Page 14

“Same ole, same ole. Put bad guys away, helped people. Same shit, different day.” I shrug. Some days are better than others. Being an officer isn’t easy. Some stuff we see, a normal person wouldn’t be able to cope with. There are times we can save people, and sometimes we aren’t able to. It’s not a job for everyone.
“Hm. Okay. Well, what do you want to watch? We have some movies we can put on. Oh! Christmas movies! It is almost December, so we might as well get a head start.” Her eyes sparkle with her excitement. Kat loves this time of the year. She’s already strung up Christmas lights everywhere, and she told me yesterday that the tree is getting put up in the next couple days.
“Do you have Christmas Vacation?”
“Of course I do!” She bounces on the couch as she works to pull up the movie.
It’s one of my favorite movies. I remember watching it with my folks during the holidays. We would put up the tree and decorate the inside of the house. I’m not going back to Florida this year for Christmas, though. This is going to be my first holiday I won’t spend with them. The idea that I won’t be there actually sours my mood a bit, but I try to keep to together for Kat’s sake.
As if she can sense a shift in my mood, she turns to me. Kat frowns and puts down her bowl. “Everything ok, Bryce?” She pauses the movie.
“Yeah, uh, the movie just got me thinking. About my parents. Nothing special,” I look down at the coffee table, trying to avoid her eyes. My food doesn’t really interest me anymore.
“You know, you haven’t told me about your parents. Are you going to see them for Thanksgiving at least?” She sits with her knees pulled up. I notice she does this whenever she’s unsure about something. It’s almost like a defense mechanism.
“No. I mean, it’s next week. So, I’ll probably just pick up a shift at work. I probably won’t go home for Christmas either.” I take a sip of my water. As much as I want to go home, it just isn’t a good idea.
“What? No.” She shakes her head. Her knees come down and there’s a sudden shift in her attitude. “Look, come to my parents’ place for Thanksgiving.”
“No, I don’t want to impose or make anyone uncomfortable. You haven’t known me for that long, and I don’t want you to think you have to invite me. Really, there’s no reason to feel sorry for me. I can work.” Shaking my head, I turn away from her.
“First, you are not imposing. Second, no one will be uncomfortable. Third, I will not allow you to spend your first Thanksgiving away from your family alone. Don’t fight me on this, Bryce.” She furrows her brows, and her lips press together in a thin line.
Kat mutters to herself and picks up her phone. Her fingers fly across the screen as she texts. She bites her lip.
“What are you doing, Kat?” I say a little slower and with a little more unease. Yeah, she is definitely up to something.
She holds up a finger to tell me to wait. She continues to type before looking at me. Kat is all smiles.
“My mom said you are more than welcome to be with us for Thanksgiving. So I told her to expect you.” She gives me an enormous smile and sets her phone down.
“You don’t fight fair, do you?” I poke her in the side, earning a giggle, and I laugh at her.
“Nope. So, you’ll come to Thanksgiving dinner? Please?” She moves to sit on her knees and brings her hands together in a begging position.
“Not much choice since you since you already told your mom I’m coming. Okay, okay. I’ll go. My mom will probably be happy that I’m not spending it alone or working.” My mom is always worried about me. Now that I’m on another coast, she’s had more to worry about. She calls me more, texts me more. She misses me, and I miss her.
“Is your mom back in Florida?” Kat asks in between her bites of pasta.
“Yup. Her and my dad. Gregory and Ruth Hawthorne.”
“What do your parents do for a living? Anyone else in law enforcement?”
“No, I’m it. The only one in the family. Mom is a teacher and Dad is a real estate agent.” My family is small, and I don’t have a lot of cousins. My family also lives in different places in the United States. Maybe that’s the reason I’ve always wanted a big family.
“Any brothers or sisters?” She leans over and places her bowl on the table.
“Nope. Only child. I was a lot to handle as a kid, so I think my parents didn’t want to risk having more than they could handle.” I truly was a lot of work. They always had to keep tabs on me, or else I would get into trouble. They had me in sports and clubs, just to keep me busy. “What about you? What are your parents like? Any siblings?”
“Well, my mom, Elizabeth, is a journalist for a local paper out here. My dad, Mark, works in the trade show and convention industry, on the sales side. I have an older sister. Jennifer, who’s married and a stay-at-home mom. Oh, and she has the cutest little baby girl, Jemma.” Kat says before getting up and putting our plates in the sink. She stored the leftovers in the fridge and closed it with a light thud.
“So, we going to watch the movie or what? We talked through that entire meal.” I call out to her. Truthfully, I’m surprised she even opened up that much to me. I’m even more surprised that she’s bringing me to her family dinner for Thanksgiving.
She walks over and sits next to me, pulls the blanket off the back of the couch, and places it on our laps. Then, Kat picks up the remote and turns the movie back on.
While we watch the movie, I turn to and catch a glimpse of her beauty. She truly is stunning. I don’t think she truly knows how tempting she is. But something happened to her. Something happened that dimmed her light. Whatever that was, it keeps her in hiding. She doesn’t really like to hang around people; not unless she trusts them enough. Somehow, though, she trusts me. My lips curl up in a slight smile as a warmness spreads all over me. I have a flutter in my chest knowing she trusts me.
I am so caught up in my thoughts that I don’t act fast enough. She turns to me and catches me staring at her.