Total pages in book: 122
Estimated words: 115590 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 578(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115590 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 578(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
“Do you want to break up with me?” My heart let out an accusatory thump like I was a traitor for saying the words.
His back hit the wall of lockers. “That easy, huh?”
“No, it’s not easy. I’m asking you.”
Seconds ticked by. Seconds where I felt like an exposed nerve.
“You need to calm the hell down. I don’t want to break up with you.” He stepped forward, wrapping his arms around me and tugging me against him. “I’m just pissed.”
My forehead rested against his throat. I inhaled the scent of leather and smoke that was all Zepp.
My fingers twisted in his shirt. “I don’t want you to be someone you aren’t.”
“Okay.” His chest rose on a hard sigh.
I hated that he sounded so unsure of himself. His lips brushed my forehead, and the little knot in my chest eased. He felt like home when I’d never truly had one, and I wasn’t sure that was a good thing.
33
Zepp
They say it takes twenty-one days for something to become a habit. It had been well over twenty-one days of Monroe staying at my house, and I found myself more than happy with the routine of waking up next to her. Screwing around in the kitchen with her. Going to school and coming home with her. For the first time since my mom had passed away, I was happy.
Hendrix sat beside me, playing PlayStation—losing. And bitching about losing.
A charred scent wafted in from the kitchen. “What the hell is that?” Hendrix said, jabbing his fingers over the controller.
“Roe!” I shouted, focusing on shooting Hendrix’s avatar. “Something’s burning.”
When she didn’t answer, I tossed the controller down and went to the kitchen. Whatever was in the oven was smoking. I turned the temperature off and opened the window over the sink. Monroe was at the plastic patio table on the back porch, hunched over papers.
“Whatever’s in the oven is burned,” I said when I stepped outside.
She looked up on a groan. “Pizza?”
I laughed, rounding the table and stopping behind her chair, glancing at the half-completed form in front of her. “What’s that?”
“Scholarship application.”
Alabama State University was at the top of the page in bold type. “Yeah? I thought you said Dixon?” Not that I was upset. Alabama State was a thirty-minute drive, and Dixon was all the way in Florida.
“I thought so too.” She finished a line, then dropped her pen to the table. “But Alabama has its merits.”
I draped my arms around her, leaning down to kiss the side of her throat. “Yeah? Like?”
“Well, it has a good business program…”
I gave her another kiss, slipping my hand down the front of her shirt. “And it’s close.” I squeezed her tit.
“And there’s this guy here…” She tilted her head to the side and grabbed my hair, pulling me closer. “The sex is definitely a selling point.”
“Definitely.” I smirked against her neck, grabbing the back of her chair and spinning it around. “Want a quick reminder of just how good it is?” I slid my hand along her thigh, getting so close to where I wanted to be before the back door slammed open.
“Yippy-ki-yay, motherfuckers,” Hendrix shouted before popping me on the ass with a dishtowel, then darting back into the house.
I took off after him, catching him by the front door and tackling him to the ground. “I’m gonna beat the shit out of you, Hendrix, if you don’t stop being a cockblock.” I punched him in the shoulder a few times.
“Man, you’re sitting on my junk.”
When I stood up, Wolf’s truck pulled into the drive. “Unlock the door, dipshit,” I called over my shoulder before I went back to the couch to play a game.
Wolf strolled in a couple of minutes later and plopped down beside me, snagging the controller. His brow wrinkled, and he took a sniff. “What the hell did you set on fire?”
“Monroe burned something.”
A few minutes into the game, he exhaled a hard breath. “Dude, I forgot to tell you. Dizzy’s dead.”
“What?” I looked away from the screen, but Wolf zoned into the TV. Stoned as hell. “Dizzy’s dead?”
“Yeah, I think Jerry killed him. Sucks ass.”
I dropped my controller and punched him in the shoulder, my pulse ticking up because he’d mentioned Jerry’s stupid name. “Shut up, man.”
“What the hell, dude?” Wolf scowled, rubbing at his arm. “That hurt.”
“Are you serious?” Monroe stepped into the living room doorway. Jaw tensed, face red. “You lied to me.”
Great. Here we went. “I did not lie to you.”
“Don’t give me that shit.” Taking a step forward, she jabbed a finger at me. “I asked you if you had anything to do with Jerry getting beat.”
Wolf shifted beside me, then stood up, and skirted around Monroe into the kitchen. The backdoor closed, and I swept a hand through my hair before setting my gaze back on an angry Monroe. “And I said I had been with you for the past three days. That wasn’t a lie.”