Page 67 of Mr. Infuriating (Mister #1)

Gabe

“Bad news, buddy,” Henry said when I answered the phone late Thursday afternoon. “The part I need is on back order. They’re telling me middle to late next week at the earliest.”

Oh darn.

He added, “I’m really sorry. I checked with every place I could think of, but no one has it in stock.”

“I get it. We’re dealing with supply chain issues, too. There’s not much you can do.”

“I’ll get a hold of you as soon as I have it in my hands. Like I said, hopefully before the end of next week.”

“Sounds good.”

I hung up, pleased with myself for having bought the toddler bed and stools. It looked like my guests were going to be staying a little longer.

And I was A-okay with that.

However, I wasn’t sure how Gretchen was going to feel about it. Living out of a suitcase for another week probably wasn’t her idea of a good time, no matter how hard I tried to make her and Jake feel at home.

I decided to wait until dinner to break the news to her.

****

Gretchen

After the final bell rang, I pulled my phone from my desk drawer to check my messages and found I had three .

One from Laura, one from my mom, and one from Gabe.

As much as I wanted to read Gabe’s first, I restrained myself and went in the order they’d been received.

Laura: Girrrrl, I miss you! Can we please get together soon?

Me: I miss you, too! Yes! Let’s have dinner next week?

I was hesitant to commit to a specific day because I wasn’t sure when I could get back in my house. Fortunately, Gabe had been working on installing the cabinets, so it wouldn’t be long after I was back in my house that I’d have my kitchen, and some sense of normalcy, back.

Not that cooking in Gabe’s kitchen had been a hardship.

Laura: Let me know when!

Me: I’ll text you Monday?

Laura: Yes! Love you, miss you!

Me: Talk soon! Love you, miss you, too!

Next was my mom.

Mom: Just seeing how the kitchen is going! Is it finished yet?

Me: Not yet! I think a few more weeks.

Mom: Keep us posted! We’re excited to see it! In the meantime, if you’re in need of a sitter anytime soon… we miss our grandson and would love to have him for a night or two.

That made me smile. My parents were the best. God, Jake and I were lucky to have them in our lives.

Me: LOL I’ll see what I can do. Talk soon! Love you!

Mom: Talk soon. Love you, too!

Finally, I opened Gabe’s message.

Gabe: Do you and Jake want to go to Brayden’s game tonight? It starts at 5:30. We can grab a pizza afterwards.

Brayden had mentioned it last night and invited me to go watch him play.

Me: That sounds fun. I’ll finish up here, then go grab Jake. Do I need to bring a blanket or anything?

I knew our lacrosse field didn’t have bleachers.

Gabe: I’ll have chairs for you and Jake. Just bring yourselves.

Me: Thanks. I’ll talk to you soon! Love you!

I hit send just as I reread the message and realized what I’d written.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.