Page 33 of Never Forget
He's dead because of me.
And now Jamie was packing up what was left of him, and I was standing beside her like I deserved to be there.
When she finished, she closed the door and stood there for a moment with her hand resting on the metal.
"Thank you," she said.
I nodded. The words I should have said stayed locked behind my teeth.
"Come on," I said instead. "I'll walk you out."
I carried the box to her car and set it in the trunk beside a stack of folders and Rosie’s car seat.
Jamie closed the trunk and turned to face me. The wind caught her hair, blowing a strand across her face. She tucked it behind her ear.
"I'm off on Thursday," I said. "I could come by. See you and Rosie."
Something shifted in her expression. Softened. "Rosie would like that."
She slipped into the driver's seat and pulled the door closed. I stepped back onto the sidewalk and watched her pull out of the lot.
Her car turned the corner and disappeared.
I stood there longer than I needed to.
Amber's car was in the driveway when I pulled in.
I sat in my truck for a moment, staring at it.
The key. I needed to get that damn key back.
But to do that, I had to end things with her properly, and Amber wasn't going to let me go without a fight.
I'd been avoiding her. I didn't have the energy to deal with her while I was still trying to hold myself together. She'd make it a thing. She'd cry. She'd push back. She'd tell me I was stressed, that I didn't mean it, that we just needed to get through this rough patch together. And I couldn't handle that on top of everything else.
So I'd kept my distance. Let her texts go unanswered for hours. Made excuses when she wanted to come over. But Amber kept showing up anyway.
The other day, she'd been in a fender bender. Nothing serious. She was fine, the other driver was fine, both cars barely scratched. But she'd called 911, and Station 33 happened to respond. Afterward, she'd insisted on buying food for the whole crew as a thank you. I couldn't exactly say no in front of everyone.
She had a way of inserting herself into my life in ways that were hard to refuse.
This had to stop.
I got out of the truck and walked inside.
Amber was in the living room. Her face brightened when I walked in.
"There you are." She crossed the room and kissed me. "I was starting to think I'd miss you."
"We need to talk."
Her smile flickered. "Will it take long? I only stopped by to see you before I left. The girls will be here any minute."
Right. Hilton Head. Amber had mentioned it last week after she bought the station takeout. She'd tried to convince me to go with her. Said it might take my mind off things. Like a beach trip with her friends was going to fix the hole Jack left behind.
"This can't wait, Amber."
Something shifted in her eyes. A flicker of recognition she quickly buried beneath a bright smile.
