Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 54148 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 271(@200wpm)___ 217(@250wpm)___ 180(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54148 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 271(@200wpm)___ 217(@250wpm)___ 180(@300wpm)
“You okay, Kenzie?”
"Uh-huh," I say reflexively. A sigh escapes my chest, leaving me deflated. I rest my head in my hands. I haven't dealt with harassment like that since before I started working here. While I'd hoped these upsetting encounters were behind me, as I predicted, Jim Davis’ early release from prison has the press swarming. The thought of coming to work and having to deal with this shit every day makes my skin crawl.
Mike pulls out his phone, types something, then slips the device back into his pocket.
"Come on," he says. "Let's grab you some lunch."
A quick shake of the head is all the objection I can muster.
“I’ll be fine,” I mumble, even as I let Austin’s brother help me to my feet.
I follow him outside, across the street, to Rudy's. One nice thing about bars that serve lunch is that they tend to be pretty quiet during the day.
Mike leads us to a corner booth.
“I’m thinking burgers,” he says.
My shoulders ache as I hunch them to shrug. It’s okay, though. When our server shows up, Mike has me covered.
"Two cheeseburgers with fries and Cokes," he says. The woman scribbles down the order and then leaves us.
After a series of painful swallows, my throat loosens enough for me to croak out, “Thanks.”
“Gotta eat something,” he says, like it’s no big deal. But it’s a massive deal to me.
Before Hollywood and Cal got together, it was just the two of us, Holly and me. Then suddenly, our party of two expanded to include an entire found family of people willing to embrace us without expecting anything except basic kindness and decency in turn.
I didn’t trust it at first. I thought there had to be a catch. But time and time again, I’ve been proved wrong in that assumption.
“It’s not just the food,” I tell him. “I’m rusty when it comes to dealing with assholes like that.”
“Is this the first time one of ‘em’s come into the firm?" Mike asks. I nod, and he snorts. “Brazen motherfucker. I take it he’s not the only one crawling out of the woodwork since Jim Davis’ release.”
“Mostly it’s just been calls and emails, which isn’t so bad. But for a while it seemed like things were finally slowing down.”
“You’re still getting emails?”
I nod. “Somehow they always find me even after I change my address.”
Mike frowns, looking puzzled. He’s rougher around the edges than Austin is, but he looks so much like his brother when he squints.
Our server returns with our Cokes. I sip mine tentatively, not wanting to upset my already precarious stomach. I catch Mike staring at something behind me and turn to see what it is. Scanning the bar, my gaze lands on his ex-girlfriend, Lola, standing by the lectern with her arms crossed.
“She looks happy to see you. What exactly happened there?" I ask because I’m both curious and desperate to aim the spotlight away from me.
He rubs the back of his neck. “We can talk about something nicer than that.”
“Like what? The number of damnation threats I’ve received this week from my adoring public?”
He cracks a sardonic smirk.
“Touché.” He pauses. “I guess you could say Lo and I disagreed on the important things.”
“Such as?”
He shrugs, and I wait. Finally, he says, “Such as, how far is too far to go to ensure your significant others’ safety.”
“Your brother would probably say you can never go far enough.”
“My brother forgets that he’s a retired soldier, emphasis on retired. But he’s comfortable playing the hero.”
“I noticed.” I drink some more of my Coke.
“Don’t get me wrong, I respect the hell out of him for it. He cares about people. And he’s saved my ass in a big way more than once.”
“How so?”
An unreadable mood passes like a shadow over Mike’s features. He drums his fingers on the table like he’s debating whether or not to respond.
“Has Austin told you anything about our dad?”
“No. He’s never mentioned him.”
“Can’t say as I blame him. Dad was a real piece of work. Always had a scam going. Insurance fraud, identity theft, catfishing old ladies.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Wish I was. He wasn’t above involving his own kids in his bullshit either. Austin did his best to shelter me from the worst of it. As you can imagine, Dad wasn’t the most attentive parent, so Austin made sure I ate my veggies and finished my homework.”
A sad smile pulls at my lips as I picture Austin as a kid, torn between being a child himself and being a caretaker to his little brother.
“I can definitely see him doing that,” I say.
“He almost didn’t enlist cuz he was worried about leaving me alone with our old man. But I was old enough to see our dad for who he was. I never said it out loud, but part of me was pissed at Austin for wanting to leave me behind. I didn’t want to be the reason my big brother stayed stuck. He’d been taking care of me since Mom left. Asking him to stick around for my sake felt selfish, you know?”