Page 59 of Don't Leave Me Behind
“Clayton Traeger, did you…”
“Come in my pants like a teenager? Yeah, I might have done that.”
“Holy shit.” She flops back down onto the bed, curling up with the sheets. I want to stay and revel in the fact that I’m the one who did that to her, but the clock is ticking, and it looks like I might be late to work again.
I expect to find her on the bed when I rush out of the shower and toward the stairs. Only the bed is empty, and mygirl is waiting at the door for me with a travel mug of coffee and something wrapped up in a paper towel.
“Goddamn, you’re perfect.” I slip an arm around her back to haul her into me for another slow kiss.
She smiles, a blush painting her cheeks. “Be safe, Cowboy. I’ll be waiting for you to get home.”
Slipping into my boots, I grab the breakfast she has ready for me and head into town. I’m trying my best to wrangle my face into something passive, but my cheeks are starting to hurt from smiling so much. If I can’t get things under control, I will never hear the end of it from Mercer and Ethan.
When I arriveat the Sheriff’s office, Ethan is hanging around in the break room, talking to a few of the other dayshift guys.
“Hey.” He nods, making room for me near the coffee pot. “How you been, brother?”
“Good.” I pour myself a cup of black coffee and head back to the deputy’s room. I wonder if Mercer is hanging around there, seeing how he’s usually here in the mornings.
“You talk to Mercer recently?”
“Uh, yesterday, during shift,” I offer, surprised that he’s not somewhere in the office already.
“Something’s up with him.” Ethan leans against the cubicle wall, a scone in one hand, coffee in the other. I try to keep my face neutral, it’s bad enough I brought up that night to Mercer, telling Ethan would be much worse. Ethan is the bruiser of the family. Addy might like to pick fights, but that’s only for entertainment. Ethan enjoys kicking people’s asses, and I don’t need mine to be one of them.
“What do you mean?”
“He’s doing that thing where he fixateson something. He’s on some sort of trail, but he won’t tell me what it is. You guys running something undercover?”
“Nah, not that I know of.” A stone drops into my gut because I have a feeling, I know exactly what Mercer is looking into, and it’s not going to be good for anyone.
Kane Bros Group Chat
E-Man
My sources tell me our boy who may or may not be fucking someone came in and bought a value pack of condoms
JFC are you kidding me with this shit
Addy
Value pack huh? Got some big plans there buddy?
She didn’t have any smaller packs!
Tobes
That’s not true… you can buy singles at the counter
Merc D
First question
Why do you know that Tobes?
Second… who buys one condom?
Tobes
