Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 73162 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 366(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73162 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 366(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
Things are great until a little after noon when Charles comes in again. I get him seated at a table and ask what he wants to eat.
“Look, Sunny, I’m not really here for food.” He keeps his voice low and his face is so tense it looks like a crumpled ball of paper.
“You’re not? Then why are you here?” I ask. I had thought that maybe he would apologize for storming out the day before, but that’s clearly not what’s on his mind.
He leans forward, still keeping his voice low.
“Sunny, I don’t think you’re safe.”
“Huh?” I frown at him. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about that big brother of yours!” he hisses. “I don’t like the way he looks at you—or the way he calls you ‘baby.’ It’s not right.”
I’m immediately on the defensive.
“It’s a nickname—short for ‘baby sister’ which is how I signed all my letters to him,” I inform Charles. “There’s nothing wrong with that!”
“Sunny, just think about it—he’s an ex-con! He could have been in prison for murder for all you know!”
“No he wasn’t—it was drug charges,” I counter. “Besides, he served his time—he deserves to get another chance at life.”
“But not in your house, sleeping under your roof!” Charles insists. “I’m telling you, it’s not safe—he could snap at any minute!”
“That’s ridiculous,” I say, putting a hand on my hip. “Kane would never hurt me. He’s my big brother and as long as he needs a place to stay, he has one with me!”
“One what?” Kane’s deep voice interrupts us as he comes up to join the conversation.
“Uh, nothing. Nothing at all.” Charles goes pale at once and leans back, away from me.
“Is everything okay?” Kane asks, frowning at me.
“Fine,” I assure him. “Charles was just trying to decide between the tuna salad and the veggie burger.” I smile at my boyfriend maliciously. The only thing he hates worse than vegetarian food is tuna in any form.
“I’d say the tuna salad,” Kane remarks. “Cookie gave me a bite of it—fucking delicious.”
“No, I…I really can’t stay.” Charles rises quickly and pushes in his chair. “I just came to say ‘hey’ to Sunny but I have some business back at the dealership.”
“Oh, the dealership?” Kane frowns and snaps his fingers. “That’s right—Sunny told me your dad owned a car dealership and he lets you play with the cars whenever you want.”
“I do not ‘play’ with the cars,” Charles says stiffly. “I’m one of the top-selling salesmen! People buy our cars because they see me driving around in them and decide they want one.”
“That’s a nice way to think about it,” Kane says, nodding. “So really, everywhere you go, you’re just doing ‘marketing’ for your dad. Even if you’re not really doing anything but showing off.”
Charles’s face goes dark.
“It’s not like that. I have to go.” He nods at me. “Goodbye, Sunny. Think about what I said.”
“What exactly did he say?” Kane asks after Charles leaves with a tinkling of the bell.
I sigh.
“He’s got this weird idea that I’m not safe with you because…” I trail off.
“Because I was in prison?” Kane raises his eyebrows.
“Well, yes. But he’s a jerk—I told him that as long as you need a place, you have one with me,” I tell him.
Kane cups my cheek in one big hand…then appears to remember we’re in public.
“Better get back to work now,” he rumbles. “I think table three wants their check.”
I go to give it to them, but I’m still fuming. I can’t believe Charles was trying to get me to kick my own brother out of my house!
But I can’t help thinking about him saying he doesn’t like the way Kane looks at me and calls me “baby.” There does seem to be something growing between the two of us—is it really that obvious to other people? If so, we’d better tone it down. Of course if Charles really knew what was going on between me and my brother, he’d probably be horrified. Probably the whole town would be.
But I don’t care about them—any of them. And I don’t feel guilty for “cheating” on my boyfriend either. Because I’m not really cheating—I’m just helping Kane with his hunger. I’m helping him get used to life outside of prison. It’s better for him to get his sexual needs met with me than some skanky prostitute that might have all the diseases—right?
That’s what I tell myself anyway and I don’t feel bad at all.
I go on about my day, but by the time we clock out, something weird is going on with me. My nipples are strangely tender—almost painful. Kane asks if I want to go anywhere but I shake my head and tell him I need to get home. I need to get a moment of privacy to look at my breasts and see what’s happening them.