Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 67432 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67432 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
I could still get angry, though.
He must not have sensed the shift in my mood, and if he did, then he’d decided it was best not to acknowledge it. We went into the bar in silence, walking over to a couple of stools tucked in the corner. The place was nice, with exposed brick walls and twinkling rainbow-colored lights around the center of the room, where the bartenders simultaneously worked their smiles and their muscles. I sat with a view looking out to the street, where a younger couple stood and passed a cigarette between them.
Eric grabbed us drinks and came back, setting my Moscow mule down on the table.
“Alright, so since we’re on a one-drink timer, maybe we should kick things off,” he said, taking a (small) sip of his vodka soda.
“Okay, so you already know about Archie being a hot mess and coming back into the family recently, but you don’t know about the blowup he had with my mom. It was bad enough to the point where she threatened to erase his name from the will.”
“Shit, so she even brought up her own will?”
“Oh yeah. We were all there. It was during his wedding.”
That made Eric’s jaw crack. “What was the fight over?”
“Our older sister. Kendall. She and Archie went through a lot of the same things, except Kendall had a much harder time finding her way out of it. Maybe some of it had to do with Archie being my mom’s clear favorite, or maybe Kendall just had to hit that rock bottom to be able to bounce back up. Not that she’s really bounced back up yet.” Loud pop music underscored my words, backed up by the dancers on the television screens hung up above us. “My brother invited Kendall to the wedding without telling my mom. This was like a week after Kendall nearly set my mom’s house on fire when she blacked out on shots of tequila for breakfast and knocked over a candle. My mom threatened to walk out of the wedding, but eventually, we were able to talk some sense into her. My dad, William, was wasted before all of this even went down so he wasn’t much help.”
“Will Kendall be at the family retreat?”
“Mhmm,” I said with the straw in my mouth, taking a similarly small sip. If it really was only going to be one drink tonight, then I might as well make it last.
“Did she and your mom ever make up?”
“I’m not entirely sure. I know they were on speaking terms, but I don’t know if an official apology was ever said or accepted.”
Which sounds kind of familiar, actually.
“And what’s your sister’s situation like now?” Eric asked.
“Better, but still not great. Definitely not as turned around as Archie. She still couch-surfs from time to time and can’t hold down any steady job. She doesn’t seem to have any passions, either, but she does say she’s sober, so that’s at least one good thing going for her right now.” I suddenly felt my stomach twist as I looked at Eric’s thoughtful gaze. “I mean, you don’t think… I don’t think Kendall would ever do anything to our mom.”
“I know, but I have to look at every possible angle. And there could have been someone hired to do the job. We don’t know everything yet.”
The twist in my stomach grew tighter. I swallowed a deep breath but felt it get stuck somewhere in my throat, my body reacting to Eric’s suggestion with a flood of anxiety.
“God, this is so fucked.” I put my head in my hands and let out the breath that had lodged itself in my throat. “I hate this, so fucking much.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Eric said, reaching over and putting a reassuring hand around my wrist. I looked up, finding a warmth and care that I hadn’t felt in—well, not since Eric and I were together.
He let go of my wrist, head cocked. “Whatever happens, we have to put it into perspective that it’s for your mom. The truth is for her; we just have to find it. And we will.”
“But what if the truth is worse than the lie?”
“Sometimes it is, but we’ll tackle that monster when it rears its head. Not before then. Plus, you’ve got me now.” He smirked, his lips shining under the slightly blue lights of the bar. “Bubba. Bubby? What should be our pet names for each other? Junebug. That’s yours for sure.”
I rolled my eyes and chuckled. “Fine. My birthday is in June anyway. And I’ll call you… Teddy. Cuz you’re a bear of a man.”
Eric’s eyebrows drew up. “Huh, just like old times.”
“Yup,” I said, remembering the days I first started calling him Teddy as a joke, not knowing that Theodore happened to be Eric’s middle name. That was back when we were young, dumb, and full of com—raderie for each other.