11.

R OSIE

The drive back to Rojo seemed to take forever, probably because I couldn't get interested in the podcast or the audiobook I'd downloaded before I left the cabin. Instead, I wrestled with my thoughts about what happened last night and tried not to kick myself for overreacting and turning into a drama queen.

It was almost noon when I pulled into my garage, and within ten minutes, I was settled in my bedroom staring at the ceiling, ready to get some sleep since I had done nothing but toss and turn last night. Before I plugged my phone in on the nightstand, I saw that I'd missed a number of calls from my mom, a couple from my friend Flora, and one from my sister, Fallon.

I decided to let those calls and messages sit unanswered until I woke up from my nap, but when the phone rang, I realized that sleep probably wasn't going to happen, at least for a little while longer.

I checked the screen and found that it was a FaceTime call from my friend Zoey, one of the reasons I'd already planned to come home soon for a day or two. I pasted a smile on my face and answered.

"Zozo! How are you?"

Zoey tilted her head in question and asked, " Where are you?"

"I made a quick trip home to see you and take care of a few things," I said, not being completely honest, but not outright lying either. "How are you feeling?"

Zoey sighed and looked away from the screen for a few seconds before she said, "Honestly?"

"Always."

"I'm going fucking crazy, Ro. I haven't had a moment's peace, which is to be expected after what happened, I know, but it's making me nuts."

"Out of everyone you know, I think I understand that the most."

"I was thinking about you sitting all alone in a secluded cabin somewhere and got so jealous that I had to call and interrupt," Zoey said, her pensive look gone when she smiled at me. "And look at you - home already. I didn't think that would happen anytime soon."

"Did you think I was just going to pick up and move to the mountains or what?" I asked with a laugh.

Zoey shrugged before she said, "Kind of."

"Are you still a hostage?"

"I am. There was a complication with my hip after surgery, probably because I've been in bed for six years."

"It hasn't quite been six years, but I bet it feels like it. How about the rest of you?"

"I've still got some gaps in my memory and problems concentrating, but Terran said that should get better with time. The drugs help with the pain from everything except my new haircut."

My friend Zoey, an officer with the Rojo Police Department, had been attacked by two men during a traffic stop. Her injuries were severe enough that we worried we might lose her, and for a day or two, it was touch and go because of the head injury she sustained during the beating.

"It looks like the bruises on your face are finally fading."

"Finally. For a while there, I was worried I'd look like Sloth for the rest of my life."

"Hey, you guys!" I said, quoting a classic movie that we'd watched a million times as kids.

Zoey smiled and said, "Can you come spring me from this joint and take me to hide in the mountains with you?"

"I wish I could, my friend, but they'd just hunt us down. You know that if we leave in groups, even small ones, it will ping on everyone's radar, and they'll just follow us."

"That's true."

"I'm going to come see you later, okay? Maybe I'll even spend the night."

"Aww. It will be just like old times."

I laughed because even with all of her injuries, my friend's sarcastic wit hadn't changed at all. "Do you want me to bring anything?"

"Peace and quiet."

"I can do that, my friend."

Once I said goodbye to Zoey with assurances that I'd come see her this afternoon and bring all of her favorite snacks, I took a deep breath and then called my Aunt Carlie, Mom's best friend.

When she answered, she sounded out of breath, and I asked, "Are you running a marathon?"

"Not quite, but Zoey's been all by herself for almost an hour, so I'm trying to gather up everything I might need tonight so I don't have to leave again for a few days."

"About that . . ." I hedged. "I just got off the phone with Zozo, and I promised her I'd come by for a while."

"That's great! I can't wait to see you."

"Is there any chance that you might let me stay with her tonight so you can have a break?"

Aunt Carlie was quiet for a few seconds, and I could sense that she was standing still. Finally, she broke the silence and asked, "What did she say?"

"She asked me to bring her peace and quiet."

"Oh, honey," Carlie whispered. "She called you because she was afraid to say anything to me."

"You know how we are," I said with a grin, hoping my tone of voice would lighten the mood. "Always slinking off to be alone when we're in a crowd."

"I never even considered that," Carlie admitted. "I've been in mom mode since she got hurt and haven't switched it off for a second."

"Of course you haven't."

"Sam warned me that I was hovering but, of course, I ignored him because that's sort of our thing." I laughed because she was right. Uncle Sam and Aunt Carlie were couple goals, that was for sure. When they were together, their laughter was loud and so were their arguments, even though most of the time they were just for show. It was apparent to anyone that spent even a short amount of time with them that they were very much in love and had remained the best of friends throughout their marriage just like my parents had. "She needs a little space, doesn't she?"

"Just a little, but I told her I'd come by this evening to check in and thought I might hang out overnight and give you a little time away from the hospital."

"You've been taking care of our Zozo since she was born, haven't you, Rosie?"

"She was my favorite baby doll until Fallon came along. Then I had two."

"Well, technically you had three, but you gave Zane up after he bit you that first time."

"Even then, I knew he was feral and belonged in a zoo."

"Zoey was a biter, too, you know."

"Maybe, but she never bit me, so we got along just fine."

"You're a great big sister to all of them, Rosie-girl," Carlie said, and I could hear the tears in her voice. "We're so thankful that you've been such a big part of our lives. I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you, too, Aunt Carlie."

"Your mom didn't mention that you were coming back. I thought you'd be gone for at least a month."

"That's the plan. I just came home for a quick visit, but I'll probably go back in a few days. Since Zozo is feeling better, I'd like to spend some time with her before I leave again."

What I didn't say was that I wasn't positive I would be leaving again. After that scene with Rooster where I lost my mind and ran off like someone was chasing me, I was almost too embarrassed to think about ever seeing him again. However, that little episode aside, I wasn't usually one to shy away from my problems.

Apparently, Rooster Mannin was my kryptonite.

◆◆◆

"What am I going to do, Ro?" Zoey asked as tears filled her eyes. She waved her hand around her head and said, "I'll never be able to work again after this shit."

"You'll be able to work, Zo."

"I'll never be able to pass the physical exam. There's no way a doctor is going to release me out into the wild with a fucking handgun and a patrol car when I can barely focus my eyes half the time and can't remember the simplest things."

"So you pivot and do something else," I suggested before I gently wiped her tears away with the tissue in my hand. "Being a cop wasn't your only dream, remember?"

"Oh, yeah, because becoming the president is such a realistic goal."

"You could always go with your second choice." Zoey glared at me, and I smiled before I said, "You don't really see many ice cream trucks out and about these days, do you? You could bring it back and make the children all over Rojo happy again."

"I haven't thought about that in forever!" Zoey said with a watery smile. "I was sure that was my calling."

"I remember. You swore that you'd be much better than that man who cruised around our neighborhood because he was almost always sold out of your favorite."

"I understood supply and demand even back then. Apparently, he didn't," Zoey said in disgust, reminding me of the little girl who used to get so angry when the ice cream man told her he had run out of Push-Up Pops.

"Your life isn't over, Zozo, it's just going to be different than you had imagined it. Maybe it will even be better."

"Enough about me," Zoey said before she sniffed and raised her hand to brush her hair away from her face. "Tell me about your dream. How is the book coming along?"

"Better than I expected, considering that for the first few days I couldn't even write a paragraph because there were too many stories in my head."

"Which one did you pick?"

"I started out writing Kale and Terra's story then I got sidetracked with your parents' because it was really the beginning, don't you think?"

"You are not going to write a romance novel about my parents Rosie."

I laughed at the look of disgust on her face and said, "I changed it up again and started writing my own romance."

"Good. Tell me about your main characters," Zoey said before she tried to stifle a yawn. "Remember when we were kids and you used to read me stories before bed?"

"I do."

Zoey lost her battle and yawned loudly before she closed her eyes and said, "Start at the beginning. How did they meet?"

"Okay," I said before I snuggled up close to my friend's side in the narrow hospital bed. "They met at a wedding . . ."

◆◆◆

I looked up when the door opened, expecting it to be another nurse coming in to check on Zoey. I was pleasantly surprised to see my friend Terran in the doorway, and when he motioned for me to step out into the hall, I didn't hesitate.

Once he pulled the door shut behind us, I wrapped my arms around his waist for a hug, something that not many people got from the man since he wasn't exactly a physically affectionate person. With his arms still around my shoulders, he leaned back so he could look into my face.

"You look like hell, Ro. What's wrong?" I burst into tears and he pulled me back into his chest for a longer hug before he said, "Okay. Enough of that shit. Talk to me."

"I need coffee. I haven't slept in days."

"If you think coffee is going to help you do that, then I guess I need to order some tests because you've obviously got a head injury."

I sputtered out a laugh before I pulled away. "What are you doing here so late?"

"I was called in for an emergency consult and thought I'd come check on Zozo before I go home to get some rest."

"What time is it?" I asked, glancing at the doorway to Zoey's room.

"It's almost dawn. Have you slept at all?"

"A little here and there. It's kind of hard to do with the nursing staff coming in and out so often."

"I can imagine that gets old, but Zoey's already learned to tune it out." Terran grabbed my hand to tug me along beside him when he took off walking toward the elevator and said, "You can tell me what's going on with you over coffee and some food."

"Nothing's . . ."

"Bullshit," he interrupted gruffly. "I know you haven't finished your book yet because I've been keeping track of your progress. If you finish half the ones you start, you'll end up becoming quite the prolific author."

"I knew I should have never shared my Google drive with you."

"Whatever. You know I'll make a good beta reader. However, when I realized that one of the stories you started writing was about my parents, I almost bailed."

"You didn't get creeped out when you read the one I started about Kale and Terra?"

"Not nearly as much as I did when I opened a document and realized it was about my parents." Terran shuddered and said, "I can't read that shit, Ro."

"I started another book and it's . . . going."

"The one about you?"

"Well . . . yeah. How did you know it's about me?"

"I've known you forever, sweetheart. Just because I'm not your Prince Charming doesn't mean I think you should go without finding one."

"Maybe we were wrong and you are the one." Terran gave me a bored look, and I laughed. "Okay, maybe not, but at least we don't hate each other, right?"

"True," Terran said as the elevator doors opened and he put his hand on the small of my back to usher me into the car. We were quiet for the short ride since there were other people going down with us, but when we emerged on the ground floor, he took my hand again and started walking toward the exit. "So, are you going to tell me why you're here?"

"I came back to see Zoey."

"Bullshit. You were going to stay gone for at least a month to get some peace and quiet, but you suddenly reappear?"

We crossed the street and then took the elevator in the parking garage up to the floor reserved for the doctors. Within just a few minutes, we were out on the street again, walking toward the bakery our friend Janis owned. When we got there, I greeted her with a hug, not surprised that she was shocked to see me, and then settled down at a table in the corner with a cup of fresh coffee and a piping hot jalapeno cheddar kolache. Terran sat in the chair beside mine and propped his elbows on the table with his coffee in hand, blowing on it to cool it off, and then looked over at me and said, "Start spilling."

"I met a guy."

"At the resort?"

"Sort of.No.Well, yeah."

Terran sighed heavily before he took a sip of his coffee. "I can tell this conversation is going to be fun."

"Shut up."

"So did you meet this guy there or not?"

"I met him at Elizabeth's wedding. He was the guy I danced with all night."

"And then later at the hotel," Terran said knowingly. "Did you break down and call him after you left town or . . ."

"He owns the resort I went to."

"Oh. You didn't mention that before you left."

"I didn't know that until I'd already been there for a few days."

Terran chuckled before he said, "I bet that was a surprise."

"Yeah. He showed up at my cabin, and I did what I always do . . ."

"Doled out sarcasm and disdain in the hopes that whoever your victim is will slink off with their tail between their legs?"

"Something like that."

"So did he?"

"No. I saw him the day after, and he sort of wormed his way in."

"All the way to your bedroom?"

"No. I managed to resist the pull I feel when I'm around him."

"I remember you mentioned something about him after we all came back from the wedding."

"Yeah. I did, but I thought it was just a fluke, but then I saw him again, and it was still there."

"So where is he?"

"I got spooked and ran away."

"Something else you seem to do a lot."

"Not a lot, really . . ." Terran raised his eyebrows and then took a sip of his coffee. I sighed and said, "Okay, so that's part of my usual repertoire, I know, but I couldn't seem to help myself."

"There's one guaranteed way to stop that."

"What?"

"Just don't do it. There's clearly something about this guy that you really like. If you'd stop getting in your own damn way, you might find out that he's your future." Terran shrugged and then added, "You also might find out that he's a worthless piece of shit. It's sort of a toss-up."

"Wow. Your pep talks are so helpful, Terran."

"Aren't they?"

"He's an ex-con."

"What did he do?"

"Assault, I think. Not sure to what degree, but his heart was in the right place."

"You do realize that normal people don't put those two things together, right?" I laughed as I nodded in agreement, and then Terran said, "I guess if violence is his natural inclination, he'll fit right in with most of the family."

"He can't."

"Why not?"

"His home is in Red River. His family and business are there, and there's no way he can ever leave it."

"Well, first of all, you're not even sure that this guy is all you've hyped him up to be in your mind, so you're probably getting ahead of yourself here - which is also something that an overthinker like you is prone to do."

"Takes one to know one," I mumbled before I tore off a bite of my kolache.

"If he does end up being as wonderful as you're afraid to think he is, then what's the problem?"

"I told you! He can't move to Rojo."

"Are you glued to the place? Don't even try to lie and tell me you haven't considered leaving."

"I have and you know it."

"So have I, but I'm more nailed down than you are."

"But I've got a home here and a career that's been pretty lucrative. How can I leave that?"

"They don't have real estate in Red River?" Terran asked sarcastically. "Do they all live in tents or what?"

"No! The real estate market there is very high-end. It's a tourist destination, and with the scenery and skiing, I'm sure it's highly marketable as a vacation spot where people might like to keep a second home."

"And if you add that possible career to your budding writing career, you could make a very comfortable living, don't you think?"

"I could," I mumbled as I looked out the window at the quickly brightening sky. "But my family is here."

Terran snorted and said, "It's less than four hours away, Ro. it's not like you're going to pack your shit and settle down on the other side of the planet."

"That's true."

"And you know that most of the time, life here in Rojo is too much for you. Admit it, Ro . . . you wouldn't mind having peace and quiet more often than not."

"I would. I do," I agreed. "Zozo was feeling the same way. That's why I stayed with her last night."

"I thought she had been a little on edge for the last few days, but I didn't realize that was the problem."

"You understand what she's feeling."

"Just like you do."

"I love our family and enjoy spending time with all of them. It's just a little overwhelming sometimes."

"Exactly, but if you lived four hours away, you could take them in doses. Wouldn't that be nice?"

"And I'd still be close enough to come home whenever I want."

"Just like you did . . . yesterday? Is that right?"

"Yeah. I slept for a while after I arrived and then went to stay the night with Zozo."

"You were on your computer when I got there."

"I was writing."

"Your love story?"

"What I want my love story to be."

"Don't just write about it, Ro. Live it, and then write about it, and share it with the world."

"I took off out of the blue after we'd spent such a wonderful evening together. I wouldn't even know how to begin to apologize for how I reacted."

"To what?"

I scoffed and said, "A rocking chair."

"That's new and different."

"I know, right? I was admiring the craftsmanship, and next thing I know, I was imagining sitting in it with my baby in my arms. His baby. That's why I ran."

"Is he not the fatherly type?"

"Just the opposite! He's his sister's guardian and also has a young daughter who is the center of his universe. You can tell by watching them together that he's a great father, and when you see his interactions with his sister, it's even more apparent that he's got a heart the size of Texas."

"And considering his history, he's got a backbone to go with it, which means he'll do anything to protect his family."

"He assaulted the men who were attacking a server he worked with as she walked to her car after her shift."

"Yep. He'll fit right in with the family," Terran said firmly. He cleared his throat and then said, "That is if you ever decide to let us meet him."

"I'd have to see if he even wants to talk to me after I ran away so suddenly."

"If he's smart, he'll give you a chance to explain. If he's kind, he'll understand your fears, and if he's brave he'll take a chance on your word that you won't do it again."

"I think he might be all of those things, Terran."

"Then find out, Ro. It might be the best thing you've ever done."