Page 79 of 'Til All the Seas Run Dry

“Well,” Callum coughed into his fist, “I hadnae gotten that far. I thought we would eat and see what the night brought next.”

Jory smiled and waggled an eyebrow. “But then the night brought Robbie.”

Callum sighed and took a sip of his elk blood. “Aye. Then the night brought Robbie.”

“And Walter!” Robbie said cheerfully as he poured the remaining sauce into a glass storage container. Walter glared at Callum with his tiny, bead-black eyes.

Callum turned to Robbie. “Why do you have Walter with you anyway?”

Robbie looked up. “Magda asked me to watch him for a few weeks. She said she thinks he’ll be good for me.”

“Good how?” Callum couldn’t help but ask.

Robbie shrugged. “Who knows? But if I’ve learned anything, it’s that when Magda tells you to do something, you do it.”

Walter flitted off of the slice of bread and flew in a bumbling, bouncing pattern to land on Robbie’s shoulder.

“I don’t know,” Robbie continued. “I’ve been feeling a little anxious lately? Or… not anxious, just… off? Magda thought he would be helpful.”

“You didnae tell me you’re feeling off,” Callum said, leaning in, and Robbie shrugged a shoulder.

“You’ve been preoccupied.”

That was true, but it didn’t make Callum feel any better. That wasn’t being a good friend.

“Has Esther come around to the idea of taking over the store yet?” Robbie asked, washing the big pasta pot now.

Jory sighed, twisting her napkin nervously, deliberately avoiding eye contact with Callum. He didn’t like that.

“She’s mad, I think. And scared. She says she doesn’t know the first thing about running a business. I told her that I didn’t either when I first started. Besides, the store basically runs itself at this point as long as she follows the plan.”

“She’ll have help too,” Robbie said, leaning against the counter as he dried the pot. “I’ll be here.”

“You’re staying?” Jory asked. “I thought you’d head for home before too long.”

“Don’t really have one,” he said with a small shrug of his shoulder that sent Walter bouncing once.

“But I thought Savannah was?—”

“I was in Savannah for a little while. Couch-surfing mostly. Met Cal and then went west. I haven’t had a place that’s mine in a long time.”

“Why not?”

“Haven’t wanted one. Didn’t like being by myself in one place too long anyway.”

Callum understood that all too well. How many cities had he lived in? Long enough to get clubs off the ground and profitable before moving on to the next place, never staying anywhere long enough for it to really be home. Before Savannah, it had been Chicago, and before that, Austin. He had told himself that he was lonely because he never stayed in one place long enough to make connections, but perhaps the truth was that he never stayed in one place for too long because if it kept moving, he could make himself believe that he was alone by choice. Maybe that’s what had drawn him to Robbie. Maybe he’d seen something of himself in him.

But if he was really honest with himself, he’d kept moving because staying in one place too long had made him miss Jory too much. He’d never made himself at home because home was where she was and she was dead.

Except she hadn’t been. She’d been alive the whole time. Maybe they’d just missed each other more than once. Either way, they’d found each other now, and that couldn’t be for nothing. It couldn’t be. He didn’t like hearing her talk about Esther taking over the store because she would only be doing that if Jory left for good. But if he could go with her, if he could convince her to let him…

Robbie returned to the table with his water bottle. It was stainless steel and covered with stickers. He took a long sip.

“Oh!” Jory said, leaning toward him and pointing to one of the stickers. “You know Carry Out?”

“Oh my god, Jory. I love Carry Out. They’re one of my favorite bands.”

“Me too!”