Midnight Run

Chapter Sixteen

Even though talking to Nora about PB had given him a momentary shot of confidence, by the following day, his thoughts had sunk into a nasty snake pit of "what ifs", and instead of indulging in his coffee shop fantasy, Kingston decided it was time to focus on real life. He might not find a fairy tale love, but at least he'd dedicate himself to the things he could control, namely work and running.

He doubled down at the office, working faster than he needed to, and at the next staff meeting, he was surprised when his boss singled him out by giving him some real responsibilities. No more errand boy, he thought with a smile as he shook Mr. Fitz's hand after the meeting.

Deciding to add to his winning streak, he registered early for the half marathon, and renewed his focus at the midnight runs. Nora was still there, and he was still more aware of her presence than he cared to admit, even to himself, but Kingston kept away from her at night, and he avoided the coffee shop during the day.

It should have been lonely, with nothing but work and running to fill his time anymore, but Kingston made good on his promise to Raye to stay in touch more, and most every evening, he called and chatted with his nephews. Sometimes his sister wanted to talk, but most of the time, she answered his questions with monosyllables before passing the phone off to the boys. Kingston wished she'd confide in him about the divorce proceedings, but he didn't want to push her. She'll tell me in her own time, I guess, he reasoned. But he was worried about his big sister, and that Friday, he booked a last-minute flight back to Texas for the weekend.

Rachel met him at the airport with the boys, and Shelton launched himself at Kingston with force that surprised him. Picking him up, Kingston gave him a tight squeeze before turning to his sister.

"How're you?" He asked, draping one arm over her shoulders while still holding onto Shelton with his other hand.

She shrugged, and Kingston realized how tired she looked. "Good enough," she said. "Glad to see you, that's for sure."

Blake, who had been hiding his face against his mother's knees, peeped up at Kingston. "Did you bring us anything from New York?"

Kingston laughed. "Cut right to the chase, boy. I'm glad to see you, too."

Blake hid his face again, and Rachel shook her head. "Greedy little monster."

Kingston smiled. "I don't mind." He dropped his hand to ruffle Blake's hair. "There might be some surprises in my bag, but you'll have to wait until we're back to your house to find out."

They left the airport, Kingston still carrying Shelton and dragging his black roller bag behind them, and Kingston took a deep breath once they got outside. "Ah, nothing like air that won't freeze your lungs."

His nephews giggled at him, and Rachel gave him a small smile. "One more reason I won't be heading to New York any time soon," she said as she unlocked her minivan and got Blake situated in his booster seat.

Kingston deposited his nephew and his bag in the back, and then he grabbed the keys from Rachel. "Let me drive. I've missed it."

"If you crash my car, King, you better be ready to buy me a new one."

He rolled his eyes as he adjusted the driver's seat to accommodate his long legs. "I haven't crashed any cars in over a decade."

"Did you hurt yourself?" Shelton piped up from the backseat, and Kingston glanced in the rearview mirror at his nephew's wide eyes.

"No," he said slowly, "but your mom nearly killed me."

She shook her head, but she was smiling. "I had every right! My first break home from college, and I come home from a night out with my friends to find a crumpled hunk of metal that used to be my car parked on the curb, and you sitting on the hood waiting for me."

He laughed, steering the van into the thick traffic outside the airport. "If looks could kill, I'd be a dead man more times than I care to count." He looked up at the rearview mirror. "Don't ever take anything of your brother's without asking permission first. Roger that, buddy?"

Shelton nodded solemnly, and Kingston drove back to Rachel's house, cheerfully swapping stories with his sister and doing his best to make her laugh. He almost succeeded, too.