Page 302 of Manhattan Bossholes

“I’m sorry for bothering you, but I didn’t know what else to do.”

“Hey, none of that. You’re not a bother. Definitely not.” I still had no idea what was going on, but I wasn’t going to let him tear himself up over it, whatever it was. Now was the time for support. And I didn’t know how else to support him other than to go and get him. “Can you send me a pin with your location?”

“Yeah,” he sobbed. “A pin. I…I can do that.”

A moment later, a text came through with his location. “Perfect. That’s great, Jimmy. I’m on my way. Just stay put.” He agreed not to move, and I hung up, whipping around the workshop to find my house keys and my purse. I was well aware of how ironic this was—Trent breaks my heart, and now I was rushing off to rescue his little brother. But even though I might be furious with Trent for the things he’d said, Jimmy was a sweet kid who needed help, and I’d made him a promise that I’d be there for him. I wasn’t going to be someone he couldn’t trust.

I locked up the workshop and darted across the street to the neighbors’, knocking repeatedly until a woman answered.

“Hi, Myra!” I said, more out of breath than I’d realized.

“Natasha! You look frantic. Are you okay?”

I was friendly-ish with Myra and her husband, Rick. They’d commissioned a new kitchen table from me last year and had been thrilled with what I’d delivered. Hopefully, that would give me enough leeway to get away with what I was about to ask.

“I have a big favor to ask. Do you think I could borrow your car? It’s a bit of an emergency.”

“Well, sure,” Myra said, jumping into action. “Of course. Let me grab the keys.” She hurried into the house and returned with a key ring strung over her finger. “Rick just filled up on gas, so it should be good to get you wherever you need to go.”

“Thank you!” I said, already backing down the steps. “I’ll return it with a full tank! Promise.”

Myra waved me off. “Don’t worry about it.”

I unlocked the car, hopped in, and plugged Jimmy’s location into my phone, heading out of the city.

I found him on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere halfway between Princeton and New York. He didn’t even have a jacket on. Jimmy, what the hell were you thinking?

I pulled over on the shoulder where he was sitting and popped the passenger door open for him. Jimmy scrambled to his feet and climbed into the car, holding his hands out to the vents, soaking in the heat.

“Holy shit,” I said, noting the shiner on his cheek. I took him by the chin to inspect the damage. “What happened?”

He winced at my touch, and I released him. “I needed a lift to the city, to get to the hospital for Nana Dee.”

“Wait…what? Dee’s in the hospital? When did this happen?”

“Not long ago,” Jimmy said. “She collapsed. You didn’t know?”

I shook my head, getting back on track. “That doesn’t explain why you look like you’ve just stepped out of a boxing ring.”

Jimmy’s face screwed up, on the verge of tears. I patted his arm. “It was so last second, and I couldn’t arrange any sort of ride with a friend, and I figured waiting around for someone to come out here to get me then drive me all the way back to the city would take too long.”

“So?”

“So…I tried to hitch a ride to New York.”

“God, Jimmy! You couldn’t just get an Uber?”

“My score’s really low,” he mumbled. “After I partied a little too hard and got sick in an Uber a couple of times. But I figured hitching a ride is not that different, you know? And the guy seemed nice enough, at first. But after he drove me partway, he beat me up and stole my wallet before kicking me out of the car.”

“What!” I massaged my eyes. This was so ridiculous I almost didn’t believe it. Except Jimmy was sitting next to me, a nasty bruise darkening on his cheek. “Did you at least tell your brother? And does he know you’re okay?”

“I was too embarrassed to call Trent after it happened. He’s already got enough on his mind, looking after Nana Dee. He shouldn’t have to put up with my BS. Like who the hell gets jumped nowadays? I’m such an idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot,” I assured him. “You were the victim of a crime. We have to file a police report.” God, too much was happening right now.

“No, we have to get to the hospital,” Jimmy insisted. “I don’t care about that douchebag or talking to the police right now. Screw him. I’ll be fine.” He gave me a small, pained smile. “I’ve got you looking out for me, right?”

“You’ve got me,” I agreed, starting the car and making a U-turn, heading back to New York. “God, I can’t believe Dee collapsed. Do you know how bad it is?”