Chapter 30

Rainey

The next morning, the sound of Tanner calling for me woke me from a dead sleep. Years after he was born, I always swore I heard him calling me in the middle of the night even when he was in his bed, fast asleep.

I sat up, and my heart was racing. Then I felt it. A throbbing pain radiated in the front of my forehead, deep inside my brain.

I glanced at the clock. It was a few minutes before my alarm.

I groaned and pressed the heels of my hands against my head. I was never drinking again. The beers should have been enough, but Tessa insisted we had shots too.

“Mommy!” Tanner cried.

“Coming!” I called back. I rolled off the bed and realized I was still wearing the shirt from last night. My pants were crumpled pile on the floor. I wasn’t sure what was wrong with Tanner, so I threw on my robe and jogged out to the hallway toward his room.

“What’s going on, honey?” I asked, coming into his room. The walls tilted at a strange angle, and I grabbed onto the dresser to steady myself. It was still dark outside, and in the room, so I hoped Tanner didn’t notice his mother was slightly hungover.

“My throat hurts,” he said. His voice was hoarse. I touched his forehead, and he felt a little warm.

“Okay, sit up,” I said, propping his pillows behind him. “I'm going to go get you some water and take your temperature.”

“Can you tuck me in before you go?”

He snuggled his body deeper into the bed, and I tucked his blanket tight around his body. I kissed his forehead.

I went into the kitchen and poured a cup of cool water into a glass. I took two aspirin and washed it down with the water. I got one of his favorite plastic silly straws and put it inside the glass, hoping that might improve his mood or at least make him smile. I found the thermometer from the bathroom cabinet and went back to his room.

He was already drifting off, and I had to wake him again gently.

I held the glass while he sipped the water and he winced with each pull from the straw.

When he finished, he looked up at me with doe eyes. “I don't think I can go to school today.”

I pushed his soft hair off of forehead and took his temperature. It was a little high but not enough for me to call the doctor.

“You don't have to go to school,” I said. “I want you to sleep as much as you can today. No toys or television until later. Got it?”

“Yeah.” His little hand poked out from the blankets and grabbed onto my fingers. “Can you stay home with me?”

I was lucky that Tanner was a kid who rarely got sick, but when he was, I hated to leave him.

I debated on texting Michael to tell him I wasn't coming in, but I wanted to uphold my need to be professional with him and talk face to face instead.

I got Tanner comfortable again and made two phone calls.

The first was to his school, leaving a message letting them know he was sick today.

And the second was to Michael. Since it was still early, I hoped that it would go to voicemail. But when he picked up on the second ring I knew my luck had run out.

“Rainey? Is everything okay?” he asked.

I couldn't tell him my son was sick since he had no idea I had one. So I had to lie about feeling unwell. Technically I felt like crap from drinking and going to bed much later than I normally did, so I played it up.

“I woke up with a terrible sore throat this morning, and I have a temperature. I'm going to stay home today to rest.”

There was a long pause on the other end. I looked at my phone to make sure I didn't drop the call.

“Michael?”

“That's disappointing to hear. You seemed fine last night on your date. Perhaps you had too much to drink?”

I bit my tongue. The night came back to me in bits and pieces. I remembered seeing Natalia there with Michael and his brother. I could have thrown that same remark at him.

“I wasn't on a date, and this is unrelated to drinking.” Not that it was any of his business. “Do you want me to infect everyone in the office?”

“No, I suppose not. I hope you feel better soon. Keep your phone nearby in case I need you.”

“Sure thing, bye.”

He hung up without another word, and I grumbled at the phone. He'd clearly seen through my lie but for the wrong reason. Why did he assume I had a man in my life? Well technically I had a little man, but neither instances were any of his business.

I checked on Tanner again, and he was already asleep. I closed his door and shuffled into my bedroom. I plopped onto the corner of the bed and texted Mom. Letting her know I was staying home with Tanner. She promised to make soup for lunch.

I pulled off my robe and let it fall to the floor. My headache was still there, but the aspirin had taken the edge off. I wanted to be clear and present to take care of Tanner, so I went into the bathroom and downed several Dixie cups worth of water, drowning my hangover and hoping it helped with my dehydration.

I settled into bed, pulling my comforter around me in a little cocoon when my cell phone rang. I might have blamed Killian for his tendency to interrupt me at the worse moments, but it wasn’t his ring tone.

I grabbed my phone and saw Michael’s name on the screen.

I groaned. Was he going to berate me again about pretending to be sick?

“Hello?” I said into the phone with the sickest voice I could muster.

“Rainey, I hope I didn’t wake you,” Michael said.

I tried to determine if he was teasing or being serious. “No, you didn’t.” He’d only called ten minutes ago. I supposed if I was as sick as I sounded then I might have flopped back over into bed. Why was he checking up on me? “How can I help you?”

“I’m looking for the Murphy file. I can’t find it anywhere. I hope you don't mind, but I did check your desk for it.”

“I put it on your desk,” I said. Typical men always looked in one spot then claimed the search was useless.

“It’s not there. You know how immaculate I keep my desk.”

That was true. His computer and the outbox were the only items on his desk so he would have seen it. I dropped my head into my hands and closed my eyes, trying to remember. I could have sworn put it down when I finished.

I opened my eyes and glanced over at my bag across the room. The corner of the folder peeked out over the top.

Shit! I couldn’t believe I brought it home. The file must have fallen into my bag at some point. I never took work home with me. I picked a hell of a day to mess up.

“Michael, I’m sorry, the file is with me. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“It’s not a problem,” he said. And by the sound of his voice, he didn’t seem as annoyed as he was earlier. “I do need it, though. I’ll have Constantine come around, and I’ll grab it from you.”

“No!” I said quickly. Michael didn’t need to know where I lived. Ever. It was too big of a risk to expose my secret like that. And if he was somehow connected with the mob, I didn’t want him anywhere near my son. “I’ll bring them in myself.”

“But you’re sick. It’s no trouble. And I can pick up some tea or soup on the way. I’d hate for you to suffer alone.”

If I were in a different universe, I would have jumped at that chance. But not in this reality. Michael couldn’t come here.

“I uh—have to pick up some medicine anyway,” I said. “I’m actually on my way out the door.”

“Oh, okay—”

“See you soon,” I said and coughed into the phone for good measure. I hung up before he could protest anymore. I rolled over and checked the times for the train. The next one was in twenty minutes. It would be a tight fit, but I could do it.

I scrambled out of bed and searched for some clothes. I didn’t want to look like a total slob, but I had to make Michael think I was sick and out running one errand.

I shoved on a pair of leggings while calling Mom.

“Do you need something, Rainey?” Mom asked.

“I have to run into work real quick. Can you come up and watch Tanner?”

“Of course, is everything okay?”

“Yeah, I’m an idiot and took a very important file home on accident. I need to bring it in. I promise I’ll be quick.”

“Take your time. Remember, I normally watch Tanner.”

Heat flashed behind my eyes. I was so damn lucky to have a mother like her. “Thank you.”

I threw on a long sweater and shoved my feet in a pair of fuzzy boots. I checked myself in the mirror. My face was a mess. I ran to the bathroom and splashed water on my face to remove the rest of the makeup from last night. I patted dry with a towel and put on a thin layer of cover-up. I didn’t bother with mascara since I was supposed to be sick. I doubted Michael would have noticed, but Sandra had a keen eye. The cover-up would conceal my hungover gray skin. At least I hoped it would. And if it didn’t I could blame that on being sick too.

When I was satisfied with my fake-sick look, I went into the hallway and peeked into Tanner’s room. He was fast asleep. I hoped I’d be able to get to the office and back in enough time before he woke up. I already felt terrible for leaving him every day to go to work. I had to be here for his sick day. Besides, I could use a recovery day as well. And Mom’s soup sounded so good.

I closed his door as quietly as I could and sneaked into the other room.

Mom came in through the back door just as I was pulling my coat on.

“Is that what you’re wearing?” Mom asked.

“I called in sick, Mom. I have to look the part.”

She arched her eyebrow. “You certainly accomplished that.”

I kissed her cheek. “Thanks again. I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

“Don’t rush,” she said.

“I want to be here for Tanner,” I said. “He asked me to. Taking a day off is the least I can do.”

“I’m sure Michael understands.”

I chewed on my lip. Mom didn’t know I was still hiding Tanner from Michael. I suspected I’d get the same speech from her that Tessa gave to me. This wasn’t the time or the place to discuss.

“See you soon,” I said and ran out the door.