Morning Man (15 page)

CJ laughed as he sat on the edge of the mattress. “And then you almost got us thrown into the drunk tank for back-talking the rent-a-cop.”

“As I recall, he was pretty reasonable once I climbed out and explained that we were in there because our hotel didn’t have a pool.”

“He was only reasonable because your t-shirt got completely soaked through,” he said with a chuckle. “That was a great night, wasn’t it? We had so much fun. We still could be having fun, Day. It’s not too late to get that back.”

She hugged her knees, feeling a pluck of empathy as she handed back the photo. “I’m sorry, CJ. But memory lane is nothing but a dead-end street for me now.”

“I don’t understand how you can just turn off your feelings for me like you’re casually flicking off a switch. Didn’t you move here so we could be together?”

“I moved here because that’s what we agreed I would do. You were the one who changed the plan on me somewhere between Buffalo and Columbus.”

“I was wrong.”

Dayna shook her head. “No, you weren’t wrong. You had a gut instinct and it turned out to be the right one. We don’t belong together.”

CJ’s shoulders slumped. “Is this about Collins?”

“No,” she said, her eye suddenly jerking in spasm.

“The guy’s a total dirt bag, Day. He’s only using you for sex.”

She wrenched the corner of her eyelid. “Tack doesn’t need to use me because he can get it whenever he damn well wants. Women throw themselves at him all the time.”

“Puh-lease, he was pawing you out there on the porch like a dog.”

“And I loved every second of it,” she sniffed.

“Look, I didn’t want to have to say this, but the longer you’re associated with that asshole, the more long-term damage you’re doing to your career.”

“Tack and I make a great team. Our show just scored the best ratings week that morning drive slot has seen in years.”

“It had nowhere to go but up,” he said flatly. “But you have to admit, posing for those billboards was a huge mistake. They make you look like Collins’ whore.”

Whore? Raging, bloodthirsty thoughts ripped through her as she battled every instinct to kill him with her bare hands. “You son of a bitch.”

“Sorry, but the truth hurts. People see you looking like that and suddenly, they assume you’re nothing but a tramp.”

“From Amazonian princess to tramp? Wow, that’s quite the quantum leap, even for you, CJ,” she said. “I happen to think our billboards are sexy, and you know what else? When I see how amazing we look up there, it makes me feel good about myself.”

She reached over to the lamp and switched it off. “Now get the hell off my bed.” She slid her legs down the bed and flipped over to face the wall. The moment he stood, she slapped down her sleep mask and yanked the sheet up around her shoulders.

Dayna listened as he climbed the stairs one by one and walked across the floor above her head before shutting his bedroom door. Exhaling from deep in her very core, she tried to relax and forget it, but being called a whore made that next to impossible. Her heart thumped and her mind flashed back to the horror of seeing the word
slut
scribbled beside her face on that ad. She shivered, as much for the fact that some nut out there had actually taken the time to deface her picture as for the troubling notion that, as much as she hated to admit it, CJ might have been right.

* * * *

Abel was waiting for Tack when he pulled up. “Good morning, my friend.”

“Morning,” he replied, toting the sandwiches and a tray with two coffees. “Mind if I join you for breakfast today?”

Abel smiled and nodded. “That’d be good.” They walked behind the station and Abel spread out a blanket on the ground. Tack sat on it, leaning up against the brick wall. He peeled back the lid of his coffee while Abel dug into the paper bag for his first sandwich. It had occurred to Tack that he might not be doing his friend any favors by letting him get too dependent on the pre-dawn deliveries. Feed a man a fish, and all that. But seeing the way Abel appreciatively received it like a gift, even stopping to give a silent prayer of thanks before his first bite, it was impossible not to believe that an act of kindness this small wasn’t doing some good.

“Mind if I ask you something, Abel? You’re always back here alone. You have a wife? Lady friend?”

Still working on a mouthful, he got up slowly and went to his shopping cart, coming back with a snapshot in his hand. It was weather-beaten and the corners were dog eared, but Tack could clearly make out the portrait of a father, a mother and three smiling kids. “Your family?”

Abel sat cross-legged and pointed out each of the children. “That’s Lena, Marvin and Abel Junior,” he said with a proud twinkle in his eye. His finger slid across the photo and came to rest on the heart of the woman. “And my sweet Janine.”

“You’re a lucky man.” Tack nudged him with a smile. “She’s a real looker.”

“The most beautiful girl I ever seen,” Abel said, still staring at the picture. “I fell in love the first moment we met and I still love her to this day.”

Tack wasn’t sure he was ready to hear more of the story, but felt compelled to find out how it ended with Abel sleeping in an alleyway. “And where’s Janine now?”

“Good Lord called her home four years ago,” he said, crossing himself in blessing. “Woman cancer.”

“I’m so sorry, man.” He swallowed hard. “My folks died when I was just a kid, but even so, I can’t imagine what it’s like to lose your wife.”

Tack handed back the photo and Abel pressed it to his lips. He tucked it safely inside his green canvas jacket before picking up his egg and cheese sandwich again.

“I miss her every day,” Abel said. “What happened to your mama and daddy?”

“Drunk driver t-boned their car a mile from home,” he answered. “Instantaneous.”

Abel was stunned. “Mercy.”

“Life’s pretty cruel sometimes, ain’t it?” Tack reached into the bag and retrieved the extra sandwich he bought for himself. “What about your kids?”

“They’re in foster care. I can’t support ’em so I can’t do no good for them no more,” Abel said, lifting the coffee to his lips. “After Janine died, I…I fell to pieces, you know? I couldn’t take care of ’em proper. I forgot how to be their daddy.”

Tack’s heart wrenched. “You ever get to see them?”

Abel shrugged. “Last October. Getting all growed up now, you know? Lena’s in high school already. My middle boy plays basketball, and my youngest has straight As.”

“Well then, you surely did right by your family to end up with such great kids.”

“Oh man, no, it was all Janine. She always took good care of the children, making sure they done their schooling and all.” Abel looked up from the ground. “You got a family, Tack?”

“Me? No. Never been married.”

Abel laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “But you like the ladies, hmm?”

He chuckled along. “You could say that.”

“I used to have game too. Then I met my Janine and suddenly,
pow!
” He pretended to knock himself out with a right hook. “Game over for this Romeo.”

“She really got to you, huh?”

“I never stood a chance.” Abel shook his head, still smiling. “You really should think about settling down with a good woman and having a family, my friend.”

He shrugged as he swallowed another bite. “It’s not like I haven’t thought about it, I just don’t know if that’s the hand I’ve been dealt. I keep weird hours. I change cities every few years. It’s easier for me to travel light.”

“That’s what I used to think too, before I found truth in the Book of Genesis.”

Tack really hoped Abel wasn’t going to regurgitate a bunch of churchy babble fed to him on the soup line at the mission. “You’ll have to refresh my memory. I’m a little rusty on my Bible verses.”

“God took a rib out of Adam and made him a wife. Eve.”

“Riiiight.” He nodded in recognition.

“Because every man needs himself a proper companion. And until you find her, you’re gonna have a big ol’ empty spot right here.” Abel cupped his hands together and held the hollow against his side, staring Tack straight in the eye. “I wish I could have that back. I’d give up the rest of my life to be with Janine just one more day.”

He could see the pain of loss in Abel’s face and felt genuinely moved by the depth of his sincerity and the love he still had for his family. It was unjust that a man with so much to give was so alone in this world.

The sound of car tires crunching on the driveway pavement interrupted his thoughts. “Well, that’d be my partner, which means it’s time for me to get going.” Tack crumpled the paper wrapper in his hand and rose to his feet. “Thanks for your company.”

Abel raised his hand to wave. “Thank you, my friend. I’ll see you soon.”

“That you will. Take care, pal.” He finished the last of his coffee before tossing the empty cup into the Dumpster, eager to tell Dayna what he’d learned about Abel.

* * * *

“Just heartbreaking.” Dayna leaned up against the desk, holding her hand against the ache in her chest. “That poor man, losing his wife and then his children.”

“And despite all the hardship he’s faced, I get the feeling he still thinks of himself as lucky, you know?”

“So how did he end up on the street? Is he an addict? Does he have mental health issues?”

Tack shook his head. “I don’t get that from him. He seems sober and sane,” he said. “But he did say he couldn’t take care of his kids and I’m not sure what that meant.”

“So, now what? You’re obviously invested in him.”

He took a deep breath and put his feet up on the desk. “I wish I knew how to help him other than bringing a coffee and sandwich in the morning. You got any ideas?”

She gnawed the inside of her cheek and stared at the carpet while she searched her mind. “What about the mission? You mentioned that Abel goes there sometimes.”

“Yeah, sometimes.”

“Maybe someone there can shed some light on his situation. It wouldn’t hurt to ask, right? It might help us figure out a way we can help him.”

“We?”

“Well, sure. He’s your friend so I want to help him out too.”

“Thanks, partner.” He leaned forward and offered a friendly fist bump.

She met him halfway. “Let me know when you want to head over there and we’ll go together,” she said as they heard the front door open. Puzzled, she whipped her head around. Tack shrugged. Other than the overnight operator, they were usually the only ones at the station until the sales guys started rolling in after seven. “Hello?” she called out, trying to distinguish the footsteps.

Jared popped in the doorway and waved awkwardly. “G’morning.”

“Hey, whatcha doin’ here, kid?”

“Um, guess you haven’t read the memo from Mrs. M yet,” he said, stepping inside the office. He fished a piece of paper out of their inbox and handed it to Dayna.

She scanned it quickly before reading it aloud. “Effective immediately, I am assigning Jared Nicols to the
Wake Up with Tack and Dayna
morning show for job shadowing. As part of his educational experience at Hot Country One-oh-three, it is expected that he will partake in all aspects of show preparation duties as well as be encouraged to continue learning elements of live production. Jared will keep the same working hours as the on-air staff, thank you for your cooperation and blah, blah, blah.”

Tack bashed his fist on the desk. “How about that? Bonnie thinks we need a babysitter.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Collins.” Jared lowered his head. “I’m only following orders.”

“Relax, Tack, this isn’t his fault.”

“Well, shit, what does she think we’re doing in here besides prep for the show?”

“I’ll stay out of your way the best I can,” Jared said quietly.

Dayna hopped down from the desk and put her arm around him reassuringly. “No, no. There are a ton of things you can do around here. You can help me pull the news package together and I’ll teach you how to get the traffic updates. You already know how to read the logs so you can highlight all the commercial breaks for Tack and then maybe we can work on a few bits together, okay?”

He nodded and smiled. “That would be awesome. I’ll just go put my stuff away and make some fresh coffee.”

“Great, Jared, thank you.” As soon as he left the room, she snapped her head around and came straight at Tack. “Cool it, okay? He’s just the intern.”

“No, he’s Bonnie’s watchdog,” he growled back. “And I resent anyone thinking I need to be monitored like a child with one hand in the cookie jar.”

“Maybe Jared being here is only a coincidence.”

He shook his head. “Right.”

“Come on. Jared can really be of some help to us. And as a bonus, he seems to think you’re God’s gift to radio, so chill out and enjoy being worshipped. You do still enjoy being worshipped, don’t you?”

“Whatever,” he grumbled, rustling through various sections of newspaper.

She backed off and let him stew in his grumpy mood as they each read the paper in silence. After a few minutes passed, she went to her bag and retrieved the banana she’d brought for a pre-show snack. She sat back down and proceeded to peel and eat it while pouring over that morning’s log.