Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 71289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
“Go.”
I went and was outside on the porch and walking down the steps when her scream had me turning around.
“The bug!” She squealed.
I stifled a chuckle and shuffled back through the window.
She was pointing at the wall above my head.
Once through the window, I turned and saw the ‘bug’ she was talking about.
It was a water bug.
A massive one at that.
“Give me that,” I pointed at the rolled up wrapping paper she had standing in a corner of her room.
She hustled to it as much as an eight-month pregnant woman could, and tossed it to me.
I caught it one handed and immediately brought it down on top of the bug.
A resounding ‘crunch’ had me wincing.
Kitt made a gagging sound as I pulled the paper tube away, and then ran into the bathroom, coming out moments later with a wet wad of toilet paper in her hands.
“Here,” she thrust the wet mass at me.
I rolled my eyes and handed her the tube, which she took with the utmost reluctance.
I heard tearing of the paper as I wiped the wall clean of bug guts.
“Here.”
She took it and the wadded up paper and went to the bathroom.
While she was in there, I took my leave, knowing she’d want me to.
At least I thought.
I’d gotten nearly to my bike when she appeared at the window.
“Apple!” She cried, not seeing me in the dark where I’d parked.
I turned and studied her for a long moment, taking in the stricken look on her face that showed she wasn’t happy with me leaving without her knowing.
“What?” I asked, coming forward out of the shadows.
Relief washed over her face once she saw me standing there.
“Come back tomorrow for dinner,” she ordered.
I nodded.
“I can do that,” I told her.
“And don’t be late,” she said.
I smiled.
“I won’t,” I promised.
“And wipe that look off your face. You didn’t win,” she ordered with a smile in her voice.
I rearranged my face so my smile didn’t give away my excitement.
“Yes, Ma’am.”
Chapter 13
Life is too short for boring socks.
-Kitt to Ridley
Kitt
I smiled as I finished making tacos.
Looking at my watch, I decided to chance a shower so I could smell good for Apple.
That and I had things that needed shaving.
I hadn’t shaved the upper half of my thighs for about a month now, since I could no longer see them.
Not seeing the hair, and not having a man, definitely kept me from caring.
Not to mention I’d been a bit depressed over the last seven months.
It’d gotten so bad that some days I didn’t want to get out of bed.
That was the good thing about having my brother, though. Not to mention those stolen moments with Apple when he went to my doctor’s appointments with me.
Those two hours would be the best two hours of my entire week, and I’d spend the rest of my days counting down the minutes until the next doctor’s appointment.
I’d also gotten on disability.
The impending doom of having a seizure at any time, and in any place, had made it almost impossible to hold down a job.
My doctor had signed the papers I needed to file for disability, which then had fed my hermit status.
I wasn’t sure I’d gone out of the house for anything but doctor’s appointments and my weekly grocery runs for well over six months.
I also didn’t want to make it harder on the people I counted on. If it made it easier to stay at home, then I’d do it.
I’d just slipped my shirt off over my clothes and hung the t-shirt over the camera I now knew was in my bathroom when I got the expected phone call.
Sighing, I answered with a barely disguised, angry, “Hello?”
“Hi, Kitt. It’s Jake,” the jovial man on the other end of the line said.
“Hi,” I said. “I’m taking a shower.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’m just instructed to call just in case. How are you doing today?” Jake spoke.
I gritted my teeth and barely contained the urge to hiss at him.
“I’m doing fine, thank you,” I said stiffly. “Is there anything else?”
“Sure, now that you mention it. Some man came through your window last night. I reported it to the account holder, and he said it was fine. Is that fine?” He chirped jovially.
I shivered.
Jake gave me the freakin’ creeps.
And I hated that he watched me twenty-four hours a day.
I hated even more that Ridley gave him permission to.
When I’d asked Ridley to see about getting a new reviewer, he’d looked at me like I’d grown a second head.
“They have multiple people watching the feed every week. Which man is it that you don’t like?” he asked.
“The one that calls here every time I cover my bathroom monitor,” I replied.
He looked at me.
“You realize, right, that they’re professionals?” He’d asked. “That they are supposed to call to make sure you’re okay?”
After that I’d just ignored Jake and the uncomfortableness I felt each and every time I knew he was on the clock.