I rolled my eyes. “You think you made a big mistake?” I laughed with an evil snarl. “You only want me because we’re over. You saw me with someone else and that makes my stock go up. Otherwise, it’s not worth a crap.”
“That’s not true.” He was desperately pathetic.
“When I was standing right in front of you, you didn't want me. Now, you can’t have me so you do. I’ve got an early day tomorrow and I am going home.”
I opened my truck door and acted as if he wasn't standing there. His grace period was over as far as I was concerned.
“I love you, Breigh, and I miss you.” His brown eyes were watering and his lip quivered as if he was sincere.
Oh, he was good. He thought he knew what to say to make me feel for him, give him another chance, feel sorry for him. Breigh from a year ago maybe would have fallen for it, but not any longer.
“I loved you, Alan, but that time has passed. See, that is the thing about love… once you have been cheated on, lied to, and betrayed, it fades… You were a season in my life, a season that is over. I’ve moved on and you need to move on too.”
“I thought I could, but I can’t. When I saw you tonight…”
“I’m sorry. We’re over,” I said firmly as I stood my ground.
I started my engine and then pulled out of my parking spot, proud of what I had said. But I couldn't help to wonder if Alan was going to leave it all here in the parking lot and not start any trouble. He had been up to no good watching me, and I didn't believe for a hot minute he was here the same night just “because.” He hated going dancing, especially here.
“Is it sad to say that I actually enjoyed him being so pathetic?”
“Not at all.”
Emma was silent and let me have some time to process everything. She laid her hand on my mine and kept it there.
I was mad, but I was also sad. Alan always knew how to pull at my heartstrings. Not because of feelings I had for him at this point, but because he was a part of my life.
But then Wyatt crossed my mind, and the possibility that he was my future. That had to be something, right? It felt good to see hope, a sight I hadn't seen for a long time.
9
WYATT
In general I loved my job, but on some days, I just didn't want to deal with other people’s problems. We all had them, and you had to deal with them. With people who are victims, I got that. Every victim I spoke with gave me the drive to find the sucker who made them a victim. I remember, when I was in the academy, being told that working in this field was one of the hardest. You were the ones who were called for anything bad, over and over; you rarely saw the good. No one ever called 911 because they wanted to tell you how great their life was. Or that they got a raise or had a beautiful baby they had planned for. It messed with your psyche and made you well aware of the evil that was taking over all the good. The longer I had been at the station, the longer my aunt said I needed more church to balance out the bad.
“It will eat at you, Wyatt, and turn you to seeing only the negative in people. Don’t let that happen.”
And I wasn't going to.
Many nights spent burning the midnight oil, trying to solve case after case. Some I had the luck of solving, and putting someone away to pay for the crime. Not all though, and those were the ones I worked harder for.
As soon as I got to the bottom of the stack though, I was met with a new stack.
Today though, was a case I couldn’t get off my mind. I had a few that were like that… that just stuck in my heart, and bothered me, giving me an unsettling feeling.
The mother had supposedly died after childbirth, but things just didn't add up. She had been found dead at their house after a home delivery, unable to get to the hospital in time. The baby had been transported to the hospital by the father, which I guessed was a good thing, but something about his eyes spoke volumes to me. He spoke of his girlfriend and the way he couldn't believe this had happened. But it was dishonest. Things weren't matching up. The more I listened to him try to finagle himself and put himself in good light, the creepier I felt about him. I had always had good intuition and my warning light was blinking rapidly, and brightly.
I had gone by the hospital to see if the nurse or doctor had suspected any foul play, and instead, ended up holding the baby in his little blue blanket swaying back and forth soothing him. The nurse had handed him to me; Ashton was his name. The father had left him and was supposed to be back this evening but hadn't arrived yet.
“Do you think he is going to show back up?”
“It is hard to tell. I don't understand how anybody could leave these sweet babies. They haven't done anything except enter the world, just not fair.”
“If he doesn't show back up, can you call me on my cell? I will give you my card when I put this little guy down.”
“If you can hold him for five more minutes…”
“Sure…”
I watched as the nurse handled the other babies gently but firmly, steady and strong, completely a routine she had completed day after day.
I looked down and whispered to the baby as his glossy eyes stared up at me, “I hope your daddy comes back, little guy.”
He closed his eyes and I rocked back and
