete arsehole.
I open my eyes to find the sky has gone dark. “Why am I… oh, yeah. I’m still in Manny. I must have fallen asleep on the ride from the rest stop. I guess today’s events took more out of me than I care to admit.
The outside sensor light is suddenly glaringly bright, illuminating the interior of my Mini Cooper. No wonder I am warm. I’ve got a thick blanket draped over me.
Tap-tap!
I twist my head to see Chance grinning at me with one-year-old CJ, his son, snuggled on his hip, rugged up in a small blanket, and a little cream beanie on his head. They are both waving at me; well, my cousin does that thing that parents do by waving their baby’s hand while grinning foolishly.
I wave back before subtly wiping at my mouth in case I have drool there.
My cousin opens my car door, inviting the chilly night air into Manny’s cabin. The interior light helps me see how messy my hair is in the right outside mirror. “Hey, sleepy-head, I was just coming out to check on you for the fifth time. Aubrey will be glad you are awake. She’s been out here more times than I have, checking on you. You have been out for a few hours. I had to stop her from setting up the smart baby camera. Are you feeling well?”
I think about it for a few seconds, and I do feel okay. “I am fine.”
“Good because my wife’s as curious as me to know what adventures you have been up to today because you passed out before I could grill you earlier. From that shiner you’re sporting and the speed bump on your forehead, I would assume you have had a pretty rough day.”
I ignore Chance’s subtle dig at my appearance and wave to my little first cousin once removed. “Hi, CJ… it’s Auntie Philly.” My quietly spoken words break the openly unsure look in his wide eyes. He knows I’m his Auntie Philly, but the little man knows something is up. But still, he stretches both his little hands out to me, so I am at least recognizable to the one-year-old infant. “Oh, you want me to hold you. Well, I wouldloveto do that.” My heart caves in every time I see him. I love him so much.
Chance bends down and passes him to me, then crouches beside us. Ever the protective father.
I rub my nose against CJ’s, taking in his baby smells, and lucky for me, no poop smell.
He doesn’t seem bothered by the state of my appearance, the way he is grabbing hold of my face with his little hands. I let him get comfortable with me staying silent to let him prod and poke me.
I haven’t seen him in a month. I couldn’t greet the family when they arrived today because I had already departed for San Diego, so I left the key to their tiny house under a fake rock (because fake rocks, rock!), that way, they could settle in and make themselves comfortable and get CJ all set up.
Poke. Poke.I bear the gentle onslaught of curious angelic innocence.
“How did your meeting go with Holland?”
“It went well. I am all set at a moment’s notice.”
I had an appointment mid-morning with Holland Baxter at his home in Ocean Beach to introduce myself. Phoenix is his roommate, and she occupies the second bedroom. She got called away on a time-sensitive private job at a moment’s notice a few days after Thanksgiving, leaving Mack & Cooper Investigations one business partner and PI short. I’m her wing woman, so I’ve got Mack’s back if he needs help while she’s away, and I will need a place to stay.
Mack thinks he can handle the clients himself for as long as she’s away because he ran his business by himself until he made Phoenix a business partner.
Once Phoenix heard she was going off the grid, she contacted the people she needed to let them know, leaving me with Holland’s number. I agreed to be on standby if Mack needed me.
She’s already been gone for a fortnight. She gave me a quick call the day before she was due to leave and, during the conversation, briefly mentioned the cocky guy she laid out on the ground in front of everyone—Tucker. Now that I have met him, I doubt he put up any resistance for some reason. As he told me, ‘he let her do it.’
Mack & Cooper Investigations closes its doors over Christmas until after New Year, so that is something. She might be back by then, but I contacted Holland while I had a spare morning just to be safe, and I didn’t land on his doorstep without meeting him. He was always expecting to hear from me if Phoenix’s absence looked like it was an ongoing thing.
The timing isn’t the most convenient for me, but Mack and Phoenix gave me a job when I needed one. She’s the type of friend who would drop everything to help me, and I am making myself available to do the same for her and Mack—effectively filling her shoes while she is away, if called on.
Mack knows I’m opening a new business, and he told me it would be out of desperation if he called me, but by then, Gwen, my Aussie BFF who is going to arrive soon, will be able to hold down the fort if I need to disappear for a few days. I don’t doubt her abilities.
I met Holland and his boyfriend, Juan, taking a tour of his home. Holland is a gallery owner and the nicest man-mountain. I say that because he is all muscle. His partner, Juan, is an event planner, and they make for a handsome couple.
I dropped into Peace Café on my way home because Phoenix’s twin brother owns it, and I haven’t been there for over six months. Retro is currently away in Texas on an extended vacation with his girlfriend.
Poke. Poke.
