Page 59 of Traces Of You

“Back to work,” Lexi said, laughing, saluting Clay with her tongue to the side of her mouth. “While you guys get lunch. Talk about not fair.”

“You get a lunch break soon,” Clay said. “Don’t whine.”

Lexi’s smile dropped immediately.

“She’s got a thing for you,” Ford said to his brother.

“Lexi? No,” Clay said. “Not even close.”

“Dude, she’s always picking on you. Shoving at you. Cracking jokes like now. No one does that with their boss.”

“She does the same to you,” Clay said. “She’s like a sister to me. If that. I don’t know. She’s one of the guys.”

“I don’t think you see what is in front of your face.”

“Seriously, dude. I think you’re the one too lost at what is in front of you to see everything else around you right now. It’s never been a problem in the past.”

“And it won’t be now either.” He went to Reenie who walked into a small conference area. “Let me help you.”

“I’ve got it,” she said. “I didn’t know you’d be here today.”

Her head was down. She wasn’t making eye contact as she pulled out the plate of sandwiches and took the wrapping off it.

He grabbed the bowl of potato salad that his mother made and did the same.

There was a bag of chips with it and several cookies.

“My mother is feeding an army here and not her boys.”

“She just asked me to put together sandwiches and fill this platter. Sorry, that’s on me. I wasn’t sure what ‘fill the platter’ meant.”

“They will all get eaten.” The tray was stacked two high with sandwiches cut in half. Turkey and ham loaded with cheese, tomato and lettuce with mustard and mayo on the side.

“I thought it was for everyone working today and I’ve heard there are at least ten on shift at once, but then I noticed the bowl of potato salad wasn’t as much.”

“She was feeding her boys,” he said. He dropped his head next to hers. She still wasn’t looking at him. “Everything okay? How are you doing?”

He hadn’t seen her since he left on Tuesday night. They’d sat on her couch as he’d held her. It felt like twenty years ago all over again. The feeling of them being one when she was in his arms.

He hadn’t wanted to let her go.

She’d been so drained mentally and emotionally that her eyes shut and she’d drifted to sleep.

He didn’t wake her and let her nap.

When she woke forty minutes later in his arms, mortification washed over her, and she apologized profusely.

He’d laughed and told her he enjoyed holding her. That he would have done it all night and didn’t want to leave.

They both were silent after his admission. Her face was red, arousal in her eyes that she wasn’t voicing, but he saw it.

He called bullshit on his brother’s comment that he couldn’t see what was around him. He saw it all and always would.

“I’m fine. Busy today. I should get back.”

It was shy of noon. He’d have to head back soon but wanted to talk with his brother and father first. At least he got a chance to see Reenie. He’d have to thank his mother for sending her out with the food.

He reached for her hand and put it in his much larger one. “Try not to work too hard.”