“I don’t think so.”
“Is he mad at me? Because I didn’t say thanks for the movie ticket?”
“Oh, no, Jos. He’s trying to help his grandfather more while his uncle’s out of town.”
“I hope his uncle stays away forever. Unless it means Callum doesn’t come over anymore.”
I gave a secret cheer because that was a pretty clear sign Jos liked Callum. “I know the feeling.”
“You two didn’t break up, though?”
We weren’t together, not really.We’d been inching that way, though. We’d said we weren’t fucking other people. “We’re fine, as far as I know. He’s been busy.”
Jos looked out the window, then pointed. “You should go help him with that stuff. Then you could ask him.”
Sure enough, there was Callum with his car trunk full of metal struts and slabs, gathering an awkward armful.
“The food will get cold.”
“So? It’s still good.”
I hesitated, but the temptation was too strong. “You eat yours, okay? I’ll be back.”
“Tell him I said thank you for the movie.”
“I will.” I passed him the bags. “Now eat.”
Callum was coming back out of his house for another load as I jogged up. “Hey,” I said. “Need a hand?”
He looked like he might refuse, then sighed. “Yeah, actually.”
“What is this stuff?” I juggled a bunch of pieces into a manageable bundle.
“Shelving units. Grandpa rearranged at the store, and he decided we should bring the old ones home for the basement.”
“Reasonable.” I waited till he had his load, then followed him up the front steps.
“Yeah, except Uncle Wayne has Grandpa’s truck somewhere, so I had to take them apart to fit them in my trunk, and now we have to reassemble them.” He led the way inside, and down the narrow basement steps. The Fitzpatricks’ basement was much more cluttered than mine, but no better finished. “Put the bits over here.” He lowered his bundle to the concrete floor.
I set mine next to them. “Jos says thanks for the movie, before I forget. He was worried you thought he wasn’t grateful. Where’s Wayne? Did you get to talk to him yet?”
“Who the fuck knows? And no, I didn’t.” The muscles in his jaw rippled as he clenched his teeth. “Come on, a couple more loads.”
We dragged the rest of the components down to the basement, along with a big bag of fastenings, bolts and such. Callum looked at the heap of metal and made a face. “Okay, reassembly may not be as easy as taking this shit apart.”
Before I could volunteer to help, we heard a vehicle park in the driveway, then the front door opened and closed, and firm steps crossed the floor overhead.
“Fuck. Uncle Wayne.” Callum glowered, clenched his fists, and whirled toward the stairs, charging up two at a time.
I chased after him. At the top, he turned to block me, almost knocking me down. “I need to talk with him alone.”
“Maybe I should be there.” Steam was practically coming out of Callum’s ears, and he wasn’t the most even-tempered person at the best of times. “A neutral party.”
“Neutral? I thought you’d be on my side.”
“I am! I just meant… I don’t want you in jail for punching him.”
“I won’t. Probably not. I…” He stared intently at me. “I want you to hear. A witness would be good. But you have to promise me to be a friend, not a cop. Keep quiet and don’t tell anyone about anything.”
