Page 11 of Need You
“How would you know? You ever think that you were just blessed with good genes?”
“It’s just common sense. Let’s start running together.”
“As if I could keep up with you.” She took the seat across from him, held her nose, and drank. “It’s . . . not that bad.”
He didn’t say anything, just raised his brows.
“All right, it’s disgusting.” She forced down a few more sips. “Do you know what it’s like to have once been the hot chick—the one all the guys ogled—and to now look like this?” She waved her hand over her body.
“You and I don’t see the same thing. Because I still see a hot chick.”
She put down her drink and reached over the table to hug him. “Aw, you’re the best guy ever, and Lisa is such a bitch.”
“We’re not talking about her, Carrie Jo.”
“Fine. But I hope that she who shall not be named trips, falls, and cracks her head open on the next red carpet she walks down.”
Colt got to his feet. “You have a good pair of running shoes?”
“No.”
“Get a pair. I’m picking you up tomorrow morning. We’ll use the track over at Glory Junction High for your first time out. Then it’s trails.”
“I have a bad knee,” she said. “And it’s supposed to be really hot tomorrow.”
He ignored her as she continued to sputter excuses. “See you at seven.”
Colt put in a few hours doing paperwork and then dropped his uniform at the cleaners before going home. When he got there, Delaney’s Tesla was parked in the contested spot. Too tired to fight with her, he drove up the driveway and spent several minutes doing a three-point turn to get the cruiser in position in case he was called out on an emergency.
He went in his back door and found Win eating cereal at his kitchen counter. “What’s wrong with your cereal?”
“I ran out,” he said around a mouthful.
“You ever hear of a store?”
“Why, when you’ve got perfectly good cereal here? And beer.” Win pointed his spoon at Colt as he chewed.
Colt grabbed a stool next to Win at the bar. “Didn’t Mom make dinner?” She usually did something like chili or stew on a Saturday night so her sons could stop by and load up for the week.
“Uh-uh. They went to San Francisco to check out new equipment. A couple of snowmobiles, kayaks, and inflatable boats. Dad knows a guy.”
Colt laughed. As long as they were growing up Gray Garner had always “known a guy.” A guy who could get you a good deal on a car, a guy who could fix a leaky roof cheaper than anyone else, a guy who could come up with tickets for the World Series when no one else could. Colt and his brothers had turned it into a joke. Whenever something needed to be done, one of them would say, “Dad knows a guy. . . .”
“You don’t have a date tonight?” Colt used the term “date” loosely. Win was the womanizer in the family. His idea of a date was Colt’s idea of a hookup.
“Nope. TJ’s coming over to drink beer and watch TV.”
“Why wasn’t I invited?”
“You are, because we’re doing it here. Thanks for having us, by the way.” Win grinned as he stood up.
Colt shook his head but grinned back. Even though his two brothers would eat and drink him out of house and home, he enjoyed their company.
Win got the milk out of the refrigerator and added more to his cereal. “So, I heard someone hurled on you today.”
“Yeah, right after I got sucker punched.”
“Shit, no kidding? Dude, your job sucks.”
