Page 3 of Reagan

“I don’t want you to work.”She said that she had to, as she didn’t have any money.“I have money.You should let me pay you to stay home.”

“We’ve been through this before.I need to work, or I’ll go crazy at home all the time.”She also needed to work for the money, but Robin wouldn’t understand that.She had millions of dollars from her marriage that had ended with her husband’s death five years ago.“I need to work for the insurance as well.I’ve told you this before.”

“I have lots of money that I don’t know what to do with.”She wanted to tell her to get a life, but didn’t.That was another taboo subject.“If I keep seeing my doctor three times a week, I’m going to be as broke as you are.Isn’t that funny?”

“No, I don’t think it is.”She was finished with her tacos and was ready to leave.Robin had a smile on her face that she knew wouldn’t bode well for her.“What are you thinking right now?”

“That when Davy had his car accident, he made me rich.I could make you rich, too, if you’d just let me.We could live in my big house together and be roomies.That would make my depression less harsh, and you want that, don’t you?”She said that she would love for her depression to be less, but she didn’t think that moving in together would solve that.“Why not?We get along really well.”

“Not really.”She pouted, and she wanted to smack the shit right out of her.But she wouldn’t.Because it would make her feel better didn’t mean that it would, Robin.It surprised her that she thought of that often when dealing with her.“We get along when we don’t see each other every day.Mine might not be as bad as yours is, but I have depression as well, and living with you in your big house would make me crazy.You don’t want that, do you?”

“You make me so angry at times.”She didn’t say a word.Robin’s anger could morph into full-blown anger at any time, and she didn’t have time to deal with her today.“I’m sorry.But I want you to live with me so that I don’t have to see the doctor three times a week.Without you there, I might have to go up to four or five.What will you do then if you can’t see me for these little lunches?”

It was on the tip of her tongue to tell her what she’d do, but she didn’t.She was whiny right now, and that was better than angry.She started to point out that she didn’t need to see her doctor three times a week anyway; whatever would he say if she were to insist on four or five days a week?He’dprobably drop her.She would.

She was headed back to her office when she got a phone call from her.Robin wanted to meet for dinner, but that wasn’t going to be possible.After telling her the reasons that she couldn’t, Robin said that she’d hire someone to clean her house and do her laundry, but Blake told her no.She was going to do it on her own, and that would be fine.

Besides, once a day was almost more than she could stand.If they met for dinner, she’d be talking to her own therapist at least twice a week instead of once every three months.As soon as she was at her desk, she told her sister that she had to go and hung up.There would be hell to pay for doing that, but right now she needed to chill out before she had to deal with work.Laying her head on her desk, she was pissed because she forgot about her coffee.

When her timer went off, indicating it was time to get back to work, she picked up her phone, shut it off, and began working.She worked for a large firm that dealt in insurance fraud and the pressures that went with it.

However, Blake loved her job and all the things that went with it.She just hated dealing with her sister on top of everything else.Like her money and home.Her depression and her doctors.Robin saw more doctors in a week than she did in a year.

There were doctors for her depression, her allergies, as well as her weight.Robin was heavy, and the way that she ate was the reason why, but she said that it was her medications and was forever having them changed around to suit whatever problem she was having that week.She looked down at her own trim body and knew that it had to do with her not eating well, and nothing to do with her medications.Blake set to work on the file in front of her and gave up on trying to figure out her older sister.

By five, she was ready to go home.She’d walked to work this morning and was glad that the weather had held so she’d not get wet on the way home.There were several messages for her from the switchboard, but taking them home to answer seemed a great deal better than having to stay after work to answer them.Robin had called her sixteen times since lunch.

While walking home, she called Robin.She sounded all right enough, but when she figured out it was her, she went into a meltdown that would make a two-year-old jealous.Waiting for her to stop and take a breath, she unlocked her door and stepped into her house just as she was saying what had set her off today.

“He just dropped me like I was nothing to him.”She didn’t know who that could have been who was brave enough to drop her sister, but she was happy for them.“He told me that I was too needy and that I needed to get out more.I go out every day, and that doesn’t count?”

“You go to doctors’ appointments.That’s not getting out.”Another wailing cry, and she rolled her eyes.“He means for you to go shopping and have a good time.Take a cruise.Meet people other than doctors or me.”

“He just dropped me like I wasn’t paying him a great deal of money to see me.”She asked who it was that had done it.“Doctor Winder.He called me needy, and that seeing him several times a week was making both of us not see reason.See reason?What does that mean?I see him so that I can see reason just fine.”

“He did tell you that you didn’t need to see him so often.How many times did he suggest you see him, not how many times you did see him?”She said once a month.“Robin, that’s about a hundred more times a month than he wanted to see you.You should be glad that you’re down to once a month.It means that you’re progressing.”

“I am not progressing.I’ll say when I’m progressing.I’m depressed, damn it, and I want him to know that.”She was sure that he did, but said nothing.There was no talking to Robin when she was in this kind of mood.“He even had the nerve to tell me that he couldn’t recommend anyone else to see me because of my neediness.What sort of person isn’t needy when they’re depressed?”

“I don’t know, Robin.But he is a doctor, and you’re not.”That didn’t go over well either, but she’d had enough.“I have to go.You call me back when you get things figured out.I have things to do,and I’m not getting them done helping you.”

“I need more help than you’re giving me, too.”She told her that she was sorry, but she had things to do.Being firm enough sometimes helped with Robin, but then she’d pay for it later.“I want you to come and live with me.That will solve all my problems.”

“I can’t live with you, Robin.I’ve told you this before.It’s not healthy for us to be living under the same roof.”She asked her why not.“Because I can’t be there for you all the time and still have time for myself.I’ve told you this before.I have to work, and I have to have me time.You should try it sometimes.”

“I’m going to have to get me another doctor.That’s going to take me time, too.I guess you’re right.We’d be bad for each other with you having your little bit of depression.I have told you before that I’m taking the strongest medication there is for mine, didn’t I?”She told her that she had.“All right.I’ll talk to you later.It’s going to take me forever to get someone that I like and that can deal with me.I’m so depressed that I think I’ll go and take a nap.That usually makes me feel better.”

“You do that.”She hung up the phone like there was no reason for the call to go on, and Blake sat down on her couch.Picking up the pillow next to her, she screamed into it as loudly as she could.Putting it back, she did feel better, but not as great as she might with the chocolate cake and shake.Getting up, she was going to the store to get herself something chocolate right now.She didn’t care if it had big roses on it, too.She wanted some cake and was going to go and get it.

Chapter 2

Reagan closed the door to his office and got to work.He was going to get his paperwork filed if he had to stay all night to do it.He’d had such a good time with his grandda yesterday that he’d put off working until today.They’d eaten dinner together and then had gone down to the football fields to watch the players practice.It had been a hoot for them both to be able to root for their team while there.

He got one file finished and was starting on the second one when his dad reached out to him.Smiling, thinking that the two of them were getting together this weekend for the last of the season baseball games, he asked him what he wanted.

“The school nurse quit today.I’m not sure what happened, but she just packed up her things and left.Would you have time to put them on your list for call-ins if they need you?Just at the elementary school.I can take the high school and middle school ones.”He asked him how much work needed to be done.“Just when a kid gets sick or falls, you need to be there for that.Mostly, it’s to determine if they have to go home or not.I usually go with the side of sending them home if it’s more than a bump on the knee.But if you take that until the end of the year, I’ll take the bigger kids.”

“All right.”He thanked him for being dependable.“I’m always up for more work, you know that.”The two of them laughed.