Rason & Eliza - Cee Bowerman Page 0,27
grumbling was all a front.
“Take tomorrow off, and call me if there’s anything we can do. If you need a place to stay, we can have two of the boys bunk together.”
“Thanks, man, but I’m good. If anything, I can crash on Atlas and Jaz’s couch or something, but thanks for the offer.”
“Call if you need anything.”
“I’ll do that. Thanks, Daughtry.”
I hung up the phone and set it by my hip. A white van had driven up and parked behind my Jeep while I was talking to my boss, and I saw a man and woman unload two big toolboxes. They hefted them up and walked into my house, and I watched them go in with a heavy sigh.
I hoped that it was a robbery.
I laughed softly thinking that was the weirdest thing I’d ever hoped.
If it was a robbery, that meant it was a single event that wouldn’t likely happen again. If it was Robin, that meant she wasn’t done with me and there would probably be more problems ahead.
I had a feeling this was Robin’s work, and it worried me to think of what she might do next. Looking back, I realized that everything about my relationship had been a slow escalation to this exact moment. She went from funny and charming to a little needy. Then she became demanding. She’d still throw out the funny and charming as long as I jumped when she called.
When I didn’t, she’d have a complete tantrum. Then she’d apologize and be cloyingly sweet for a while.
By the time I’d ended it with her the first time, I was only taking her calls because I was worried about what she’d do if I didn’t answer. She’d gone off the deep end and threatened to hurt herself, and I’d caved, agreeing that we could be friends.
She hadn’t accepted the friends part, though and still referred to us as dating.
I thanked God that I hadn’t slept with the woman. I couldn’t imagine what things would be like if I had.
It just hadn’t felt right with Robin. Everything had been too much. Too much effort, too much uncertainty, and too much doubt.
It was different with Eliza. From the beginning, she’d made me laugh and smile effortlessly. Her easy-going nature just drew me in, and the interest in her eyes was a drastic change from the calculating look I’d seen far too often in Robin’s.
Being with Eliza just felt right. It was comfortable and exciting at the same time.
Our conversation earlier about the food my mom had sent home ran through my head. She’d never asked a thing about it, but even going in blind, she was ready to try whatever it was just because she knew how important my mom was to me.
The one time I’d offered to bring leftovers to Robin she’d told me she “didn’t like ‘Chinese food’ because it was too salty.” When I’d explained that it was Vietnamese and not Chinese, she’d waved her hand as if that was an insignificant detail.
“Here you go.” Atlas held a beer down over my shoulder and then sat down on the top step beside me. “You want to stay here tonight and tackle that tomorrow?”
“Maybe.” I sighed. “I want to at least get in there and look at the damage tonight.”
“I’ve been working all day trying to hash out this code. I thought my day was bad, but I do believe you’ve got me beat.”
“It was great until I got home.” I laughed.
“Still, makes me glad I’ve got this house. Someday, my sister Summer’s going to want to sell it and I don’t know if I would want to buy it or not. It’s a little much for me and Jaz; I can’t imagine I’ll need this much space.”
“It is the biggest one on the block.”
“The ones on either side of me are for sale, and that one on your left has been empty for months. I don’t want to train new neighbors, but I don’t suppose there’s much of a choice.”
“You trained me. I would think you’re going to be fine.”
“You gave zero shits when a half dozen motorcycles roared up and parked in front of our house. That woman that used to live next door always had a fit.”
Atlas’s stepfather and his roommate Jazmyne’s brother both belonged to the same motorcycle club as my boss Daughtry. Occasionally, some of the guys would come over to visit, and when they did, you could hear them coming from a few blocks away. The neighbor