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“You—we have so much. You don’t have to continue to do what you do, you know.”

“Yeah, I do. And it’s not about the money.”

She takes a deep breath. “I guess I could splurge and buy myself one of those fancy luxury handbags.”

“Baby, you can buy whatever the fuck you want.”

Thirty-Nine

RINA

“Mom.”

It’s whisper-shouted right by my face, waking me up from a dead sleep.

God, I hurt.

My hip has its own pulse. My face feels swollen and achy. Obviously the pain meds wore off a while ago and it’s time for more.

“Mom.” Another whisper-shout.

Tenderly, I slit one eye open and look to my right, where Charlie is leaning on the recliner, examining me.

He saw me when I got home last night, and I told him the truth, that I got hurt while I was helping a patient. It wasn’t the first time I’d been struck while on the job, but this is definitely the worst I’ve been injured.

“Hi, baby.” My voice is raspy and dry.

“Mom, you slept in the chair.”

“Yeah, the bed didn’t feel good. Are you okay? Do you need breakfast?”

“I told you not to wake her up,” Carson says from a few feet away, and Charlie presses his lips together, his eyes falling to mine, and I immediately smile at him.

“It’s okay. I shouldn’t sleep the whole day away.”

“Mom, the tooth fairy brought me five whole dollars.”

“Oh good, you can buy your own groceries now.”

Charlie smirks at that, and I notice Carson does, too, and it makes me smile.

And my mouth hurts from said smile.

“Do I need to make breakfast?” I ask.

“Nah, Dad made me oatmeal. Did you know that I love that now? It’s super good. Also, Bryson will be here at two today.”

I frown. “Buddy, I never had the chance to call his mom.”

“I did,” Carson says, and my gaze moves to his. “We got it figured out. The boys will play this afternoon, Bryson’s staying for dinner, and then we’ll take him home.”

“This is incredibly domestic for you.”

“Are you kidding? I’m a family man. Charlie and I have things handled, and we have Mildred. So all you have to do is relax and get better.”

“Yeah, Mom, just relax,” Charlie says and leans his little head on my good shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“I’m gonna be fine, I’m just sore. Kind of like that time that you fell off your bike and tweaked your elbow, remember?”