Real Good Man (Real Duet #1)

Sofia.

I haven’t heard from her in days, since she texted an all is well update about Myrna.

“Hello?”

“Oh my God, Banner. I didn’t know who else to call.”

The panic in her voice has me sitting up and closing my legs. “What’s going on?”

“She’s dead. I just found her. She’s dead.”

Sofia can only be talking about one person, but for some reason, I have to confirm what I already know as tears sting my eyes. “Myrna?”

She sobs into the phone. “Yes.”

“Did you call 911?”

A muffled sound comes next.

“What did you say?”

“They just took her body. Her daughter can’t get here until the day after tomorrow. I feel so terrible. She was all alone, sitting in her chair with Jordana right next to her.”

I can picture Myrna, and I figure if the old lady was ever going to depart from this Earth, that’s probably how she would have wanted it. But even that doesn’t stop the grief from welling in my chest.

Logan looks at me, and I can see the question in his eyes.

“What can I do?” I ask Sofia. I lived across the hall from the older woman for five years, and despite all the words we tossed between us, I’m devastated.

“Can you come home? Her daughter told me I need to start organizing things to get rid of, and told me to hire whoever I needed.”

“Already? Jesus.” It doesn’t surprise me as much as it sounds like, however. Mrs. Frances’s daughter has barely bothered with her mother in the last five years, so it’s not like death is going to change much.

“Yes, and she sounded so heartless. I just . . . I know you had your issues with her—”

Yeah, like she got me evicted. But I can’t hold that against her because getting evicted turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to me.

“I’ll be there. It’ll be okay. It won’t be until tomorrow, though.”

“That’s fine. I’m going to stay here tonight with Jordana, so she’s not alone.”

The poor weird little dog. I wonder if Myrna’s daughter is going to want to take her. I know for a fact that Sofia’s apartment is pet-free, so that’s not going to work.

“Okay. I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know when I’m in the city.”

“Thank you, Banner. I truly didn’t know who else to call.”

I hang up the phone and see the questions in Logan’s eyes.

“What the hell happened? Who died?”

“Mrs. Frances. My old neighbor. The one from across the hall who ratted me out for not having a job.”

His brow furrows. “Who interrupted us that first night?”

I nod.

“So you’re going to go back to New York for her funeral?”

“I assume I’ll be there for the funeral too. I mean, if her daughter even has one.”

“Who called you?”

“One of her caretakers. The one who was there the most. Sofia. She’s a friend of mine.”

“This is the woman who got you evicted, but you’re going to run back to New York to help her?”

I release a long breath. “I know it doesn’t sound like it makes sense. She was a hard-ass, but she was my hard-ass, you know? I don’t think any of it was done in spite. She was . . . kinda like a really strict, bitchy grandmotherly figure to me.”

Logan nods like he’s trying to understand, but I’m pretty sure he doesn’t truly get it. “Okay. You gotta do what feels right.”

“I know it seems weird, but this is definitely what’s right.” Tears trickle over the edges of my lids. “She was crotchety and mean, but she . . . she cared. You know? Like she was the only one who would bother to scold me for coming home late or skipping work. Maybe I’m reaching here, but when you’re in a city of a zillion freaking people, that kind of stuff matters. At least, it did to me.”

Logan’s expression softens as he reaches up to swipe the tears off my cheeks. “Then you go and do what you need to do. Gold Haven will still be here when you get back.”

“Thank you for understanding.” I straighten my clothes and start looking for a flight on my phone.

Of course, the first one I find is a six a.m. flight out of an airport that’s fifty minutes away. I look at Logan, not wanting to ask him to get up at the ass crack of dawn to take me when I know damn well he’s got a ton of work to do.

“What?” he asks, looking over at me as he cleans up the mess we made on the counter.

“Is airport parking expensive?” It’s not something I’ve ever had to worry about before.

He gives me a look that clearly says I’m on crack. “Banner, I’m driving you, and I’ll pick you up. It’s not a big deal.”

“I have to be there by five a.m.”

“Doesn’t matter, babe. We better get back to your place so you can pack.”

It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him that I love him, and the words feel so freaking natural, they almost slip out. But I remember my promise to myself, and I lock them down.

“Thank you,” I say instead.

He leans in and presses a kiss to my lips. “No thanks necessary.”

I fall asleep two hours later with a carry-on packed and Logan wrapped around me in my tiny bed.

I’m going to miss this, even if I’m only gone for a few days. Who would have thought I’d be dreading going back to New York because of what I’m leaving behind in Kentucky?

Namely, my heart.





Chapter 42


Logan


I hate dropping her off at the airport. Watching Banner walk through those sliding doors, knowing that she’s getting on a plane and heading back to a life she could easily want to reclaim, has me tied up in all sorts of knots.

Sure, right now she says she’s coming back, but what if she changes her mind? She’s not like any woman I’ve ever met before, and part of what I love about her is her spontaneity and lack of impulse control.

Both those things could easily work against me if she decides that she’s had enough of her small-town adventure.

Shit, she wouldn’t even need to come back for her clothes; it’s not like she left many behind after she was finished packing. How a woman can fit so much stuff in such a small suitcase will forever boggle my mind.

I drive away when the security guard gives me the evil eye. As I turn out of the airport, my phone dings in the cupholder with a text.



BANNER NYC: I’m going to miss you.



Right now I’m kicking myself for not changing her contact in my phone to take out the NYC because it just hammers home what I’m worried might happen. After having her every day, I can’t do the long-distance thing again.



LOGAN: Not for long.

BANNER NYC: xo

LOGAN: Fly safe.



A car horn honks behind me, and I pull out onto the road toward Gold Haven.

The entire drive, something feels off. I stop at a strip-mall doughnut shop and get some coffee and a half dozen glazed, and leave my phone in the car.

When I get back in the driver’s seat, I see another text from Banner on the screen.



BANNER NYC: Did I leave my flat iron plugged in upstairs? I seriously can’t remember, and if I burn down Holly’s gran’s house, no one is ever going to forgive me.



Why the woman hadn’t just put her hair in a ponytail this morning, I wasn’t sure, but I also didn’t ask.