Page 46 of Missing Pieces (Men of Manhattan 3)

He turned around. "Hey. Do you want some coffee?"

"Absolutely." I slid into one of the stools at his counter.

"Milk or sugar?"

"Black is fine."

He handed me a cup.

"Where's Tyler?"

"I dropped him off at the repair shop a little while ago." He sat down in the seat next to mine.

I swallowed my sip. "Is he coming back?"

Josh laughed. "Of course. They just said it would be another hour. He should be back any minute."

"Oh, okay." I took another sip of my coffee.

"He's not going to leave without you, if that's what you're worried about." Josh smiled.

"Psh. No." I had been a little worried. For a second I had let myself think he had abandoned me in Texas.

"You know, he told me about your fight last night."

I shook my head. "I wouldn't really consider it a fight. Just a misunderstanding. It's not a big deal."

"Right, right. Wel

l, maybe you should tell him that."

I laughed. "And why is that?"

"Because he's walking around like a sad puppy."

"Maybe he deserves to be."

"Or you could cut him a break," Josh said with a smile. "He's been through more than you probably realize."

I wanted to take this opportunity to learn about Tyler from his friend. It was probably wrong, but I couldn't resist. "You mean because of Penny?"

Josh shrugged. "Yeah that. And other stuff."

"What kind of other stuff?"

Josh got up and opened the fridge. "I don't know. The accident he was in messed him up pretty bad. Do you want some cereal or something?"

"What accident?"

"You should really be asking him about this stuff. How about a bagel?"

"Yeah, a bagel is fine." My head was spinning. What kind of accident? "How long have you two known each other?"

"Since freshman year of college. We rushed the same frat. We've been friends ever since."

"So, you know Penny?"

"Yeah. I know her." He popped a bagel in the toaster and leaned against the counter on his elbows.

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