Page 91 of Missing Pieces (Men of Manhattan 3)

I found Penny's name in my contacts list, clicked on it, and stared back out at the water. I was a little surprised to hear her answer immediately. It was pretty late on the east coast.

"Hey, Tyler."

"Hey. I heard he woke up."

"Yeah."

It was strange. Her voice used to make me smile. Now it just made me miss Hails even more. I tried to clear my thoughts. "How is he doing?" I asked.

"Good. He's a lot better today than he was yesterday. And I think they're going to discharge him for his birthday."

"And how are you holding up?" Be good. Let me be able to let go.

"Better now that he's awake."

I let a breath I didn't realize I was holding escape. She's good. "The cops stopped calling me. I saw what happened on the news. How Isabella broke into your house. Are you okay?"

"I'm good. And yeah, they arrested her. They shouldn't be bothering you anymore."

"Thanks, Penny."

"How are you?"

"Better. Actually, I met someone." I wasn't sure why I said that. Penny didn't need to know about my life anymore. But maybe a part of me didn't want her to be thinking about me anymore either. We were better off without each other in our lives. I could feel the distance between us, and it was actually comforting.

"Really?"

I laughed. "Don't sound so surprised."

"I'm not. Any girl would be lucky to be with you." She sounded sincere but there was something sad in her voice.

This wasn't the time to throw my happiness in her face. Her husband was lying in a hospital bed. She was probably staring at him as we spoke. "Oh, no, we're not dating or anything. She actually just needed a ride to the west coast. We're just friends." I was pretty sure my lie wasn't convincing at all. Because just thinking about Hailey made me smile. Besides, Penny and I were too good of friends. She could tell when I wasn't telling the truth.

"What's her name?"

Yup, she didn't believe me. "Hailey."

"So you're on a road trip with a relative stranger. Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

I laughed again. Not anymore. "No, just learning how to live again."

"You're having fun then?" She sounded hopeful.

"Yeah. I'm having lots of fun." There was no reason to tell her what I was about to do. There was really no reason why she would care anyway.

"Good," Penny said.

"This was exactly what I needed." Hailey was exactly what I needed. I closed my eyes and pictured Hailey. Hailey was right. The best things in life weren't seen, they were felt by the heart. And if I really concentrated, it almost felt like she was beside me.

"Hailey or the trip?"

I smiled to myself. "Both, maybe. I should go, Penny." My time was running out.

"When do you think you're coming back?"

"I don't know. I'll stay in touch, though. Tell James I said I hope he makes a speedy recovery."

"I will. And don't pick up any scary hitchhikers."

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