Page 140 of A Matter of Time

“Are you okay?”

“No,” was all he said.

“What can I do?”

“I dunno, kitten. What can you do?”

“Okay, enough with the kitten crap,” I warned him, smiling into the phone. “Just tell me. Please, Sam. Say something. Anything.”

He cleared his throat. “Okay. You can pack a bag and go to my place and wait for me. Can you do that?”

“I can do that.”

“’Cause if I could come home and you’d be there…that’d be good.”

I heard the tremor in his voice. Whatever he was looking at, standing in, was bad.

“Okay.”

“I wanted to stay with you.” His voice cracked, got very quiet. “I didn’t wanna come out.”

“’Cause you like me all warm and naked in bed with you,” I teased him.

“Yes” was all he got out, his voice hoarse. Something was eating him up.

“I’ll be there. What time are you getting off?”

“Six. Meet me there at six. I’ll get some food and⁠—”

“I’ll get it,” I told him. “You just come home.”

“Just come home?”

“Yeah. Your part’s simple.”

“Okay. I’ll see ya.”

“Bye.” I smiled.

“Wait.”

“What?”

Long silence. “Nothing.”

He wanted to say something or he wanted me to say something. “Tell me.”

“Be careful walking around, okay? Call me if you need me.”

“I will. I’ll see ya at six.”

“I left my extra set of keys on your nightstand.”

“You did?”

“I did.”

“Okay.”