27
Libby
Like Sands Through an Hourglass
“Hey, X.” I stand at the doorway to our hotel room and lean against the frame. The door is open, the nice breeze filtering through as Gunner stands in the doorway two rooms up – Soph and Jay’s room – and talks about our next plans. “Sorry, I’m here.”
“Where are you, Lib? You never take any time off, ever. You don’t even take a dump while on shift. You hold it in until you clock out. But thenthis.” It’s like I can see him throw his hands in the air. “You get a concussion, and suddenly you take two months off work.”
“I know, X. I’m sorry. I know I’ve put you guys in a bind.”
“No, it’s not so bad. We have enough manpower, but you make me worry.” His voice lowers. “You’re okay, right? It’s against the law for me to ask if you’re at a rehab facility, but if you slipped or something, I promise, no judgment.”
“I didn’t slip! Jesus, X.” I calm my voice when Romeo pokes his head past Gunner and lifts a brow at me. “I didn’t slip. I’m strong. I’m as strong as always, I promise.”
“You know I just wanna make sure you’re okay?”
“Yes.” I lean against the doorframe until the bones between my shoulder blades click, then with a grunt, I slide down and plop to my butt. “Yes, I know. I’m okay, I promise. I’m just taking time off. Everything is okay there, right?”
“Yeah, we’re fine. I pulled Oz onto the same schedule as me. I feel like we’re a stronger team–”
“You missed him.”
He laughs. “I missed him so much. I need bro time with my best friend. Lord knows why, considering we fight more than anything else. But whatever. I missed him, pulled him onto my shift, and we’ve partnered some of the others together. Everyone is fine, and everything is covered. Your buddy Drake comes down every now and then if we need a little extra on weekends.”
“Drake.” His name alone makes me smile. “I miss him.”
“Ya know, I think he’s single, Lib. You and he could be cute together.”
“Ew, don’t do that, X. Don’t become matchmaker. You’re my chief, not my mother.”
He chuckles and sits back in an office chair until the hinges groan in protest. I’ve spent so much time with that man, in that station, that I know the very chair he’s sitting on, where he’s sitting, behind what desk, and exactly which hinges are groaning. I miss the guys too. Even if, like Oz, we fight more often than not, I still miss them. They were the family I needed when I had no others.
I’m not sure what Gunner and I are going to do, because I can’t leave my guys, and he can’t leave his. We’re going to find ourselves at an impossible crossroads soon, and it terrifies me to think of how it’s going to end.
“Sorry, Lib,” X continues, unaware of where my thoughts have run. “It was a lapse in judgment. When are you coming back?”
“I dunno. Am I out of a job when I do?”
“Nah. I’m brand loyal, and you’ve already earned your stripes. You have more than a decade in leave accumulated, so you’re still good. Your apartment is fine, too. I dropped by last night and checked in.”
“Aww, thank you. How are the babies?”
“Can you believe Jessie is a mom?” I hear the wonder in his voice. Alex Turner might not be Jess’ biological brother, but they grew up together all the same. She and her sister are regarded as everyone’s little sisters, and now one of them has already lapped Alex in the baby department. “It blows my mind when I go over and see her.”
“But they’re good?”
“Yeah, they’re great. She’s finding her rhythm, and Kane is taking care of her every need when he’s not working.”
I arch my neck and glance down the breezeway to find Gunner’s back and Romeo’s shoulder poking out of the door. “He working a lot?”
“Eh. Regular hours. He’s taking care of what needs to be taken care of, but he’s not working more than he has to. He’s with Jess as much as he can, and when he can’t be home, she brings them to us. To the station, to Checkmate, to the gym. She’s in and out when she’s feeling up to it, so we get to love on them while she takes a minute to rest. One is a little bigger than the other, but they’re both still smaller than my girl ever was.”
“How’s she doing, Chief? How’s Avery?”
“She’s good too. Still sleeping like shit. It pisses me off, because Jess says the twins are sleeping pretty well already. They’re two fuckin’ months old and sleeping. Avery is coming up on ten months, and she can’t be left alone for more than three seconds or there’s hell to pay.”
“She’s high-maintenance, like her momma.”