4.

If you do the same thing for eight hours a day, you’re insane, but if you get paid for it, then it’s a job.

Dice

C YDNEY

Wren laid the test strip on a paper towel and took a deep breath. The second she looked up at me, I knew.

“That was quick,” I said quietly. “I thought it took a few minutes.”

“You either are or you aren’t, and in this case . . .”

“I am.”

The door opened, and Spruce walked in with a stricken look on his face. I suddenly found my sense of humor and said, “I’m not sure why you look so traumatized, Sprucey. I’m the one who . . .”

“There’s been a . . . Something’s happened.”

“Where? With who?” Wren asked as she stood up from her stool.

“Zoey was attacked on patrol. They’re flying her to the hospital now. Amethyst and Terran are on the way. I’ve got to stay here and take care of the last patients of the day but . . .”

“I’ll call the girls,” I said as tears ran down my cheeks. “What do I tell them? Is she . . . How bad is it?”

“Bad enough for them to use the life flight instead of an ambulance,” Spruce said sadly.

“Was she shot?” Wren asked. When Spruce just shrugged and shook his head, Wren spun around and picked up the tablet she’d carried in with her earlier. “I’ve got one more patient, and then I can go up to the hospital.”

“Do that while I make the calls,” I said as I sat back down in the chair. I took a deep breath through my nose and then slowly blew it out before I said, “I don’t think I should be driving right now, so I’ll wait on one of you.”

“This shouldn’t take long,” Spruce said as he sat down in the chair Wren had vacated. He tugged my hand closer, and I realized he was about to start my IV.

“No. I don’t have time to . . .”

“Make the time. There’s nothing any of us can do right now, and this is important, Squid. You’re no good to anybody as weak as you are, and I think this will help,” Spruce said as he looked up at Wren. “I’ll take care of her. Take care of your patient, and then come take out Squid’s IV before you go to the hospital. I’ll take care of the patients who are waiting and close up the office.”

“Okay,” Wren said with a nod. She sniffed once and then put her shoulders back before she nodded again. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

I didn’t even pay attention to what Spruce was doing because I was too busy scrolling through the contacts on my phone. I called the girls - the other officers in my club - one after the other. When none of them picked up, I remembered that they were on a ride, so I went through my list one at a time, calling each woman until I got their voicemail and then hanging up and calling the next. I knew that if I kept calling, they’d understand the urgency and pull over somewhere to answer.

When Lark finally called me back, I couldn’t keep the tears from my voice as I finally choked out the situation and told her what was going on with our friend Zoey. As I told Lark everything I knew so far, Spruce reached out and squeezed my shoulder and then walked out of the exam room - leaving me hooked up to the IV that he insisted could be my saving grace.

A few minutes later, he walked in carrying a white paper sack and thrust it my way. “I called in some prescriptions to help your nausea.”

I took the bag and set it on my lap before I looked up at the bag of fluid and asked, “Can you unhook me now, or do I have to wait?”

“Right now, you need this more than Zoey needs you sitting in the hallway crying and worrying,” Spruce said gently. He cleared his throat and blinked his eyes rapidly to clear the tears before he said, “We all love her and want to protect her, but there’s a baby in there that’s counting on you and only you, Squid.”

“I didn’t think of that.”

“It’s time to start, babe,” Spruce said before he leaned down and kissed me on the forehead. He leaned back just far enough to look into my eyes before he asked, “Is it someone I know?” When I shook my head, he asked, “Are you going to do this alone or bring him into the equation?”

“I don’t know yet,” I murmured, wondering how I could even find him if I wanted to. When I left his business card on the dresser in the hotel room I had no idea just how much I’d need it, but even if I did find him, how would that work out? Should I just call him up and say, “Hey, buddy! You’re gonna be a dad!” No. This news would have to be given in person, but I would have to find him first.

“It’s all gonna work out the way it should, Squid,” Spruce said as he pulled on my hand to make me extend my arm. He pulled a few vials from the pocket of his white coat and placed them on the counter before he reached into his other pocket and got out a sealed package with the implements he needed to draw my blood.

Once he had on a fresh pair of gloves, he got to work, and within just a few minutes, he’d drawn five vials and was placing a bandage on the inside of my elbow when I asked, “How do you know it’s going to work out the way it should?”

“I’ll never be too old to believe in magic,” Spruce said with a grin. “Sometimes, the right thing happens at the wrong time for the perfect reason.”

“That’s not very scientifically doctor-like of you, Spruce.”

“I’ve been a doctor long enough to witness things that no one can explain. None of them are scientific, but I firmly believe that more than a few of them are magic.”

“And you think that’s what this situation is?”

“It can be if you make it that way.”

“I’ll try.”

“There is no try, only do,” Spruce quoted sagely. “Love ya, kiddo. Call me if there’s anything at all you need, night or day, and I’ll be there for you.”

“Thanks, Sprucey.”

“Do you want Wren and Roscoe to work with you, or are you going to find another practice?”

“I can’t imagine doing this with anyone other than my family.”

“I won’t say anything to Roscoe, but when you’re ready, I know he’ll make time for you.”

“Thank you again, Sprucey.”

“That’s what family does, sweetheart. You know that.”

◆◆◆

I took a relieved breath when I stood up and didn’t get even a little woozy and then realized how late in the afternoon it was and that I hadn’t eaten anything since this time yesterday. I sighed when I thought about how much I needed to change my diet. Even I knew that hot wings and egg rolls, two of my favorite things, which also happened to be the leftovers that I heated up for my dinner yesterday evening, weren’t something that would help a pregnant woman thrive.

“Are you coming?” Bella asked. “We can bring you something back from the cafeteria if you’re still not feeling well.”

“Sorry. I’m coming,” I said as I started walking her way. I glanced up at the television as I walked past it and then stopped so suddenly that I almost lost my balance. I looked up at the screen mounted on the wall of the waiting room and felt my jaw drop as my heart started to race. “Holy shit.”

“Is that . . .? Holy shit, Squid! That’s Kenny!”

“Who is Kenny?” Lark asked as she walked back over to join us in front of the television. “Oh! I totally forgot they’re filming another season. I love that show!”

“Who is that?” I asked, still in complete and utter shock.

As the scene changed to an outdoor shot of men standing side by side, all tattooed and muscular, looking good enough to grace the covers of the steamiest romance novels, Lark pointed them out from left to right. “That’s Tank, Navy, Dice, Nada, and you already know Tiny, of course.”

“That’s Amethyst’s Tiny,” I mumbled as I looked across the room and found my friend sleeping with her head propped on her big tattooed boyfriend’s shoulder. “How does he . . . What does he . . . Who . . .”

“Are you having a moment, babe? You didn’t know he was on a tattoo show? He moved here from Las Vegas. He used to work at Dice’s shop.”

“Oh, holy shit,” I whispered as the room started to spin. I reached out and clutched the closest thing to me, which just so happened to be Lark’s boyfriend, Baxter.

I tried to apologize but couldn’t get the words out and suddenly heard someone say, “Catch her!” right before it felt like I had begun to fall down a black tunnel.

I woke up to find my friends’ shocked and worried faces above me, but the only one I could focus on was Wren. She broke the silence and said, “I told you earlier you needed to eat something, dumbass.”

“My bad,” I croaked as I tried to sit up.

“Take it slow,” Wren ordered. Once I’d been sitting up for a few seconds, she extended her hand and pulled me to my feet before she said, “Let’s get you some food, Squid. I’m sure that will make you feel better.”

“It’s the stress and worry,” Lark said as she took my hand. “Zozo is gonna be okay, Squid. Someone will call us if there’s any news while we’re gone.”

“Yeah. It’s just stress and worry,” I muttered, lying through my teeth. “I’m sure that’s it.”

◆◆◆

DICE

“Are y’all coming back through here on your way home, or will you take the more sensible route?” Rooster asked as he passed me another beer.

“I don’t know yet,” I said honestly before I took a sip. “Hell, with this kind of service, I may never leave Red River. I’ll just stay here and let you wait on me hand and foot since you’re so damn good at it.”

“Obviously, he’s drunker than I thought, so I’m gonna have to cut him off,” Rooster told Tank.

Tank laughed before he took a sip of his own beer and said, “Give him a break. The man’s nursing a heartache.”

“Did a woman do you wrong, Dice?”

“No, but I think I did myself wrong,” I admitted sadly.

“How?” Rooster asked.

“We’ve all had our share of one-night stands, right?” I asked. Rooster and Tank nodded, so I said, “You go into it knowing what’s going to happen in the morning. You go your separate ways knowing maybe you’re gonna be friends, but maybe you’ll never see each other again. How many times do you think you went into it with that mindset, but she may have wanted more?” When both of my friends looked uncomfortable, I told them, “This time I was the one who wanted more, and I was just too big of a pussy to say anything.”

“There must be something in the water,” Rooster said before he took a long pull from his beer. “Same fucking thing happened to me.”

“That’s it. I’m avoiding women for the next little while. You are both having issues I never imagined and don’t want any part of.”

“I let her leave me in the hotel room - not even her own hotel room because she was so intent on not making anything we did personal - and I didn’t even ask her last name.”

“I got left sleeping in bed. Didn’t even get a goodbye.”

“Y’all are making me feel like shit,” Tank admitted. “I’m wondering if I’ve ever left a woman thinking about me like that.” After a few minutes of thoughtful silence, he said, “Considering everything going on in the world, at least tell me that you both used protection.”

“Gee, Dad. Do we have to talk about rubbers?” Rooster asked with a snort.

Without thinking, I blurted, “Condom broke, but I caught it before I finished so everything should be fine.”

“Fuck,” Tank and Rooster muttered in unison.

“No shit, huh?”

“Better take your ass to the doctor,” Tank warned.

“I’m done with one-night stands. Fuck. At this point, I’m done with women in general. My sisters are all about setting me up with Miss Perfect when, in reality, the women they introduce me to aren’t nearly as interesting as the one that got away.”

“Did Sugar ever tell you what happened to him right before he met Juni?” Rooster asked. When Tank and I both shook our heads, he said, “He was at the coffee shop he always goes to and working up the nerve to ask out this young woman behind the counter when she flips the script and tries to set him up with her mom!”

“We’re not that fucking old!” Tank said in a near shout.

“I’m younger than both of you assholes,” Rooster said cheerfully.

“Fuck off,” Tank grumbled. “I hope you trip on the porch step and break your front tooth.”

“If I did, I wouldn’t be the prettiest one in the group anymore,” Rooster boasted.

“I want to find her,” I blurted, interrupting their good-natured argument. “I’m not sure how.”

“You don’t know anything at all about her?” Tank asked.

“I know that she had a protection detail from the owner of my building,” I said nervously.

“Isn’t the owner of your building in the mafia?” Rooster asked. “You moved in there because of that, right? Because you thought it would probably be the safest place in town.”

“Yeah.”

“How is that going to help you? Will you just walk up to Don Corleone and ask him who the honey was? What if she was his honey?” Tank asked.

“No, that’s not it at all. I listened to her conversation with her friend, and I think the friend is dating the building owner.”

“The mafia guy,” Rooster pointed out. “So, she’s just at the edge of the mafia circle. That’s still way too close for me.”

“Shit. That information isn’t going to help me anyway because I don’t know how to get in touch with the guy. What am I supposed to do? Send him a letter?”

“I’ve discovered a new mantra, gentlemen,” Rooster said seriously.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“If it’s meant to be, it will happen.”

“How is that supposed to help me, oh wise one?”

“Let the universe sort it out,” Rooster said with a shrug. “Everything will work out the way it should. Hell, for all we know, she’s off somewhere in the universe thinking about you right now and wondering how to get in touch too.”

“I doubt it. She was dead set on it just being a fling.”

“Weren’t you too? At least at first?” Tank asked.

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure she didn’t know who you are? Maybe she was one of those women who wanted to bang the TV star or some shit,” Rooster suggested.

“I don’t think that was the case at all.”

“Well, then maybe Rooster is right,” Tank allowed. “Maybe she’ll find you somehow.”

“Not likely, but I hope so.”

“I guess we’ll see.”