Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64366 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
“Hey, don’t eat yet. Everyone’s not here.”
“But I have to eat at least four of these before Kage gets here. I don’t want him to see how weak I am.”
“You eat whatever you want today, baby. I didn’t go to the trouble of cooking you all this good food just for him to tell you that you can’t eat it. Let him try it in front of me. He won’t know what hit him.”
“I hope you’re not really planning on hitting a professional fighter, Mom. That would be embarrassing for everyone involved.”
She waved off the notion with a flick of her wrist. “Oh, he wouldn’t hit a lady.”
I cocked my head and ate an entire biscuit, considering while I chewed, realizing I wasn’t altogether sure if Kage would hit a lady or not. I didn’t think he would, but he was so unpredictable. I could almost imagine him knocking Layla on her ass if she kept fucking with him. But then, if he hadn’t done it at breakfast, she was probably safe.
Mom stepped in front of me, running a fingertip delicately along the underside of my jaw. “Somebody ought to hit him for marring my baby’s beautiful skin, though.”
My face went red enough to match the mark. “Sorry, I forgot about that.” I turned abruptly away from her and ran right into my little brother.
“Jamie!” Paul squealed, attempting to engage me in a high five. I failed him, catching the edge of his wrist with my pinky finger. “Is Kage here?”
“He and Dad took my new SUV for a drive. They’ll be right back.”
“I watched him fight Diaz, you know. Well, I had to wait till today to watch the highlights on YouTube, because Dad wouldn’t let me get the pay-per-view.” He poked his plump bottom lip out, his freckled face flushed with excitement.
“Are you fucking serious? Dad wouldn’t get the pay-per-view?”
“Don’t you say that word in this house.” Mom shook a serving spoon at me, and a chunk of broccoli casserole flew off of it and landed on my shirt. I grimaced and flicked it off onto the floor, inspecting my new shirt for damage. “Pick that up,” she ordered.
I retrieved the goop from the linoleum and begrudgingly walked it over to the trash can. “Paul, next time I’ll buy the pay-per-view for you.”
“How can you pay for anything?” Mom asked. “Are you working?”
“I can afford it. Don’t worry about it.” I mentally chastised myself, realizing that I was thinking of Kage’s money as my own. What had happened to me?
“I certainly will worry about it. Your father and I are paying your expenses at school, and you’re talking about spending your own money on a TV fight for your brother. Did you know those things cost fifty dollars? For one TV show.”
“But it’s not just any TV show,” Paul argued. “It’s special. It’s Jamie’s boyfriend fighting.”
Mom and I both turned to stare at Paul. I was busy trying to picture Mom and Dad sitting my little brother down and explaining my situation to Paul, when Mom piped up in a shocked voice. “Where did you hear that?”
Paul took a wary step back, buckling under our intense scrutiny. “That Kage is Jamie’s boyfriend? I heard Dad telling Jennifer that she ought to dump that deadbeat Chase. He said, ‘It’s bad when your brother has a better boyfriend than you.’”
“Yesss!” I did a celebratory fist pump. “Thank you, Paul. You heard that, right Mom?”
“Yes. I heard how your father needs to watch what he’s saying when there are little ears around.” Mom clicked her tongue and went back to arranging the food.
“These ears aren’t too little anymore.” I grabbed Paul in a headlock and pulled on one of his ears while he struggled. “This big guy is ten years old already. Can you believe that?”
“Almost eleven,” he grunted from within the headlock.
The storm door banged in the living room. I let go of Paul and looked up excitedly, expecting to see my dad and Kage returning, not even trying to hide my disappointment when it turned out to be Jennifer and Chase. “Oh, fu— fudge. Who invited them?”
“What’s the matter, Jamie? Are we not big enough celebrities for you?”
“No, actually you’re not. I’m jet-setting now.”
“Kage is here.” Paul stuck out his tongue at Jennifer. “You said I wouldn’t get to see him again, but guess what? He and Dad are driving Jamie’s new SUV.”
“Really, Jamie? A chromed-out black Escalade with tinted windows? Like that doesn’t scream drug dealer.”
“It’s not an Escalade, for your information. It’s a Range Rover.”
Chase, a pickup truck enthusiast who took ostentatious to a whole new level, looked at me like he was concerned for my soul. “Dude, you spent almost ninety grand, and you don’t even know what you got?”
Oh, hell. This was the South. Everyone in the room knew my manhood had just been called into question. I opened my mouth to take up for myself, but my mom beat me to it.