Page 110 of Missing Pieces (Men of Manhattan 3)

I laughed. "Thanks, asshole."

"Do you talk to your new boss with that mouth?"

"Apparently I do."

"Good enough for me. You're hired."

I laughed.

"Can you come back to Texas for a few days so I can get you all set up? Then you can work from wherever you want."

"You know what, I'm thinking I'd like to move there."

"Yeah?"

Why the hell not? "Yeah. Like you said, it'll be like we're in college again."

"Yes! This is going to be awesome. Did you want to crash here for a bit?"

"Just until I find my own place."

"Are you bringing that chick with you again? She was a firecracker. I liked her for you."

Me too. "No, Hailey and I didn't work out."

"Sorry, man. But that's even better. Now it'll really be like we're in college again. You can be my wingman."

"Sounds great." It didn't really, but it was better than the alternative: sitting alone in a motel room analyzing where everything went wrong. Because I already knew I had fucked it all up. And I already knew she'd never forgive me. She had made that perfectly clear. The best thing I could do now was respect her wishes and try my best to not lose myself again.

"When can you get here?"

"I'll be there in a few days. I was going to go visit my mom first."

"Tell Mrs. Stevens I said hi. Oh, you should get her to make those awesome brownies and then bring me some."

I laughed. "She already mentioned she was making them."

"Sweet. Okay, I gotta run. Don't you dare eat all those brownies yourself."

"I can't make any promises."

"I'll make you sleep on the floor when you get here if you do."

"Later, man."

"See ya."

A new job. A new state. I'd be okay. Right? I was trying to convince myself as I pulled back onto the highway. But the farther I drove away from Hailey, the more I felt myself unraveling.

Chapter 61

Hailey

Saturday

"He wasn't writing back because he was in jail. He didn't lie."

I stared up at the starry sky. I had given up on coding hours ago. I didn't even know the first thing about creating a website. The only place I ever felt comfort now was when I was lying beside my dad's grave. So that's what I was doing again. The groundskeeper thought I was insane. Every now and then he'd walk over and ask if he should call someone.

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