December 9, 2021
Ben dropped Tuck off at school and when he got to the station, Joey greeted him at the front, closing a binder. "Hey, son," he responded dapping him up. "Working hard or hardly working?"
The boy smiled. "Working hard."
"Alright, alright. What do they have you doing today?"
"Looking at camera footage from the station."
"I thought we got rid of those." The union had forced the department to remove the cameras inside of the building citing privacy issues. It had been a big thing across the state. Ben had been kind of relieved to not having Big Brother watching him as he moved about his second home.
Joey bobbed his head. "They did. But I'm going over the hours that they were up and writing down… 'incidents'."
Ben smirked. "Well, if you see me doing anything weird on there, let me know and then… delete it."
"Okay," the teen chuckled.
In the field at an apartment fire, he realized that while he still enjoyed the job, but he missed his friend. The man had been by his side nearly every day for the last five years and now… there was another face. It was pleasant and the transfer was nice enough, but they weren't Miller. Back at the station, his phone rang and when he saw Condola's number, his heart leapt. Breathe. "Hello?"
"Hi, Ben."
"Condola, how are you?"
"I'm good."
He nodded. "Is everything…?"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I just wanted to talk to you and Miranda about something."
Looking upward trying to remember if his wife had surgery. Or was it a meeting? "Okay. Let me call her and see where she is."
"Alright, well, I'll be at the office for the next hour or so. And then I'm not free tomorrow, but I can meet early Saturday."
Ben knew for sure Miranda was free on Saturday. They were going to the boys' basketball game that afternoon. The two also happened to be on opposite teams and that was always a fun time. "Saturday works."
"Good. I'll bring pastries."
"We'll have coffee." The ended the call and his stomach jumped. Hopefully, what she'd found was something they could use. Aside from a few Facetime calls, they hadn't seen Pru in so long and her absence from the house was evident. Maybe he could get the Millers to let her come with them on Saturday to the game. When Ben got home, he was greeted by Tuck sitting in the armchair playing the game on the sofa. Joey was sound asleep and Miranda cooking in the kitchen. "Damn, it smells good in here."
"Just a little something I whipped up." She lifted her shoulders in a show of modesty and leaned over to kiss his cheek while draining pasta. "Mmm… you smell good, too, hon."
"Thank you. and I'm glad you're here."
"Yeah?"
"Yes, I love coming home to one of my sons relaxing and my wife cooking, makes me feel some type of way."
Miranda turned off the stove eye and threw her arms around him, running a hand over the nape of his neck. "Which way is that?" She asked in a low voice.
"Come upstairs and find out." He leaned against the counter in front of the sink and held her as they kissed. Ben let his hand travel across her silhouette and she moaned to his touches. When they pulled apart, he said: "So, I got a call from Condola earlier. And before you ask, I don't know what she wants to talk about. She didn't say."
Miranda's tongue skittered across her bottom lip, her eyes inching toward hope. "Did she sound like… like it might be good?"
He shrugged. "It didn't sound bad."
"Well, that's something," she said grabbing the band of his sweatpants. "Right?"
"Right."
Joey walked into the kitchen from the basement, shirtless and scratching his chest. "Is dinner finished, Mama B?"
"Oh!" Miranda said turning to check the food. "Yes. Go and get ready, so you can help set the table."
"Ma?! Is dinner ready?!" Tuck called from the living room and Ben laughed.
"Almost!" Ben watched his wife move around the kitchen, giving orders, smitten. "Wash your hands and then help Joey." She shut off the oven and pulled chicken out of the oven as his mouth salivated. "Can you get a bottle of wine, hon? I need it."
He needed some, too. Ben pressed his lips to her chin and she giggled a little. "Got you."