Just Keep Breathing by GS Rhodes (any book recommendations txt) 📗

“What’s wrong with DC Campbell?” Liz asked. It was a question that only someone who didn’t work with DC Campbell would ask.

“He’s just…”

“He’s DC Campbell,” Zoe finished. “But we’re talking about work and that’s boring. What were you talking about before I got here?”

Liz eyed Zoe gleefully, knowing that she would have someone on her side in this and Kidd felt his stomach drop.

“I’m trying to convince Ben to go to his school reunion this week,” Liz said. “He’s saying he doesn’t want to go but not giving a real reason, so…” Liz shrugged and gestured to the two of them. “Discuss.” She went back to serving up dinner, Kidd sending daggers into the back of her head.

“Come on then,” Zoe said, turning back to him, taking a victorious sip of her cider before she carried on speaking. “What’s the reason you’re not going?”

“I…I don’t have the best memories of that school,” Kidd said. “I think, as a night, it will be dull and I don’t really want to use up a whole evening that I could be spending with Liz or you or John, hanging out with a bunch of people from my high school that I don’t even talk to anymore.”

Zoe eyed him carefully, seeming to process this for a moment. She eventually shrugged. “That’s actually a pretty fair reason,” she said. “All I’m saying, though, is that it could be fun. You could go with John, make an evening of it, just show off your life a little bit and go home. It might not be all that bad.”

The phone started ringing, a shrill chime that seemed to rip through the whole kitchen. Liz called out an apology and said that she’d get it. Zoe’s laser focus was still on Kidd.

“Thoughts?”

Kidd shrugged. “I don’t know, that’s not a bad idea.”

“Really?”

“It might not be horrible if I go with someone,” he said. “I mean, honestly, the worst part about going would be that I would be there by myself and it would be a terrible throwback to being fourteen and so awkward.”

“What’s the difference now?” Zoe said with a laugh.

“The difference now is that I’m awkward, but have a badge and a duty to pretend that I’m not.”

Zoe lifted her glass to cheers him. “I will drink to that.”

“To what?” Kidd asked. “Faking our way through our careers?”

Zoe nodded. “Exactly that.”

They clinked their glasses together, the two of them taking long gulps from their drinks. Kidd had been working with Zoe for the past ten years or so. They’d been put on a team together and they just happened to click. Zoe didn’t take any nonsense from anybody, and that included Kidd. Even though he was technically her boss, it didn’t feel like that half the time. She’d put it best when he’d come back from leave a couple of weeks ago—they were friends first, colleagues second.

Liz reappeared in the kitchen, clutching the phone in her hand. She looked like she’d had the wind knocked out of her sails. Kidd’s mind immediately went to the worst-case scenario, wondering who it could have been on the phone.

“That was Greg,” Liz said. She looked up at them. She didn’t have tears in her eyes, so maybe it wasn’t all that bad, but she still looked pretty hurt by whatever had been said. “He’s not coming home for dinner, apparently something at work came up.”

Kidd let out a heavy breath. He’d expected worse than that.

“No problem,” Kidd said. “We can save some food for him, it will be fine.”

“Yeah,” she said. “Sorry, we just argued about it. I’ve barely seen him for the past couple of weeks. Miss my husband, you know?”

Zoe put her glass down and hurried over to Liz, wrapping her in a hug. Kidd followed suit and did the same. He hated seeing his sister hurting. Greg was a good guy most of the time, Kidd didn’t want to think the worst of him, but he certainly didn’t want anyone making his sister feel like that.

Liz pulled herself out of the hug and took a deep breath.

“Okay,” she said. “Wow, didn’t expect to be almost crying tonight.” She shook herself a little, fixing the smile back onto her face. “He’s just working a lot, and it’s obviously getting to me more than I thought. Whew. Okay. Let’s get to the table or this is going to go cold. Ben, you want to grab the wine?”

Zoe took Liz into the dining room while Kidd headed back to the kitchen and grabbed the bottle of wine. He was unable to shake the feeling that something wasn’t quite right. He shook it from his head, sure that he was overthinking it.

CHAPTER THREE

Dinner was delicious. Once they’d sat down and started eating, it was as if the conversation Liz had with Greg never happened, something Kidd was certainly glad about. He didn’t like seeing his younger sister upset.

They worked their way through the roast talking about the school reunion still. Kidd decided somewhere along the way that he would ask John if he wanted to go with him. Maybe it would be fun. But at least if it wasn’t, he would be able to get out of there pretty swiftly.

They worked their way through the rest of the meal, Kidd and Zoe clearing up while Liz checked on the kids, the three of them drinking coffee and chatting until Liz could barely keep her eyes open.

“I’m sorry,” she said through a yawn. “It’s barely nine o’clock and I’m yawning like I’ve pulled a full shift.”

“You have pulled a full shift,” Kidd said. “Those kids are a handful.”

“You’re not wrong,” Liz replied, downing the last of her coffee.

There was a sound from the front door, all three of them freezing and turning in the direction of the hallway. Someone struggled to get their keys in the door and then quickly opened