Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 108531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Because whenever his father had tried to spend time with Paul, Paul acted the fool. Every summer when they were in high school, they worked at the law firm for a few hours a day. Paul had spent that time flirting with every female in sight and stealing money from the petty cash fund. He’d also stolen a key to the office and snuck a bunch of his friends in for a party that had almost killed his father’s career. Still, there was no way to convince his mother that Paul’s problems had always been caused by Paul. He was her baby, and she would protect him even if it meant rewriting history. “It’s because he’s so attractive. I didn’t get his looks so I’m jealous. It’s best I stay away so I don’t get depressed having to face my own flaws.”
“Don’t be sarcastic, Quaid. I want my sons to get along. Do you know how long it’s been since I had the two of you under one roof? I don’t understand why you can’t allow us all to have a nice visit.”
“Is it a visit? When is Paul planning on leaving?”
“Well, he’s not sure. He’s taking some time off, and he wants to spend it with his family.”
“Taking time off from what?”
His mother sighed. “I know his job isn’t like yours, but when he works it’s days and days on set.”
“Momma, what movies has Paul been in? What TV shows? Why haven’t we actually seen this work he says he’s doing?”
“He can’t help what the movie studios and networks air. He’s had some bad luck.”
“Yes, it’s unlucky that the play he was in shut down the day before we were supposed to go out and see it.” He stood in front of the window, watching the rain. Was this how the rest of his life would go? Would he spend it either working or dealing with his mother? In some ways, she was like the town. He’d picked up where his father had left off. He’d taken over his father’s never-ending responsibilities to the town, and he’d become the person his mother relied on without thinking about what it cost him.
He was in a rut, and he worried if he didn’t get out of it soon, he never would. He might be stuck right here for the rest of his life. Not in his physical location. He loved the town, loved having friends he’d known his whole life. But he couldn’t get stuck in this place where he was always on the outer edge of every circle. How had he ended up here? He certainly hadn’t meant to.
“You are just like your father. You have to question everything and see fault in everyone,” his mother said, and he could practically see her shaking her head.
He wanted to go to bed. Maybe in the morning he would have a couple of hours to write before he had to start planning his answer to the suit Jayna would absolutely file against Geraldine’s new nudist resort.
There it was. There was the spark of excitement he’d felt the first moment he’d seen the woman. It was the light that illuminated the gloominess that was taking over his life.
“Mom, I’m going to hang up. It’s getting late and I have to work in the morning. I’ll come by for dinner tomorrow night, but I think it’s best if Paul and I don’t spend a lot of time together right now.”
His mom got quiet for a moment. “Is this about that Cardet girl?”
Now his every instinct flared to life because his mother could win a gold medal in meddling. “What does that mean?”
“It means people are already talking. Paul went out with some of his friends and they were all saying that you’re sniffing around that woman.”
What a way to put it. “She’s a colleague.”
“She’s a scandal waiting to happen. Quaid, I understand that you’re lonely and it’s time for you to settle down. It’s past time, honestly. You are not getting any younger, but you have to think seriously about who you associate yourself and this family with. The Cardets are not our kind.”
His mother could also be a snob. “What kind are they? You know the poor aren’t actually a different species, Mother.”
The lights from a vehicle rolling down Main Street illuminated the road and the rain that was still falling softly to the ground. The car began to pass by the office and then stopped suddenly and backed up.
It was dark so he wasn’t sure he recognized the make or model, but it pulled into a parking space in front of the office, right next to his own Benz.
She huffed over the line. “They have a bad reputation. Those cousins of hers are in and out of jail all the time.”
“So is Paul. Maybe someone should warn the Cardets not to have anything to do with us.”