Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 141428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Rohan shook his head at her. “I know you want to believe the best in me. It’s your job. But I’m not a good guy, Dee-Dee.”
“Of course you are.”
He sighed, looking exhausted. “Prison changes you. The things you have to do to survive, they aren’t things I want you to know about.”
Her stomach tightened. She’d love to destroy that Alan Stein. She didn’t know how Sondra could be married to him. Sure, she was a bit self-involved but wasn’t a terrible person.
“You are not to go looking into any of this. It is not your job. You are not some amateur sleuth. Your job is to make gorgeous pottery and sell it to rich people for obscene amounts.”
“Oh, is that my job description is it?” she joked, trying to lighten the mood. She got to see him so rarely and she didn’t want this to become just doom and gloom.
“It is. Get free of this life, little sister. I couldn’t, but you’re a much better person than me.”
“You’re a good person too.”
“I think the fact that I’m in this place proves that statement to be untrue.”
Devi didn’t agree. “I love you. I always will. And I don’t care what you say, you’re the best big brother a girl could ask for.”
“I don’t think that’s true, unfortunately. Tell me what else is going on.”
An image of Hayes jumped into her mind but she was definitely not going to tell her brother about him.
That would only worry him.
And she definitely wasn’t going to tell him about that asshole attacking her outside the tavern. Or Vega being creepy at the trailer park.
Or Derick being his usual dick self.
Hmm. What could she tell him?
“Okay, that face tells me there is a lot going on. Spill.”
Shit. He always could read her like a book. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yeah, you do. You have a terrible poker face.”
“I do not! I am a woman of mystery.”
He snorted. “When Derick used to grumble that someone had eaten the last piece of cake that mom baked, I always knew it was you.”
He never called their father anything but Derick anymore. Oh, or asshole. But never Dad or even Father.
Because he wasn’t much of one. He hadn’t come to any of Rohan’s court dates. Or visited him in jail.
Although that was probably a good thing.
“That was through process of elimination,” she protested. “It had to be you, me, or Mom. And if you knew it wasn’t you, that left me or Mom.”
“Right, and it wouldn’t be Mom. It was always you.”
“You never ratted me out, though,” she said quietly.
“Of course not. You’re my little sister. I will always protect you. As much as I can. I just wish I hadn’t had to sell my place so you could have stayed there instead of with that asshole.”
God, she wished that too. Even with two jobs she hadn’t made enough to pay the rent and continue with her pottery. And eat.
Like you eat much anyway.
“If it’s too much living with that asshole, you need to tell me. I’ll talk to Freddy.”
Fucking Freddy.
That asshole wouldn’t lift a finger to help Rohan. Only problem was that Rohan thought he was a good guy, a friend.
“He’s been checking in with you, right? He said he would. And that he’d get you out of that trailer if you needed to leave.”
Right.
Like she’d let Freddy do any sort of favor for her. He gave her the creeps. But she wasn’t going to tell Rohan any of this. He had enough on his plate.
“It’s only for a short time.”
Only she’d been there for three months already and Derick got worse with every day that passed. She was pretty sure it wouldn’t take much for him to turn violent.
Rohan eyed her for a long moment. She hoped that he couldn’t tell she was lying to him. To distract him, she started telling him about all the things she’d overheard at the bar recently. It was amazing what people would talk about when they were drunk.
Enough for her to write a book on.
“Do you remember Vega Glasson from school?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
But Rohan still sat up straight. “Why do you ask that?”
“He helped Derick home the other night,” she said, concerned by his reaction. “Said that he found him on the side of the road, drunk.”
“Jesus, fuck,” he said, leaning toward her. Then he glanced at the guard in the corner of the room. “Devi, stay away from that guy, understand me?”
“You don’t have to tell me twice, he gave me the creeps.” But it seemed like he kept popping up so she might not have a lot of choice. “Is there something I should know?”
“Vega is a very, very bad guy. And you should stay far away from him. Rumor is he works for a guy who runs several, uh, sex houses. But not the kind where the women are always there willingly. Get me?”