AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mason turned as a coworker called his name, spying the paramedic standing at the end of the ambulance, trying not to eavesdrop. He stepped toward the parking lot and frowned, "No wait, she forgot her phone and purse."
Mason grabbed them. "Thanks, I'll see that she gets it." Then he leaned around the paramedic and yelled, "Benson, I'll be right back."
The paramedic looked into the parking lot as lightning flashed. "I don't think you should, man. She's pretty upset."
Mason waved him off and jogged to the parking lot. He saw her get into a little purple car, and Taylor drove away. Neither of them saw him waving, trying to get her to stop.
A lead weight settled in his chest, and a lump formed in his throat as he stood there. Rain began to fall, and his boss yelled to go secure evidence before the rain ruined anything.
What could he do to fix this? She was just so emotional. Maybe if they both calmed down tonight, he could see her tomorrow and explain, somehow unfuck up everything he'd done wrong tonight.
He stretched his neck and rolled his shoulders and pulled out his phone. It rang for a long time before a groggy Ray answered.
"Pops, this is Mason. Sorry to wake you, but Lucy is on her way home now. Can you make sure she gets home safe and have Helen check on her in the morning?"
"What? What time is it, son? Why do we need to check on Lucy?"
Mason rubbed his eyes and sighed. "Her dad was involved in a sting operation tonight in Dallas. And Lucy met him for dinner so she was caught up in it."
Ray groaned. "Don't tell me she got shot again."
Mason chuckled. "No, she's fine. Just in shock. Her friend, Taylor, is with her and driving them home."
A rustling on the other end came through, then Helen's soft voice said, "Mason? What happened with her dad?"
He gave a summary, then he said, "I tried to comfort her, but she ended up telling me to fuck off, pardon my language."
She sighed. "Well, I don't blame her. You need to pull your head out of your ass."
He frowned and pushed the rain off his hair. "Seriously?"
Helen was a stickler for the rules, so for her to swear something was very wrong.
"Well, you haven't even talked to her, have you? You just assumed you knew what was best and that was that. You've completely ignored her for five whole months. She's been worried sick about you and has no idea how you feel about her."
Mason sucked in a breath and the tone made him wince. "How I feel about her..."
Helen sniffed and lifted her head high. "Do you even know how you feel about her?"
He scowled. "Of course I do. I plan to talk to her about it tomorrow."
Helen sighed. "I'm going to head to her house and make sure she's alright, but Mason? You better hope and pray that she listens tomorrow."
The line went dead, and he groaned. She was right. He shouldn't have just left her alone this whole time. Every time he'd called Ray to ask how she was, he should've just bit the bullet and point blank asked her if she wanted to get together for real.
He had really fucked up. He pushed his hair back and leaned his head back, letting the rain hit. Shit, shit, shit.
"Novak, where are you?" Sarmiento called. Mason sighed and jogged back to the scene with her purse still in his hand.
Chapter 47
Lucy cried herself to sleep that night. She grieved for her dad and all the missed events, the missed years of having a real father who'd show up and love her. She cried from shock and fear that something could've happened to her or her baby. She cried for Amanda, who must've been caught in a similar situation but hadn't survived.
She cried for the kidnapping nightmares triggered by the night's events. She woke up from a dream that Mason was holding her tight in a warm cocoon of his arms and cried when she realized he wasn't there.
When she woke up on Saturday, it was to a horrible headache all because the fucking tears wouldn't stop. Taylor pushed her bedroom door open and brought in a tray of food.
She smiled tightly. "Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey."
