Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 50811 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 254(@200wpm)___ 203(@250wpm)___ 169(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50811 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 254(@200wpm)___ 203(@250wpm)___ 169(@300wpm)
Me: Thats okay. Ill give it to whoever is there. Or I can hang it on the door. 10 minutes
My phone started buzzing. Randi was trying to call. I slid it back into my pocket, ignoring her. If she wasn’t home already, she’d be there soon.
* * * *
Randi
I found Lexi sitting at the table, sorting through baggies, prescription bottles, and rolling papers.
“How’s Mom?” she asked.
“She seems to be okay now,” I said, sitting down next to her. “You send Kayden outside?”
“Yeah, he’s headed for the park. I gave him my phone so he can play Pokémon Go. He loves that shit.”
“All by himself?” I asked, surprised. She looked up at me.
“How do you think he gets home from school?” she asked. “He’s nine, you know, not six. He walks to school all the time. If he can do that, he can walk to the park.”
She made a good point, although she sounded a little defensive. I picked up one of the baggies, turning it over in my hands. There was a lot of weed there. A lot.
“We need to tell Aiden and Isaac,” I said, although I wasn’t sure what our brothers could do to help. Aiden was twenty-four, and he lived in Calispell with his girlfriend and their baby. Isaac was only twenty. He’d stayed in Missoula with me when Mom and the kids moved back to Hallies Falls. Neither of them had the time or money to do anything about this.
I was the oldest, which meant this was my problem to solve.
“What’s the point?” she asked.
“They need to know,” I said, putting her off. Either I needed to move back to Hallies Falls or Mom and the kids needed to move to Missoula. But Mom hated Missoula—I wasn’t sure I could convince her. Could I petition for custody?
That’d set off a holy war, for sure.
Maybe I’d get lucky and that job would come through.
My phone buzzed as a text came in, and I reached for it.
Unknown: You left something at my apartment. I’ll swing by and drop it off in ten
Rome. Somehow he’d gotten my number. I frowned, wondering what he was talking about. It wasn’t like I’d packed an overnight bag… My purse was on the kitchen counter.
“What’s up?” Lexi asked.
“It’s Rome. He said I left something at his house.”
“Did you?”
“I don’t think so…”
“He’s just trying to get into your pants. Guys are needy like that.”
I wasn’t so sure. Rome hadn’t seemed all that worried when I’d blown him off last night. That morning wood of his hadn’t been fake, but morning wood wasn’t necessarily personal. I reached up and touched my swollen eyelid. It still hurt like hell, although compared to the Mom situation, it was the least of my worries.
Funny how fast your perspective could change.
Me: You can throw it away
Rome: Do you even know what it is?
Randi: I have my phone and purse. Nothing else is important
Rome: This is an expensive bra. Replacing it won’t be cheap.
I’d stuffed it in my purse to bring home, hadn’t I? It only took a second to reach the counter and check. Nope. No bra. I’d been in such a hurry to get out that I must’ve left it with the stuff he’d loaned me… Stupid stupid stupid!
Then I realized that it didn’t matter—the thing was ruined, anyway. I’d planned to show it to Lexi as proof, but we’d been kind of busy. Rome was a distraction I couldn’t afford right now.
Randi: I don’t even like the bra. And I’m busy. Not at home
Me: Thats okay. Ill give it to whoever is there. Or I can hang it on the door. 10 minutes
I stared down at the phone, realizing I was well and truly cornered.
“Did you get rid of him?” Lexi asked.
I shook my head, wondering if my day could possibly get any weirder. Probably best not to tempt fate.
“He’s coming over,” I said shortly, then looked down across the table at all the pot, wondering if we should try to hide it. It was legal in Washington state, but it still felt kind of strange to see it out in the open.
“Randi!” I heard Mom calling faintly.
“I’ll be right back,” I told Lexi. “Can you clean this up for now?”
She nodded, and I went back to the bedroom. Mom was sitting up in the bed. She should’ve looked pitiful—I mean, she’d just had an asthma attack. But she’d combed her hair and put on some clean clothing, obviously making an effort. For an instant I caught a hint of the mom I’d known growing up. Gorgeous, stubborn, wild, and fun. Irresponsible as hell, but always fun.
“You didn’t just take my pot,” she said. “You took my prednisone, too. I was going to come out and get it, but I need to rest a little first, I think. You’re right about Lexi and Kayden, Randi. Something needs to change.”