Page 34 of Big Rucking Disaster

“You?”

A pause. “Well, I was thinking someone who knows you better. Like Isaiah or Roger.”

“I don’t want to bother them. Shit, that sounds bad.” I pressed my hand to my forehead.

“How does it sound bad?” Vague amusement.

“That I don’t mind bothering you, but I don’t want to get them any more involved than they already are. You know what I mean?”

“I do.”

A siren wailed in the distance.

I moved toward my window, wondering if it might be outside, but I quickly realized the noise came from the phone. “Are youbeing pulled over?” My heart sped up. Driving while Black was a thing. What if Yardley got pulled over by some asshole, racist—

“Going the other way and passing me now.” He chuckled. “I’m a very boring driver who drives a very boring SUV who never speeds.”

Ah. So he’d read my mind. I hated that we even had to think about it, frankly.

“I’ll get the lay of the land and call you in the morning.”

“Right.”

“Are you going to be okay until then? I’m serious about turning around. I mean, you could always come and stay at my—”

“Really?”

“Sure.” He said the word slowly. “My place is very boring, Johnnie.”

“Yes, but it’s nothere. It still feels like she’s you know, going to leap out of the closet or something.” Perhaps an exaggeration, but the clutter she’d brought in here was in a box by the front door. If I wasn’t environmentally oriented, I’d just haul the thing down to the dumpster and leave it there.

“I’m making a right on East 12th and I’ll loop back around. Be in the lobby of your condo in twelve minutes.”

“That’s weirdly specific.”

“I’m just looking at how long we’ve been conversing and counting backward. I can do math while driving, I’ll have you know.”

“Yeah, okay. Uh…thanks.”

“My pleasure. Fair warning—I’m a grump before my first cup of coffee.” He cut the line.

I made a beeline to my bedroom where I grabbed a duffel bag. Without overthinking things, I packed enough clothes for two nights. Because, fuck, I didn’t want to be here this weekend—especially if shit was raining down.

Eleven minutes later, I was down in the lobby.

Yardley pulled up.

I sprinted out and hopped into his front seat.

Once I had my seatbelt secured, he pulled back onto the street. “Do you need me to stop anywhere?”

“Like for what?” I wracked my brains.

“I have no idea—which is why I’m asking. There’s a 7-11 a few blocks from my house.”

“Well, I packed condoms. I always pack condoms.”

“Did you just…” He sputter-laughed. “I did not need to know that.”

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