Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 108165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Mom would say, “You don’t even know why you’re punishing them.”
He’d reply, “Look at them. I’ve never seen guiltier faces.”
John shoveled manure while I milked the goats. Those were our usual punishments.
“They’re gone, Frannie Pants.” Dad closes the door behind him and sits on the edge of my bed, resting his hand on my leg.
I lean against the headboard and sigh. “I know.”
“So why are you still here?”
I think I could tell my dad. He’d hate it, but accept it because he’s a hundred times more rational than I am. He’s also honest to a fault. There’s no way he could keep this from my mom. And she runs on pure emotion.
Mom’s not the type to seek revenge. She’d drown in a sea of helplessness and let it eat her alive.
“I don’t have a job. Or a brother. I don’t have Steven, the only child who felt a little … like mine. My godson.” Tracing the swirling pattern on the bedspread, I murmur, “I’m looking for closure. I’m waiting for it to make sense. And I know they’re not coming back. I know it, but I don’t feel it yet.”
“So you’re going to stay with a stranger for … how long?”
“Eloise isn’t a stranger. Steven adored her like another grandmother. And she’s been nothing but kind to me. I think she’s needed me as much as I’ve needed her. When Lynn and Steven died, Eloise felt like she lost part of her family.”
Again, he squeezes my leg, and I give him a sad smile. “Come home with us. Your mom needs you. I need you.” It’s a rare moment to see vulnerability in my father’s eyes.
I scoot closer to him, wrapping my arms around his neck. “I won’t stay long. I just … can’t leave quite yet. It’s difficult to explain, but I need you to trust me.”
He hugs me tighter than he has in years, maybe ever. “I trust you,” he whispers.
The following morning, we drive to Hertzville for breakfast at the cafe where Eloise used to work. It’s an old joint with a slew of health code violations, stale donuts, and sludge for coffee. But the waitress is sweet and laughs at my dad’s jokes, so it’s worth the one-star food.
Until …
Archer Sanford breezes through the front door with his bodyguards. This is the last place on Earth I would have imagined him visiting. Nobody with money or working tastebuds sets foot in here. I scoot down in the booth's corner behind my dad, ducking and slowly scratching my forehead to hide my face.
He heads to the back of the cafe and disappears into the kitchen. A few minutes later, he emerges like a king. Always dripping confidence.
I lift my coffee mug to my lips, scooting even farther down into the booth, eyeing Eloise to see if she notices him, but she’s too busy dipping the last of her stale donut in her coffee. My dad gives me a funny look, forcing me to sit up straighter. And that tiny adjustment is all it takes for Archer to spot me.
I can’t look away. He has a commanding gaze. With a subtle jerk of his head, he exits the cafe.
Archer: I don’t like waiting
I peek at my phone and slide it back into my purse. “I need to use the ladies’ room.”
Dad scoots out of the booth to let me past him, still inspecting me with suspicion. I smile before heading toward the restroom, but I keep going to the exit at the back of the restaurant. Archer’s SUV with blackout windows waits across the street. One of his bodyguards opens the back door for me. We’re alone. There’s no one in the driver’s seat.
“Fuck … what a surprise. I need this.” He sighs, grabbing my hips and pulling me to straddle his lap before I can chirp a word.
I grip the door to steady myself, swallowing hard to mute my inclination to gasp from his sudden aggression. Archer buries his face in my neck and takes a deep breath while gripping my ass.
My hands look for a place to rest. I don’t want to touch him, but our close quarters don’t leave me much choice.
“Who are those people with you?” he asks muffledly.
I stiffen while he kisses my shoulder and pulls me closer to him—to his erection.
“Family. What were you doing in that cafe?”
“Business,” he mumbles, nibbling at my neck.
“Y-you sounded distraught yesterday.”
“Nothing you need to worry about.” He grinds into me, sliding my shirt up my torso.
“I have to get back inside.” I try to sound more matter-of-fact than desperate, but it’s hard.
“Iris, I need inside too. Inside of you.” He unbuttons my shorts.
“Archer,” I push at his shoulders, “I can’t do this right now.”
His hand dips into the cup of my bra, and he groans.
The SUV suddenly shakes, the front of it slanting to the right with a pop.