Page 28 of Push

“Keep your dental coat on, Donnie. I didn’t say I hadn’t come up with a temporary solution. Kayleigh’s been reassigned to work with the periodontist. It’s a fucking promotion, really, but she’ll be on the other side of the clinic the three days a week he’s here. I’ll keep her busy the other two days. And she’s been told in no uncertain terms to keep her skinny little ass a foot away from you at all times.”

“And assisting me?”

“I’ve wasted more money we don’t have organizing a bright young chap from the temp agency.” She arched a questioning eyebrow. “You don’t swing both ways, do you, Donnie?”

I groaned. “Judy…”

Her thin lips disappeared into a smile. “Just making sure I won’t have another claim on my hands.” She jerked her head at the door. “Head on out. I’ve got shit to do. Your mess isn’t the only one I’ve got to fix today.”

Usually, it was easy for me to smile. Today, it was impossible. I gave a solemn nod, and like a naughty kid banished from his mother’s sight, I slunk out of the office.

The morning dragged on in quicksand. Every movement felt like ten times the effort, and my shoulders slumped lower with each new patient.

The jokes and laughter that used to brighten my treatment room had disappeared. The new guy was belted up tighter than a clam. He barely spoke. The silence unsettled me. Kayleigh had always plugged the gaps, talking about the last video she’d watched or how she was thinking of going to university. She might have told me what she planned to study, but honestly, I’d never listened to the words. I just liked the noise.

I needed out.

When a gap popped up in my appointments, I escaped the silence suffocating me with a tired excuse about needing to grab a coffee.

Wandering into the break room, I opened the overhead cabinet and grabbed a mug. A press of a few buttons started the coffee machine. I wasn’t excited. The coffee tasted like a mix of dirt and burnt tires, but any shot of caffeine was better than nothing. I was dead on my feet.

I hadn’t slept much at the hotel. I’d spent most of the night staring at the ceiling, my eyes tracing every wriggly, unpatched crack, worrying about Gwen and Noah. Were they tucked up safe? Had Gwen remembered to lock the garage door? She forgot sometimes. Usually, I was the one who double-checked before hopping into bed or crashing on the couch.

I slumped against the countertop. My legs were too heavy to stand on their own. I’d give anything to snuggle up next to Gwen. Hell, I’d give anything to sleep on the couch.

I dug my phone out of my pocket. Only one new message.

Mother Dearest

Tobias, I know you’re avoiding me. We’ll discuss recent events when I return from my vacation.

Even when she was lounging on a beach in the South Pacific, my mother still found time to lecture me. She could wait.

I sighed. No new messages from Gwen. No new photos of Noah. Three days ago, I wouldn’t have bothered to check my phone. I’d rarely touched base with Gwen during my breaks, but now, a hollowness ate at my chest. This was how Gwen felt every day. Not just lonely but…alone.

My wake-up call was ringing. Things needed to change.Ineeded to change.

What was something I could do? Flowers? Maybe… Something to munch on? Hell, yeah. She’d love that.

I tapped through the delivery app, ordering a coffee and one of the gooey pastries Gwen always ogled at the café but never bought because she worried too much about her belly. She was nuts. Her new curves were gorgeous.

I typed a quick message to Gwen.

Toby

A surprise is on the way. Missing you both so much.

I nibbled my bottom lip.

xoxo

I wanted to slap the Ghost of Toby Past upside the head. Sending Gwen a message took a second. I could’ve made time for her. I should have prioritized that second—more—every damn day.

I was hunting in the drawer for a spoon to stir my cup of dirt when a soft voice called from the doorway.

“Hi, Toby.”

My body went still.

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