Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 64910 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64910 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
The man didn’t take the hint, so when he tried to sidestep me and push me out of the way while he was at it, I’d had enough.
Since the guy probably weighed a buck fifty at most, I picked him up by placing my hands underneath his armpits and escorted him out of The Sweet Spot, Jeremiah’s bakery. Depositing him on the front step, I pointed at the other camera crew that was still recording their own version of the same shit outside.
“Keep the cameras outside,” I ordered. “And only come in if you’re willing to pay for something.”
They all nodded at me mutely, and I jerked my chin up to the girl that’d been patiently waiting for her pastries.
She smiled at me, then went back to the conversation she was having with her daughter, and I made my way back to Jeremiah.
Jeremiah was staring at me with a look on his face I couldn’t quite decipher.
“What?” I asked as I pushed past him.
“You’ve changed,” he said as he followed me to where I was going—his office.
He closed the door to his office, then leaned his shoulders against the wood.
“I’ve… come to terms with a few things,” I admitted.
“And what are those things?” he asked. “You’ve finally pulled your head out?”
Meaning, I’ve finally admitted to myself that Dory meant the entire world to me.
“Yes,” I answered. “I’ve also committed myself to losing her at the end of all of this.”
He blinked. “What? Why?”
“Because.” I paused. “I don’t think there’s any way in hell that I can fix any of this. We’ve all been too mean to her. She was telling me stories today of all her memories when it came to me, and my family, and I think I’ve got a burning bridge I’m trying to repair with only my bare hands and no tools.”
“If you think that you’re going to fail, you will,” he said solemnly. “And I think that Dory deserves a chance. I think that, if you can figure it out, you two will mean the world to each other. She deserves the world. Don’t you think?”
I didn’t think.
I knew.
“Maybe we should move,” I thought. “That place in Florida, Accident… it was nice. Away from all of our family. And I know that it’ll be hard but… I could find a place to work there on the coast. Jobs pay better over there anyway. Maybe I need to allow her to get to know me before we repair whatever the hell we broke with my family.”
Jeremiah crossed his arms over his chest, but his face was open as he said, “I think that might actually be good for the both of you.”
A fresh start.
Maybe… maybe that’s exactly what we needed.
• • •
BRAM
“What do you think?” I asked.
Her mouth opened and closed, her eyes wide, as she said, “I don’t know.”
I smiled.
I knew what she was actually thinking.
She was thinking that I wouldn’t be happy there.
But I would.
As long as I had her.
“I contacted that BNB chick,” I said. “Directly. They said as long as we pay rent, that they’ll be more than happy to rent it out to us for six months.”
My belly pitched as I watched her face go from excited to unhappy, to pensive, to excited again.
She didn’t want to be here.
My family and me… well, we’d fucked something up inside of her.
She wanted to be away.
“As long as you’re willing for me to be there, I’ll be there,” I told her. “And if you want, we can look for a house there.”
“But your family…” She hesitated. “They’ll hate me even more for taking you away.”
“I’ll tell them that I found a job there that pays better. You know how hard it is to find jobs here as it is.” I waved off her concern. “They won’t even know that it has anything to do with you.”
The hope in her eyes damn near killed me.
A little beep had me glancing at my phone, and I grinned.
“The chick that owns your BNB just messaged back with this house.” I flipped my phone around. “Check those pictures out while I go get dinner started. Let me know what you think.”
Dinner consisted of some really bland, non-smelly food.
All the meat was cooked outside, because I’d found out over the last week that she did better when the smells didn’t linger.
And the rice was plain ol’ boring white rice.
But if it meant that she would eat, I would eat the shit and be happy.
Which she did.
After bringing in the grilled chicken and placing it on the counter, I scooped out some rice onto a plate, more than she likely would eat, and then flipped over a crispy piece of chicken that I’d marinated with the sweetest teriyaki I could find.
Sweets seemed to do the trick. Not only had she been able to hold down a cupcake today, but a cookie and a kid’s bowl of orange chicken and white rice.