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(I liked that as an idiom, especially since Hunter rode a motorcycle.)
Still with knowing the truth about his situation, I couldn’t brush off my growing attraction to him, which pissed me off more. He’d been inches from my face when he woke me. Not only was I embarrassed about my spicy morning breath, but there was also the fact he could have been an intruder, and I’d been sleeping soundly without hearing him come in. What if Destiny had gotten hurt? What then?
Then the delicate drift of his fingers over my shoulder, the carefulness he took when he sat back from me, allowing me a second to compose myself. Even the sad glow in his gaze marred by exhaustion and worry. More had happened at the hospital, I was sure of it, but I hadn’t wanted to keep watching the same footage or hear the same questions getting asked of the police, detectives, or hostage negotiators. Everyone said the same thing, the worst outcome could be a breach and the person holding everyone could kill them all.
I shuddered in my seat as I sat at the stoplight. When the light changed, I pulled away, putting on my blinker to stop at the drive-thru for breakfast. In my head, I thought I only fell asleep for an hour. In reality, it was well on the way to five am, and the sun was already peaking over the ridge for the start of the day. Which meant I offered Hunter dinner for breakfast. God, what was I thinking? I laughed. I wasn’t. That’d been the problem. Had I been, I would have told everyone the truth. In that second, Hunter had counted on me to help him, which was, technically, my job, but not watching his kid.
Certainly not lying to my boss.
I was sure I could use the food poisoning excuse. It wasn’t like I laid out all the time or anything. Or a sudden onset of the worst cramps I’d ever experienced? God knows, the ones I had would cause most to pass out. My doctor had already diagnosed me with the worst form of endometriosis she’d ever seen. The only way to cure my symptoms was a hysterectomy. The surgeons who could do the surgery wouldn’t. Why? Because what if I wanted children? What if I got married and my husband didn’t want me to have a hysterectomy? What if everyone stayed out of my body and let me decide what would fix me and what wouldn’t?
Anyway, that didn’t matter now.
Using my health for a simple situation was going to end up biting me in the ass. I already knew it. Even as I sat in my car waiting for my order, I worried someone would see me and report me to my boss, since I seemed fine now.
Ugh, I hated lying.
I shouldn’t have done it.
After receiving my order, I drove home to eat, read a little, and get ready for work. As I turned the corner onto my street, my phone rang. I slid my thumb across the screen as soon as I saw Gail’s name and photo. She wouldn’t have called me this early if there wasn’t an emergency. “Good morning, Gail.” I winced at how bright I sounded when I’d specifically told Jenna I was sick. “You never call me this early in the morning.” I added a little strain to my voice.
“You sound better than I expected after Jenna told me you weren’t feeling well yesterday,” Gail said.
Fuck.“Well, you know me. I’m going to push through with a smile on my face when I can. Wave the white flag when it gets too bad. Hopefully, I’m over the worst of it, though.”
“What happened?” If this was a social call or trip-me-up call, I was going to be pissed.
“Food poisoning. Nothing like barfing in the non-offending parent’s bathroom because you tried truck food for the first time. I know this is TMI, but I almost didn’t make it home either.” I gave a soft huffed laugh for effect. “Note to self: trythaton a day off, not when I’m in the field.”Hi, Bass Pro Shops, I’d like a pair of fishing waders, because this shit is getting deep.
“Oh no,” Gail said. “Not the truck on Baker and 5th.”
Uh... Oh, fuck. Was there a truck over by the office? Shit.Think fast, girl. This is your lie. Know your story.“Oh, no. This was closer to the parent than the office. This place advertised being the best street taco vendor in the south... Ha-ha, the best at giving food poisoning.”Go me.
“Oh, thank goodness,” Gail said. “I told Darcy and Jenna to grab us all lunch from thePorky’struck today, seeing how we’re all running on less than five hours of sleep.”
Guilt ate at my gut. “Don’t tell me, the hospital?” I cringed so hard at myself and the situation I created by agreeing to care for Hunter’s daughter. While I was sleeping semi-comfortably on Hunter’s sofa, they were in the middle of crisis mode. I was ashamed of myself. I should have just told the truth. It appeared everyone else had been going through the same thing. I was for the same reason.
I’d been so stupid.
“Yeah... It’s bad, Posey. Are you going to make it in today?” The exhaustion and hopefulness in her tone grated across my already raw, guilty conscious.
“Yes. I will be there. I ran out of tea last night, hoping to settle my stomach. So, I made the trip to grab a cup. I’ll be in, in less than an hour.” So much for reading and a shower.
“Great, when you get here, could you bring me some coffee? I feel like I haven’t slept a wink.” Either she was piling it on thick and already knew I was lying, or I should have kept the television on longer. Then again, if the look in Hunter’s eyes was any sign of what happened, whatever Gail had to tell me would not be good.
“Sure thing. Hey, tell you what. How about I buy everyone to a round of coffees, my treat?” My bank account would hate me, but my conscious would feel better. Plus, I could use the money Hunter gave me, too. “I can call and let you know when I’m there and order everything.”
“Got one even better for you,” she said, perking up slightly. “Hit the donut shop, grab two boxes of coffee and two dozen donuts, and you’ve got yourself a deal. The sugar and caffeine are about to sustain us for the rest of the day.”
I winced as the grinding reality of my white lie settled within my gut, twisting to the point of real sickness this time. “Can do. Mixed dozen?”
“Yeah,” she answered. “Then I also need to talk to you about a case when you get here.”
“Of course, whatever you need, I am here to serve.”Back it down, don’t want to sound too eager.“Ugh, I feel horrible about being sick.”
“Girl, I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve puked in the office and tried to push through. It is not pretty. It’s not healthy to have perfect attendance. Food poisoning is the worst.”
“Well, it taught me a lesson.” I pulled into my driveway and rested my head against the steering wheel. “Okay, give me forty minutes, and I’ll be there.”
