Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 77842 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77842 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
“Ya’ll move it over, we have a visitor wanting some lemonade!” Owen throws his hands at us, his eyes straight forward. Looking over my shoulder, I find one of the bikers looking at the fresh citrus stand. This close, I can see tattoos up his neck and arms, and even on his hands. I try not to stare too long, but see glimpses of the devil, some skulls, and a woman’s face. I try not to judge because he’s here because of me. Speaking of, I casually look around the place to see if there is any sign of Heston, but as usual, there’s nothing I can outright see. There’s too much commotion and the setting sun licks the evening into darkness, making it harder to see everyone clearly.
“Rain...Rain?” My head snaps through the fog that hinders my surrounding, finding Tenly and Asher look at me with concern.
“I’m sorry, what were you saying?” I ask, trying to focus. Tenly looks to her husband before licking her lips and saying, “I’ve heard good things about your pie. I thought you said you couldn’t cook?” Tenly asks.
I’m stunned, replaying what she just said, I hold my hand up.
“Are you sure it was mine? The apple?”
“You were the only one who brought apple, it had to be you.” She laughs, her energy matching one of a parent proud of their child for acing a test.
“Nice!” is all I can manage to say; I wasn’t expecting a compliment and I’m in disbelief that someone liked my baking, so the word nice is all I can muster at this exact moment.
Silence falls between us laying a thick awkward blanket onto our shoulders. I take a step back to convey I’m going to go do something else and Tenly says, “We’re going to get the sparklers out, does Paige want one?”
Flicking my gaze to the porch, I find her and Layla sitting there talking.
“I’ll ask her.”
“Okay, just send her my way if she wants one.” I nod in understanding and start weaving my way through the crowd. It’s louder as the night goes on, people replacing their sodas with their choice of alcohol. Polite language now turns more colorful, to say the least.
Coming up to my house, Paige stops talking and looks up at me.
“Hey, Tenly has sparklers if you want to go check them out.” She looks to Layla, who is staring up at me, her thick black colored lips pursed.
“You wanna go see?” Paige asks her.
“Hey, I’m sorry about your ex-husband, like, missing.” My eyes widen, Layla’s forwardness catching me off guard.
I offer her a smile, as both girls stand and head toward Tenly. Looks like Paige has been talking to Layla about her dad, hopefully, she can offer some positive feedback.
About a half-hour goes by and I try some of Rhodes’ BBQ, talk to a few friendly faces and listen to music. Paige and her friend are laughing and smiling with sparklers, bringing me back to when she first held a sparker at three years old. If it weren’t for her, I never would have believed in love. The way I see it, if you can love someone the instant they’re put in your arms, the kind of affection where you would kill anyone who harmed them, where you would sacrifice your happiness for them… then it’s proof that love has to be real between two people who pick one another to get to know.
The smell of spicy orange and musk causes the hairs on my arms to rise, my body knowing exactly who the scent belongs to.
Rhodes sits in the foldable chair next to me and hands me a Seagram’s.
Taking it from him, I turn it around until the label is facing me. Strawberry.
“Thanks,” I pop the top off and take a swig. Sweet tart fizz fills my mouth, and I nearly groan at how satisfying it is.
His lips pull into a slight smile, before taking a drink of whatever is in his red Solo cup. Leaning my head back, “Tomorrow” by Chris Young playing in the background, I watch Rhodes’ jaw work as he swallows the liquid in his mouth. He’s so angry but gentle at the same time. I bet his daughter never feels afraid when she’s with her daddy.
“How is Nalini?” I ask.
I watch his chest inhale as if the name alone pains him.
“I tried to get her for the day, hell, I even asked her bitch of a mother to come if she wanted. I just wanted to spend some time with my daughter, but she wasn’t having it.”
My brows lift with sympathy. He’s clearly trying, so why is his ex being such a monster?
“It’s alright, here soon, we go back to court, and I have enough shit on her to send her to prison for a very long time. Nalini will be here…where she belongs, before Christmas.” He gives a curt nod, his tone laced with promise.