Page 77 of Forever Never
Remi high-fived her nephew. “See you guys around,” she said. He was presumably included in the “you guys” even though she only looked at her sister when she said it.
Brick caught her at the door, where she was sliding her arms into her coat.
“Can we talk?”
“Maybe some other time,” she said with a perfunctory smile that was a goddamn sucker punch to the gut.
Their tech officer was already heading out the door with his mother.
“It’s about Camille.”
That earned her attention. His entire body lit up when those green eyes finally landed on him.
“What about her?” she asked. There was a note in her voice that worried him. Something that hinted of fear. The front door opened, and a family of four wandered in, bringing an icy gust of wind with them.
He nudged her into the alcove near the restrooms so they were out of the cold and away from any prying eyes. People were used to them being close, being places together. But this time, Brick didn’t trust himself to maintain that respectful distance that reassured everyone he wasn’t interested in Remi Ford.
“I made some calls,” he said.
“To who?”
She looked so stricken he took her by the shoulders. “To a cop friend I met at a LEO conference a few years ago. He works in a precinct in Chicago. He got me an update on your friend.”
“What—what did he say?” she asked. Her muscles felt like concrete beneath his hands, and he gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze.
“He couldn’t get me much. But she’s okay. She had surgery for a collapsed lung and broken ribs. Things were touch and go for a while. But they’re expecting her to go home soon.”
“Home?” Remi repeated.
He nodded. “I’m sure you’ll hear from her once she’s recovering in her own bed.”
“Did you mention my name to your friend?” she asked, bringing shaking fingers to her lips.
“No. He didn’t get the information directly either. So there’s no connection to you.”
She blew out a breath, then nodded. “Okay,” she said. “Thanks.”
He nodded, feeling awkward now. He’d expected her to maybe collapse with relief in his arms or something along those lines. But she was practically vibrating with anxiety.
“What’s going on, Remi?” he demanded.
He watched the mask slide back into place on her pretty face. “Nothing. Thanks for the information. I’ll see you around.”
And with that, she slipped out of his grasp and through the front door where Carlos “Dead Man” Turk was waiting astride his snowmobile.
“Fuck.”
22
Between looking over her shoulder, obsessively checking her phone for any messages from Camille, and ignoring a certain burly bartending police officer, Remi officially debuted Mackinac Visits with a motley crew of thirty-plus volunteers and a roster of residents looking forward to their first visit.
At this point in the long, bleak winter, most everyone was feeling a little stir-crazy, which had led to a bigger influx of both volunteers and visit requests than any of them had expected.
Remi signed up to take the Kleckners, an adorable elderly couple who lived in a little ranch house tucked away in the woods mid-island.
Lois was a retired school teacher who’d worked with Remi’s father. Ben had worked as an engineer on the mainland for forty years before dementia complicated things. Remi hadn’t seen either of them in well over a year, but she did vividly remember Ben’s sweet tooth.
She opened the doll-sized oven and sniffed. Molasses cookies were neatly taking shape on the baking tray. She’d had to get creative, baking only a dozen at a time.
