Page 75 of Ozzie

I stare at my phone,but Ozzie hasn’t responded to any of my texts. It’s been two hours, and I have no idea where he went. Durango locked himself in his office, and he hasn’t come out since. That leaves me stuck here at my desk. I’ve been too caught up in my own thoughts to get any work done. Fortunately, I don’t have too much. Reed has lightened my workload since I was shot. Even though it doesn’t affect my ability to use my computer, I still appreciate his concern.

Reed has basic concern for me, so why doesn’t my cousin? The longer I sit here, the more worried I am about Ozzie and the angrier I get with Durango. Finally, my anger wins, and I text my cousin.

Piper:Since you locked yourself in your office, does that mean I get to starve out here? Or should I go get my own lunch?

It’s petty, but if it gets him out of his office, it’s worth it. We need to talk.

“Hey, Piper.”

I glance up to see Axel staring at me. “Hi, how can I help you?”

He scratches the back of his neck, glancing anywhere but at me. “I, uh, I’m going to go get some food for you and Durango. What would you like?”

My brows practically shoot off my face in shock. “He asked you to get us lunch?”

Axel nods. “Figured I’d help you guys out.”

I stand up and walk around my desk. “What would help is if my pig-headed cousin would come out here and actually talk to me.”

Axel blinks several times as he looks at me, then he glances away. “Yeah, Durango can be stubborn. But you guys live together, so he can’t avoid you forever.”

His words stop me. I was about to storm down the hall and pound on his door. But Axel is right. After we leave here, he will have to talk to me. And it should be somewhere private. Durango is probably worried about what Reed will do when he finds out he punched Ozzie.

“You’re right. I need to be patient.”

He nods. “And what would you like for lunch?”

I think for a moment, then I smile. There’s a vegan restaurant that I absolutely love and Durango can’t stand. “Can you get me a large superfoods salad from the vegan restaurant two blocks over?”

Axel grins. He knows what I’m doing. We all heard Durango rant about the place a couple of months back.

“Sounds good. They have a soup I love. I’ll get Durango some too.”

A couple hours after lunch, Ozzie finally responds to my texts to let me know he’s fine and needs some time to figure out what to do. I wish he were here and we could figure it out together. But I have to respect that he needs space to work things out. Apparently, my cousin needs to be treated with kid gloves at this point.

Speaking of Durango, he didn’t complain about lunch. Axel brought him the same soup he ordered. Maybe he’s finally opening up to new culinary experiences.

“Ready to go?” Durango asks.

It’s the first time I’ve seen him since what happened earlier. I glance at his hand. His knuckles are bruised. He notices I’m staring so he shoves it into his pocket.

“Okay.” I grab my things and follow him out the door.

His eyes are everywhere, looking for John, I’m certain. He opens the door of his car for me, and I get in. Then he gets in on the other side and glances at me.

“You seem to be doing good without the cane.”

“It’s been over two weeks. I don’t need a cane. I’m fine.”

He pulls out into traffic. “I was worried running on the side of the road in Montana would set you back.”

“It didn’t.”

For the rest of the drive home, he remains silent. I have so many questions and things I want to say, but I am afraid if I say anything in the car, he’ll come home and lock himself in his bedroom. Instead, he goes into the kitchen, grabs a beer, and then sits at the kitchen table.

I sit across from him and finally bring up what’s been bothering me all day. “Who’s Willow?”

After he drinks half his beer, he leans back. “You don’t remember her?”

---