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  A man dressed in a business suit gave him the finger as he talked on the phone.

  “I’ll remember that finger when I’m pulling your dumb ass out of a car wreck!” He picked up the bag containing his food off the floor. “Dammit!” He had set a goal to stop cussing by the end of the year. However, it seemed lately it was more out of control than under control.

  At home, Nick put his food in the microwave to reheat. At the sink, he washed his hands. He got a glass out of the cabinet and the milk from the fridge. He smelled the milk for freshness before pouring a full glass. He hadn’t done any grocery shopping in weeks, and the milk was three days past the expiration date printed on the carton. The microwave beeped.

  With the food in front of him, he blessed his meal before eating it. He may do a lot of things Christians aren’t supposed to do, but he always gave praise to the man upstairs. He was thankful for waking up in the morning and surviving through a tough day on the job.

  Just as he put the first bite of the omelet in his mouth, a knock on the door interrupted him. “Are you freaking kidding me?” He got up from the table. “It can only be Linda. I swear she has a GPS unit tacked on my ass somewhere,” he mumbled as he walked to the door.

  He snatched open the door to find it wasn’t Linda. “Lincoln.” He didn’t know what else to say. She’d never been to his apartment before.

  “Hi, Nick. I’m sorry to drop by unexpectedly. Are you busy? If you are, I’ll leave.”

  “No, no, come on in.” He took her hand and led her inside. “I was just about to eat breakfast. Have you eaten yet?”

  Lincoln adjusted the strap of the purse on her shoulder and followed him to the kitchen. “I’m fine. You go ahead and eat.”

  Nick got a plate from the cabinet and a set of silverware from the drawer. “I got plenty to share. Excuse the mess. I haven’t gotten around to cleaning the place yet.”

  “Please, my place isn’t spotless either.” She sat down. “I know you are wondering why I’m here and how I knew where you lived.”

  He divided the omelet in half, placing a portion on her plate along with some home fries and a piece of soggy toast that had taken on too much steam from the microwave. Putting the plate in front of her, he said, “Yeah, it crossed my mind. But, it’s cool. What can I do for you?”

  She pulled her phone from her purse. “I want you to listen to this message and tell me what you think it is?”

  “Um, okay,” he said wiping his hands with a napkin first. He listened to the short inaudible sound and handed her back the phone. “What do you think it is before I tell you what I think it is?”

  She bowed her head. “I think it is Anthony making love to another woman.”

  Nick thought the same, but how could he tell her that without making her feel any worse than she did? He pushed his plate away. Somehow, it wasn’t meant for him to eat today. “Lincoln, why are you putting up with Ant’s shit? I mean, look at you. You’re pretty, intelligent and can have any man you want.”

  “I’m not putting up with him. I need more proof he is cheating on me. Before I throw everything I have with him away, I have to make sure I’m not overreacting.”

  Nick propped his elbows on the table. “I gotta feeling this is where I come into play.”

  She nodded. “I know you don’t want to get involved, but with the evidence I have, I know I’m not overreacting. Anthony blatantly lied to me the day I saw you at Red Lobster. He claimed you called in sick, and he had to cover your shift. Last week, I found pictures of this woman in his duffel bag. I’m assuming the woman in the pictures is Melanie. And, this morning I spoke to him and he claims he is helping his brother-in-law remodel his basement.”

  Nick had to keep the surprise from his face; Anthony had used him as an excuse. How could he reassure her that Anthony wasn’t cheating, when the odds were he was? With Lincoln stockpiling evidence and his name thrown in the pile of proof she had gathered, he was now in the middle of this triangle of deceit.

  Nick stuttered. “A-are you sure he said he was covering for me and not one of the other guys?”

  “Anthony specifically said you. Do you know anything about Kevin remodeling his basement?”

  “I don’t, but you can call Gwen and ask her about the basement. That should be easy enough to clear up.” He knew Anthony was doing something with a house but not Kevin’s house. It wasn’t his place to reveal that information though.

  “I can’t do that. Gwen and Melanie are best friends. She wants Melanie back in his life and me out. She doesn’t like me.”

  “Gwen is a sweetheart. I can’t see her being mean to anyone.”

  “She isn’t outright rude to me; she does it through undertones. I know her preference is to have Anthony with Melanie instead of me. And Anthony is aware of that; he just chooses to ignore that along with everything else I say to him.”

  Nick listened to her talk, but when her eyes filled with tears, he had to get up from the table. A crying woman was something he could not deal with, which was the reason he strayed away from relationships.

  Why did she come to him for help instead of Jon anyway? Everybody went to Jon with their problems. He would be able to drill into Anthony’s head what he was doing to Lincoln.

  But, for some reason Lincoln had come to him to provide the answers she sought. Nick was not a snitch. He was the lover of the group, not an instigator or a peacekeeper. His charisma brought life to the party, and his arrogance kept folks from testing him.

  He had no inhibitions when it came to him being himself. But dealing with devastated women with broken hearts was out of his realm. He didn’t want to tell her his thoughts about Anthony cheating. Hell yeah he was cheating; a blind man would pick up those clues. But, he also thought keeping the information from her would make him as guilty as Anthony.

  She had worn him down, played on his sympathy and pushed on his emotional buttons. “Okay, what do you want me to do?” He asked knowing he would regret it later.

  “I want you to find out if this woman is back in his life. If she is the reason, he is abandoning our relationship.”

  He turned the chair backward and sat down. “Here’s the deal, Lincoln. Melanie is back in town. I know for a fact Ant has seen her. I asked him what was up, and he swears they are only friends and nothing else. He claims he doesn’t have any romantic feelings for her.”

  She stood up abruptly. “You knew he was seeing her and didn’t say anything! I should have known you would stick together. Anthony is probably being hailed around the firehouse as some kind of hero. He has all the guys fascinated how he has his cake and is eating it, too. I’m a fool to believe I could trust a friend of his to be honest with me.”

  “Whoa, whoa!” He griped getting up from the chair. “You came to me! It is not my responsibility to keep tabs on Anthony or report to you what he is doing. It ain’t my business!”

  Lincoln wiped the tears from her face. “You are so right; it’s not your business! I am at fault for putting you on the spot, and it won’t happen again.” She stomped to the door and left the apartment.

  Nick knocked the chair to the floor in anger. “What the hell just happened? I get backlash from a woman I’m not even sleeping with! What kind of shit is that?”

  Chapter Six

  Lincoln banged on the front door of Regan’s house until she opened it. “Lincoln, why are you bashing in my door?” She asked with wide eyes.

  “Where is your damn husband to be?” She growled.

  “You need to calm down and tell me what’s wrong first.”

  “I want to talk to Orlando. Is he here or not?”

  Orlando came into the living room with a dumfound look on his face. “I hear my name being bellowed. What did I do now?”

  Lincoln went over to him. “You know don’t you?” she asked as she stabbed a pointed finger in his chest.

  He removed her hand. “I know what?”

  “You don’t have to cover for his lying ass anymore. I know
you, and every firefighter at Station 30, know about Anthony and that slut ex-girlfriend of his. I’m about to be family, Orlando. How could you do this to me!”

  Regan came up behind her sister and held her. “Sweetie, calm down and tell us what happened.”

  “Regan, don’t pacify me. I know the stupid code firefighters abide by. They stick together and don’t snitch. But there are some things you just can’t keep to yourself. My life is falling apart because of that damn code and none of you care.”

  “Lincoln, that’s not fair to say that about Orlando or the rest of the guys without having anything to back it up. Would you believed them if they had come to you about Anthony?”

  “I would have listened to what they had to say. I would not have felt they betrayed Anthony by telling me the truth. You have to see this my way. I’m the one made to look like the fool here.”

  Orlando dropped his head. “I wanted to tell you, Lincoln. I don’t work with Anthony on a regular basis, so I only hear bits and pieces of the story as it filters through the firehouse.”

  Her bottom lip trembled as she bit back the tears. “You hang out with him. I know Anthony can’t hold in a lot of stress. He told you about Melanie, but you kept it from me. Well, I don’t like people that think it’s okay to treat me like that. I won’t be at the wedding or have anything to do with it.”

  “Lincoln!” Regan shouted. “You can’t take this out on me and Orlando. Anthony should be man enough to tell you what is going on with him.”

  “Take up for your man, Regan. I understand you’re doing it because he is good to you and would never treat you like dog crap. But, I can’t forgive him right now. I truly felt he respected me more than that. What if I’ve caught some dreaded disease? I don’t know how long Anthony has been messing around with this woman.”

  Orlando again tried to plead his case. “Lincoln, I would never intentionally hurt you. The last time I saw Ant, I told him if he didn’t come clean, I would say something to you. He swore to me he's only helping Melanie get settled in a house and nothing more. He swears you are the only woman in his life.”

  Lincoln refused to accept Orlando’s lame excuses. His claim of working a different shift didn’t stop him from knowing what Anthony was doing on a daily. They talked on the phone and worked out together at the gym.

  “He probably does love me, but apparently he’s in love with her. She can have him; I’m done,” Lincoln said.

  Regan handed her sister a glass of water. “Drink this and take a deep breath. Sweetie, I know you're hurt, and I hate seeing you this way. However, lashing out at the wrong people is not going to solve the problem. You’re going to have to talk to Anthony.”

  Lincoln put the glass on the table. “And say what, Regan? Am I supposed to give him a chance to choose between us?”

  Regan defended herself. “I’m not saying that.”

  Lincoln’s eyes burned with fury as she looked at her sister and then at Orlando, who was leaning against the wall quietly. “Then what are you saying? This isn’t a dating show, Regan. Anthony doesn’t get to spend quality time with the both of us and decide who gets the rose in the end. I’m not the one for that.”

  Regan put her hands on her hips. “I’ve had enough of this. You aren’t exactly sure of what you want either, Lincoln. Not long ago, you were talking about cooling things off with Anthony because he was dragging his feet about making a permanent commitment to you. Did you not say you felt you were wasting your time with him?”

  Lincoln swallowed. “Yeah, but…”

  “But nothing, sister! Are you hurt because he might have figured out how you felt and decided to move on before you could dump him?”

  Her mouth dropped opened. She couldn’t believe Regan was saying this to her. “You are supposed to be on my side! Why are you taking up for him?”

  “Answer the damn question, Lincoln. You barge into my house accusing Orlando of betraying you. Do you want Anthony or not? Jesus! The two of you are adults and should be able to work it out or walk away from each other without all the damn drama.”

  Lincoln thumbed the tears away from her eyes. “You make it sound so easy. I have tried to talk to him about our relationship. He ignores my calls, or I don’t see him for days. I do love Anthony, but the voice in the back of my head is telling me to beware. I’ve always had a fear this woman would come back, and he would go back to her. Now that she is back, he is acting stranger than ever. She has to be the reason for it.”

  Regan got a box of tissue from the desk and handed it to her sister. “So, now you have to decide what to do. Do you fight for your relationship or let Anthony go?”

  Lincoln walked around the living room. “I don’t know what I want to do. If I walk away from him, in time I will get over him. The dreams of a happy life with him will fade and give way to something else.” She put her fist to her heart. “This pain, however, will be with me for a long time. I’ve asked Anthony numerous times if he was sure we belonged together, and he always assured me our age difference was not a problem and he was over Melanie.”

  They became quiet as Lincoln tried to regain her composure. Orlando’s ringing cell phone echoed in the silence. “Sorry about that,” he said as he walked into another room.

  Regan hugged her sister tightly. “I’m so sorry, Lincoln. I’m here for you whenever you need me.”

  Lincoln shuddered from the cold settling in her bones as she cried on her sister’s shoulder. Crying was not high on her list of things to do, but she had never experienced a broken heart such as this before.

  Chapter Seven

  The good day he had planned for his day off went to hell in a handbasket. Nick signaled the bartender for a refill. His head pounded from the two double shots of Jack Daniels he had drank on an empty stomach. He pushed the empty shot glass across the bar to the bartender. “Make this one a single,” he said rubbing his temples.

  “Nick, what woman has you throwing back the alcohol?” the bartender asked, refilling the glass.

  Nick held up the glass, admiring the golden hue of the liquor swirling around. “Jet, it is a woman making me drink. The sad thing about is she doesn’t belong to me but to another man.”

  “But you want her?”

  He shook his head. “Nah, I feel sorry for her. The bastard is fooling around on her and she wants my help to nail his sorry ass. The drawback is he’s a friend of mine.”

  “That’s tough. What are you going to do?”

  “Drink,” he said swallowing the contents of the glass down at once. “She’s a nice girl too. I hate to see her go through this shit.”

  “Is she pretty?”

  “She’s gorgeous,” He said smiling as he described Lincoln. “She has those beautiful, honest eyes that can make a man spill his guts. And her skin is so soft you don’t want to stop touching it. And she’s tall. I like tall women.”

  The bartender leaned on the bar. “She sounds like a knockout. Is she a blonde or a redhead? And does the carpet match the drapes?” He winked and smiled in a snarky way.

  Nick chuckled. “She’s neither. She has long silky black hair, and I’m sure the carpet matches the drapes.”

  “Ah, she’s Asian. You are the man, Nick. How old are you now?”

  “I’ll be hitting the big thirty-four next year, Jet. And she isn’t Asian either, she is African-American.”

  Jet laughed loudly. “You with a Black woman—that will be the day Hades freezes over.”

  “You don’t know me as well as you think. Yeah, I was a jerk way back when but my life has changed. I’ve learned you have to live for the moment and not regret anything when you die.”

  “Is that because of your accident?”

  Nick nodded. “Ya know, I don’t remember how long I was in a coma, but I promised God that if he gave me another chance, I would change. So far, I have. I have work yet to do, but I’m getting there.”

  “Back to this woman; is he beating on her too?”

  “Nah, I don’t th
ink it’s physical. Anyhow, she doesn’t strike me as the type to let a man hit on her. The Hathaway women I know are no pushovers. I have a feeling they would cut a man’s balls off and serve them to him for dinner before they’d let a man physically abuse them.”

  “Ouch! Anyhow, mental abuse is just as bad. But, if she is getting mistreated by a friend of yours, you should intervene.”

  “You think so?”

  “It would be the right thing to do.”

  Nick shook his head. “It’s a hard decision which shouldn’t be since I’m not that close with him. I mean I got his back when we’re battling blazes but other than that, we don’t hang out together. And the differences we’ve had in the past almost came to blows. Jet, to be honest, I couldn’t stand this man at one time.”

  Jet wiped down the surface of the bar with a damp cloth. “You’ll kick yourself in the ass if he decides to harm this woman, and you did nothing. You gotta protect her.”

  “I don’t think that will happen. Anthony is not the type to hit a woman. I agree he is fucking with her mentally though.”

  “Do something, Nick. Let her know she has a shoulder to cry on. I have customers to take care of at the other end of the bar. Are you good for now?”

  He nodded and shooed Jet away. “I’m cool. I’m waiting for a friend to talk to before I stick my big nose where it doesn’t belong.”

  “Nick, sorry it took so long to get away,” Orlando said, sliding onto the barstool. “You sounded desperate on the phone. What’s up?”

  Nick called for the bartender, who was at the other end of the bar. “Jet, get my friend a double tequila and me a beer when you get a minute.”

  Orlando asked again. “So, what’s going on?”

  “I think I got myself into something I can’t get out of, Orlando.”

  “Okay. How far along is she and are you sure the baby is yours?” Orlando joked.

  “You got jokes tonight. I’m serious. Anyhow, your soon to be sister-in-law came to me for help earlier today. I don’t know what I should do, and I kinda blew up at her.”