Handle With Care (Shacking Up 5)

She clicks on an image from the funeral. “Dude is giving off some serious Aquaman hotness vibes. What’s he like? Please don’t tell me the altruism is a front, and he’s an actual jerk-off like Prince Charmless.”

“The jury’s still out on that. I’ll have to spend more time with him to get a better sense of what he’s like. So far, he’s grumpy and difficult, but then he’s related to Armstrong, so I’m not sure if it’s a genetic trait, or what.”

“At least he’s nice to look at. You won’t have to deal with him much, anyway, right? Since you’ll be done with that circus soon?”

“Uh, well…” I stir my coffee. “I’ll be working PR with Moorehead longer than I expected.”

“Oh my God, what fresh hell did you fall into now?”

“They extended my contract. Lots of transitions with Fredrick having passed. It’ll be fine.” I’m grateful that our food arrives, since I can’t really say much else on account of the NDA I signed.

“If you say so.” Dani closes her laptop and slips it back into her messenger bag. She’s aware of Armstrong’s reputation in the media, and she knows how tough this year has been at times, so her wariness is understandable.

“So, what about you? Working any exciting cases?”

Dani rolls her eyes. “Hardly. It’s more of the same: cheating spouses, employees stealing from work, the occasional suspected murder, which usually ends up being paranoia. People are ridiculous.”

I point a strip of bacon at her. I love all-day breakfast places. I could eat breakfast food three meals a day and be happy for life. “And that’s a fact. I was kind of hoping for something scandalous.”

“I recently worked on a case where the wife thought her husband was cheating on her, but it turned out he was a cross-dresser.”

“Was the wife relieved?”

“Seemed that way. Would’ve saved them both a lot of money and worry if they’d been honest with each other in the first place, but I’m not going to complain, since their lack of communication pays my bills.”

I raise my coffee cup. “Here’s to communication-less marriages.” It comes out with bite, mostly because my own parents went through a phase early on in their marriage where communication fell apart and the result was less than desirable.

Dani grimaces. “Sorry.”

I wave her off. “You don’t need to apologize.”

“How’s Senator Sterling doing these days? I saw him and your mom on TV the other day talking about the new hospital initiative.” She tips her head, waiting.

My heart squeezes. “He’s good, busy but good. I saw him last week for lunch. He keeps trying to get me to take up golf, so we can spend more time together.” Yoga and jogging are more my speed than golf, but I’m willing to swing a club for a few hours if it means I get time with him.

“And what about your mom?” she presses.

I know what she’s getting at. Things have been better since I started at Moorehead, but it’ll never be like it was. Still, it’s a start. “She’s good. She’s been putting a lot of time in at the neonatal unit.”

“Oh, is that abnormal for her?”

I poke at the center of my egg, watching the yolk pool and then drip down the side.

“Wren?”

“No. I think it gives her peace to be there.” When I was three, my mother gave birth to my baby sister, Robyn. She was severely premature; on top of that she had a rare genetic disorder that compromised her immune system. She only survived a few days. “She asked if I wanted to volunteer with her.”

Dani’s expression remains placid. “It might be good for you, for both of you,” she says gently.

“Maybe. I told her I’d think about it.” Like my mother, I’ve spent a lot of time volunteering in hospitals, but until now, it’s been a solitary thing for me. Going with my mom would mean facing down a lot of demons, so it’s something I have to psyche myself up for emotionally, but I know Dani’s right. It would probably go a long way toward making things better between us.

“Families are complicated, aren’t they?” Dani smiles sadly.

“They sure are.” I flick a hash brown at her. “Okay, enough of this sad BS. Tell me something good. Oh! Wait. What about that guy you met at the coffee shop the other week, did you ever see him again?”

Dani rolls her eyes. “Sure did.”

“Uh oh. What happened?”

“I ran into him a week later in the grocery store. With his wife.”

My excitement deflates like a popped balloon. “No.”

“Oh yeah. Nice, right?” Dani makes a face. “Honestly, I don’t even have time for dating since most of my evenings are spent staking out people who are screwing around on their significant others.”

“At least we have each other, right?”

“BFF’s forever.” She makes a heart with her hands and grins cheekily.