Page 39 of Flyboy
"I need—"
"What youneedis to take care of yourself and you're not. What kind of example are you setting for Penny? What happens when you collapse from exhaustion? You ever worry about that, because she does." He stepped closer, lowered his voice. "You want to know what she asked me yesterday? She asked me to adopt her because she doesn't have a father and figured the way was clear, then she wouldn't have to worry about going back to Gina or you killing yourself for her benefit."
His tone was harsh and stabbed at her with every syllable. She hadn't thought about any of that. All she'd thought about was the extra money and not seeing Jack. They'd been in the house over a week and this was maybe the fourth time they'd been in the same room. "I'm sorry. I'll explain it to her."
"You wouldn't have to explain anything if you weren't so stubborn. Let me help with the mortgage and bills."
Her back snapped straight. "No."
"C'mon, Lys, I should be putting in my share. I use the power and the water and eat the food, not to mention sleep under this roof." He waved above his head. "If you won't let me help with the house payments then at least let me put in for groceries. In fact, if I'm not contributing to any other bills, I should pay for all our groceries."
Fuck. She was too tired to argue about this. She had no idea how they should deal with living expenses, but she did know she couldn't let him put anything toward the mortgage. That was a hard limit. It needed to be hers. Hers and Penny's. There was no way she could allow anyone, even Jack, any chance of taking their home away. "Fine. Can we talk about it after dinner?"
"Will you still be awake then?" He eyed her skeptically.
Shrugging, she admitted, "Who knows? I think I've averaged four hours a night this whole week."
"When was the last time you actually slept?"
"I caught a couple of hours around midnight."
He frowned at her. "You can't keep doing this, Alyssa."
"It'll be fine after this week. They had a stomach bug go through the staff. You know how those things can be. It seems to be a forty-eight-hour thing so everyone's coming back on deck quickly. Next week they won't need me to cover as much."
"Good." He gripped her elbow. "Now let's get some food into you because I bet that's another necessity you've neglected, then you can shower and crash. You're on at Mercy-Life tomorrow, right?"
Her whole body sagged as she exhaled. "Yeah." God. At this point she didn't know how she'd survive the twenty-four-hour shift.
"Please tell me you don't have to be at the hospital on Tuesday."
"Ah…"
"Dammit, Alyssa. You can't keep this up," he growled.
"I know, but it's not going to stay like this." It wouldn't be wise to admit she'd offered to cover a nurse who had vacation time coming up. With any luck she wouldn't have to tell Jack anything. She could just write it on the board…Shit. She hadn't put the thing up yet. She'd been leaving notes stuck under a magnet on the fridge.
"Why don't I believe that?" Jack muttered as he steered her into the dining room.
A dining room with a table and eight chairs. "Hey, where'd this come from?"
"It's been here all week and it's the one we talked about," he said as he pulled out a chair and all but shoved her into it. "Mrs. A, can you serve up a plate for Lys while I get her a glass of water?"
"I can—"
"Keep your ass on that seat and eat what's put in front of you."
Alyssa leaned away from him. She'd never seen Jack angry. They'd dealt with some difficult situations at work on the odd occasion they had worked together but he'd always kept his cool. This Jack was one she didn't know how to handle. Instead of answering, she dropped her eyes and scooted her chair closer to the table.
"Here you go, dear." Mrs. Alverez placed a loaded plate in front of her. "Penny did a great job with the lasagna."
She murmured, "Thank you." Her tummy rumbled when the spicy aroma hit her nose, and the ache she'd been feeling for hours twisted into a cramp that had the air rushing from her lungs.
"Eat it while it's hot," Mrs. Alverez encouraged.
Penny sat across from her, eyes down, scowl still in place.
"You made this?" she asked, picking up her fork. "It smells amazing."
