Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 94921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94921 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Harlow spun toward her brother and walked up to him. Patting down his body, he tried to pull away and in the process, he held onto his cell phone and she saw it was on call with Big Dick.
Grabbing the cell off him, she put it to her ear. “What are you doing?”
“Harlow, what a surprise—”
“Cut the crap. You sent Jude to see me. Why?” She frowned, pressing her clenched fist to her forehead. “You know what, cut the crap. I refuse to have this conversation with you over the phone.” She hung up and tossed the cell back to Jude. “You can leave.”
“Do I not get a hot chocolate?” he asked.
“Why did you agree to come here?” She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “Why?”
“We all care about you.”
“That is not a good enough answer and you know it.”
“Harlow—”
“Don’t Harlow me. The only reason you’ve come here is because Big Dick asked you to, otherwise, you don’t really give a shit at all, so why now?”
She didn’t need nor want any fake care. Growing up, she was used to her brother’s selfish behavior and none of it needed to change for her.
“Yes, and I don’t call him that. His name is George.”
“You and I both know he likes to be called Big Dick.”
“Har … you can be so freaking stubborn.”
“Thank you.”
“This is not a compliment. Yes, George messed up. He hurt you and now he wants to make amends. He does. Trust me, he does.”
She was not in the mood to listen to this. “And you thought you could come around and butter me up?”
“No, it wasn’t about buttering you up. It was about … taking care of you. We know you’re a stubborn, independent woman. You’ve been hurting and rather than come around to family, you’ve stayed far away. You’ve befriended and moved in with a total stranger, rather than be with the people who care about you.”
“Hailey cares,” Harlow said.
“I’m sure she does in her own way, but she is not family, Harlow. She is not us, or George, or even Ava, or Raven. I know you got close to them, and you’ve cut them out of your life.” Jude sighed. “Yes, George had to ask me to come over here, because sometimes I don’t know how to reach you.”
“I’m always a phone call away,” Harlow said. “It’s not hard.”
“To you, it is.” Jude clicked his tongue just as the doorbell rang again. “I’m going to leave, but I offered because I love you and I care about you. I know you and George were your own little clique. The oldest and youngest. Even when he wasn’t around, you never allowed any of us to fill that gap for you, Harlow.”
She wanted to argue, but how could she argue against the truth?
Following him to the front door, he reached out to grab the doorknob, and she hugged his back. She wrapped her arms around him tightly and held on.
“I love you too,” she said.
Jude put his hand over hers, rubbing it. “I am always here for you. All of us are here for you. We’re family, Harlow. Sometimes we’re a bit fucked up and selfish, but we’d come for you whenever you needed us.”
Tears pricked at her eyes, but she didn’t allow them to fall. Jude left and there on her doorstep was Big Dick.
She didn’t want to look at him, so she backed away. It was his choice to either enter and close the door, or close the door and leave. Harlow wasn’t going to force him.
Going back to the kitchen, she put the milk onto boil.
“You’re going to ignore me?” he asked.
“Why did you put Jude up to it?”
“You and I both know you’re not talking to me.”
“I’m talking to you now.”
“Not like you used to.”
“Things change.”
“And brothers fuck up, like I did,” Big Dick said. “I was hurt.”
“I know.”
“I had no right to be hurt.”
Harlow frowned and looked up. Big Dick was in the kitchen, leaning up against one of the counters.
“I adore you, Harlow. From the moment you came into this world, all I wanted to do was take care of you. I love my brothers, but you were the girl. I know Mom was so desperate for a girl. I also know she was a little disappointed that you didn’t love dresses or makeup, or doing girly things.” Big Dick gripped the back of his neck. “And you got to live with that disappointment, which is why I kept coming around. I got you. I understood you. No one else did. I hurt you that day, I know that. You needed your big brother, the one you could count on, but instead I shattered a part of you that day, and for that, I am sorry.”
This was getting to be too much. She moved around the kitchen, hating that tears were so close. She didn’t want to cry. She didn’t want to feel anything.