Page 79 of Dear Mr. Brody
He ran a hand through his already messy hair. His cheeks splotched with pink stood out against the blue color of his scrubs. “Tired, long shift last night.”
“Did you hit that traffic coming in?” Anders asked as he sidled in next to Ethan, and holy God, his hair was a mess too. His tie askew.
I tried not to smile.
“I did. I’m sorry I was late I—”
“Don’t worry about it. It happens.” Anders’s face lit up with a smile as he stared down at Ethan. He wiped his thumb across Ethan’s lips, and I looked away. “As long as it doesn’t become a habit.”
“Don’t be such a hard ass,” Ethan said, and I chanced a glimpse in their direction. “Ignore him, Van. He’d never fire you. He likes you too much.”
Anders rolled his eyes and I laughed.
“Good to know, but I promise. It won’t be a habit.”
Anders pressed his lips to Ethan’s forehead. “You better get home and get some sleep. I hate these night shifts.”
“I have to start somewhere.” Ethan waved at me before taking Anders’s hand in his. He nodded his head toward the front of the office. “Walk me out?”
Anders nodded once and kissed him again.
“It was good to see you.” Ethan gave me a small wave.
“You, too.”
“I’ll be back in a second,” Anders said. “I want to go over something with you before your first meeting.”
I nodded, and as they both walked away, my phone vibrated against my desk.
I had three missed texts.
Parker: Shit. Did I offend you?
Parker: I’m sure your sister is great. I mean, she’d have to be to buy you those sweats, right?
Parker: I’m going to assume you don’t hate me. But if you want to put me out of my misery, text me when you can.
Smiling, I typed out a quick response.
Me: I don’t hate you.
Three dots popped up at the bottom of my screen.
Parker: No?
Me: Not at all. I was late for work because I was up late, not hating you, and then I got stuck in traffic.
Parker: I’m being one of those weird, needy types… who I do hate, by the way.
Me: I think your worry was reasonable. I left you hanging. But I like that you worried. Is that bad?
Parker: No. It just makes you a sadist.
I laughed and cleared my throat as Claire walked by shooting me a dirty look.
“’Morning Claire.”
She didn’t respond.