“Henry would,” Archie assured her. He was getting self-conscious about his arousal. The condensation from the gel pack had soaked through the dish towel and was cold and wet against his skin.

“Can you write it down somewhere?” Rachel asked. “Can you make it official? So that if something happens, I know. I don’t want to hear about it on the news.”

Archie hesitated. He already had an emergency contact.

“They’d call Debbie first, wouldn’t they?” Rachel said, almost to herself. “That’s important. Because of the kids.”

“I can see if I can add you,” Archie offered.

“It’s okay.” Rachel rolled her eyes and laughed. “I’m being paranoid. I was just overanxious last night. I had a bad feeling. Isn’t that silly? I had this feeling you were in danger. And when you didn’t return my calls, I started to get nervous. I don’t have Henry’s number. I called the nonemergency number, but they said they couldn’t tell me anything and they wouldn’t put me through to anyone who could.” She looked away, and when she looked back, her eyes were wet. She gave him a helpless shrug. “And then I realized something,” she said. Her lip trembled. “I realized that I want to be the person you spend the night with on your birthday.”

Archie had spent last night unconscious in the mud. But he knew she meant it more metaphorically. Now she sat on his lap, eyes fixed on his. Waiting. Archie still wasn’t sure how exactly this had happened. But it appeared he had a girlfriend.

“How about next weekend?” he said. “I have the kids next weekend. We can all do something together.”

Rachel’s face flushed with pleasure. “Okay.”

“I’m sorry I’m not better at this.”

She removed the gel pack and rewrapped it in the dish towel. “Your divorce really did a number on you, didn’t it?” she said softly, as she placed the gel pack back on his forehead.

Archie moved his hand along the length of her ponytail, the thick blond hair slick beneath his fingers. “It wasn’t Debbie.”

“You know,” Rachel said, lifting her eyes to his, “people with girlfriends tell their girlfriends about their lives. Just FYI. It sort of comes with the package.”

“I guess I have a lot to learn about girlfriends,” Archie said.

“We also get a shelf in the bathroom.”

“You already have a shelf in the bathroom,” Archie said. “I noticed that you also took over half a drawer in my dresser.”

“Did I?” Rachel asked with a grin.

He could feel her against him again, the heat of desire.

“It’s getting warm,” she said.

Archie cleared his throat.