Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 68390 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68390 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Chapter nineteen
Weland
“How did your dad get so smart?” Sterling asks.
I toss a whole handful of spaghetti into the pot of boiling water. The frying pan is sizzling again, this time because we’re making dinner, so I dump a quarter of a bag of frozen meatballs. Don’t judge. We can’t all be masters of the kitchen, and besides, they’re good.
My parents and my brother left for the day right after breakfast. I could barely focus on anything while thinking about the plans Sterling was going to have to make. He spent most of the day in the basement with his laptop and phone, making calls. I had students come and go in the afternoon, and he needed the time and space to make a bunch of calls to lawyers and other people. I know the first one he placed was to Smitty, which makes sense because Smitty isn’t just his lawyer. I’m pretty sure he’s a wizard from another dimension.
“He reads books.” Sterling pulls a face at me like I’m trying to give him a token answer. I’m actually not trying to be funny for once. “No, really. He reads tons. But he’s also reading all these books on how to succeed in this or that,” I say.
“Self-help?”
“I guess that would be it, but he reads everything in that genre. Not just how to help yourself mentally or emotionally but how to help in business and every other venture. His social media feeds are full of bullet point lists that other people have highlighted from books.”
“So he gives you lots of that bullet-pointed wisdom?” Sterling quirks a brow.
“He does. That and tons that don’t sound like they’re from bullet points.”
“Like respect all life forms, even the kinds you’re scared of because they all have a job to do, so don’t you dare squash a spider or step on an ant?”
“He’s never told me that in those words, but it makes sense. Every lifeform has value. Although, when it comes to mosquitoes and yellowjacket wasps, it’s hard to see the value in those,” I say with a light chuckle.
Sterling nods. “I agree.”
I wait a few minutes and then fork the spaghetti apart to keep it from fusing into one huge mass. We were supposed to be putting on a show at dinner for the triptych of camping out evil, but now they don’t seem so powerful, menacing, or nebulous. I’m dying to ask Sterling how it’s going, and I have been ever since he emerged from the basement looking like he’s been living in a cave without seeing the sunlight for months, blinking and raking his hands through his hair wildly, but I haven’t asked since I don’t think it’s what he needs.
“Did he ever tell you not to eat yellow snow?” Sterling wonders.
“All the time. This is Detroit. Winters are long, and there’s lots of snow.”
I get out a separate smaller pan for the sauce. It also comes from a jar, and yes, it’s also excellent.
“I think his wisdom is more translatable, like today. It’s rubbed off on all of us over the years. He doesn’t just walk around spewing quotes or making lists. There aren’t quotes up on the wall, and there sure aren’t posters anywhere. He’s just very patient and easy to talk to. If we’re ever stuck, he’ll tell us things like, ‘Silence is a lovely thing because there’s space in silence to create loveliness.’ He’d say, ‘We don’t have to be worried about working to achieve all the things in life all the time because the best part of life is not being worried about working to achieve things. It’s just letting them come.’ Stuff like that.”
Sterling thinks about that. He tucks his bottom lip between his teeth, which sends a rocket of heat rushing through me. We got derailed this morning, so we haven’t talked about last night. Or repeated it. I’d rather be eating him than this dinner I’m preparing. Just saying.
“I bet he would say my cousins working so hard to derail me is only a reflection of the success I’ve achieved. The harder they work at it, the more successful I’ve become.”
“Maybe. Or he might also say the universe dealt you some crap cards because it had something else great waiting for you, but that doesn’t excuse the pain. It didn’t teach you how to be humble. You’re humble because you’re strong, and even though you’re successful, you realize that’s not all you are. He’d probably also say you should stop talking to your cousins because saying anything is just fuel for their asshole fire, and assholes shouldn’t be spouting flames.”
He grins, which is exactly what I wanted. I’m not sure why, but I would spend the rest of my life trying to make this man smile. He has a beautiful smile. I don’t know when it started to matter, but his happiness does matter to me. It makes my heart sing to see him looking a little bit less tired. A little less stressed.