Rachel was waiting when Darren got home from work. They’d missed each other the day before—he’d come back from Jayden’s too late to catch her before she went out with her sister—but she’d texted him halfway through his shift asking him to bring beer home. Well. ‘Asking.’ IT’S NEW YEAR PIZZA AND BEER NIGHT BIIIITCH :D she had informed him obnoxiously, and he’d narrowly avoided laughing in the middle of a speech by one of the brass about personal discipline and integrity. Still, he knew better than to argue with Rachel, and dutifully presented himself at her door half an hour after getting off shift with a six-pack of Stella.
“Riiiiight on time,” she said, dragging him by the tie (he was banned from taking the time to change unless he was in a state. It had been her October diktat), and pus
