Darkly (Follow Me 4)

She lifts her eyebrows. “I didn’t sign up for this.”

I laugh. I really, really laugh. The things she says… “You did, though. You wanted to date, Skye. This is what dating me is like.” I thrust my phone back in my pocket. “In fact, I’m on my way to do some charity work. Why don’t you join me?”

“You do charity work?”

“Does that surprise you?”

“No.”

Right. Her eyebrows nearly shooting off her forehead gives her away. But why would this surprise her?

“I give a lot of money to charity,” I say, “but there’s no substitute for diving in and getting your hands dirty.”

She looks down at her work clothes. “I’m not really dressed to get my hands dirty.”

“Just an expression, Skye. Though I do help with a community garden in my old neighborhood, that’s not what I’m doing today.”

“Yeah? What are you doing today?”

“You mean ‘what are we doing today?’”

She smiles. “Okay, what are we doing today?”

“Wait and see.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

I remain mum about the plans while we finish our lunch. Once we leave the restaurant, Christopher picks us up and drives us to a food pantry in South Boston.

I know the place well.

My mother brought Ben and me to this place when I was a little boy, but I don’t advertise that fact.

“I come here once a week for an hour and hand out food,” I tell Skye. “Let’s go.”

We exit the car and walk past the line of people waiting and into the building.

Several people rush to greet me.

“Nice to see you, Mr. Black,” Denny, a young man who volunteers often, says.

I wave and give him a pat on the back.

“Braden!” Cheryl, who runs the place, grabs my hand. “I see you’ve brought a friend.”

“Cheryl, this is Skye.”

Cheryl holds out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Skye.”

“Cheryl’s an old friend,” I say. “We used to be neighbors.”

“When he was just a little guy,” Cheryl says. “We’re all so proud of his success.”

Skye’s good. She hides her shock well from Cheryl, but I can still see it. I’m connected to this woman in a way that’s new to me, hypersensitive to her every reaction.

This time, it’s not as frightening as it was when I first made the realization. It’s more enlightening. Makes my chest tighten.

“You all had a hand in it,” I say to Cheryl.