Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 46881 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46881 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 234(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 156(@300wpm)
“I’m home, on my way to get you.”
“Really? Don’t play with me, I thought your anger management thing was for at least another month.”
“Nah, I got time off for good behavior.” I jumped into my truck and headed for her. “Hey, how come you’re not down with Jace’s girl?”
“Who, that Sian chick? She’s cool, we say hi in the halls and shit but you know I don’t roll like that. I stays far from the Barbie brigade.”
“I told you about that stupid shit. Jace is my boy, she’s his you’re mine, what the fuck!”
“Fine damn, I’ll call her up and make a play date, shit.”
“I told you about your smart ass mouth too girl.”
“Yeah-yeah, what you gonna do about it?” I heard Dej Loaf playing in the background and shook my head. The little Hollywood princess swears she’s a thug. The only thing she knows about that shit is what she sees on TV, with her Manolo Blahnik wearing ass.
“You been my good girl while I was gone?”
“You know I was, but swear to fuck this is the last time. Next time your ass gets into some shit I’m not waiting around.”
“Kill that shit babe you ain’t going nowhere. You sure everything was cool while I was gone?”
“You know it was you had your crew clocking my ass each time I left the damn house.” I had a lot more on her than she knew and always knew what she’d been up to from one day to the next.
It was one of the stipulations this last time before I went away. Just because my friends didn’t know what was going on in the real world around them, didn’t mean that I wouldn’t protect them from it.
Jace and her were my top priorities when I was away. Her for obvious reasons, and Jace, because he was the realest motherfucker I know, and he’s had my back more times than I can count.
“You missed me baby?” Time to bring it back down. I know she gets crazy with that first phone call after I’ve been away, and mouthing off is her way of dealing.
“You know I did, but Kev it’s getting harder to deal.”
“I know baby.” I couldn’t promise her that it wouldn’t happen again because it would be a lie, and I try not to do that too much, well no more than was needed to keep my secret hidden.
“I’m at your gate baby open up.” The surveillance camera scanned me before the gates disengaged and slid open.
As I rode down the long driveway to the home fit for a princess, my heart was finally at peace. She’s the only thing I hate about leaving.
Each time I do, I lose a piece of myself, and like she’d said, it was getting harder and harder.
She came flying out the door as I was climbing out the truck. I saw the tears from this far away and opened my arms for her.
She ran and jumped into them, and I enfolded her little form against my much larger one.
“It’s okay babe I’m here.” Gone was the mouthy girl of just a few short minutes ago, and in her place was my needy babygirl.
I stood there for the longest time absorbing the feel and scent of her as her tears soaked my neck. “Shh, it’s okay.” I lifted the hand with my ring that we had agreed to keep hidden for now. I’d had to pull a lot of strings to get the marriage license that had bound us to each other for life, but I would do it all again to protect her.
With a kiss to my symbol of ownership, I held her that much closer.
JARED
It feels like we’d barely got settled in here, before all hell broke loose. I didn’t even really have my bearings as yet, so to speak. There was too much going on too fast, and that was before my sister got herself almost killed and the girl I suspected of having something to do with it ended up in the hospital.
I was just starting to relax my guard a little, testing my feet in unchartered waters, and now this. I looked down at the phone in my hand.
If I make this call it’s gonna change a lot of things, so I had to be sure. The reason for my hesitance was so dumb though, but still I had to be sure.
Back in my last school it had been harder, but here in a new place with no past judgments to live down, it felt like it was okay.
That’s what was bothering me though; the fact that I even had to think like that. I should be able to love who I want to love without having to worry about living down a stigma. And I shouldn’t be such a prick that I’d let it stop me before.
But to be fair she was the first one to make me feel like she was worth taking that final plunge for. It shouldn’t matter that she wasn’t a size four or whatever the in thing was these days. No more than it should’ve mattered when I first realized that I was attracted to women with more curves than most.
I don’t even know the correct term to use, since I don’t see her any differently to anyone else.
To me she’s just beautiful, but back home the school’s head jock couldn’t be caught dead with anyone other than one of the cheerleaders or their ilk.
For the last year and a half I hadn’t dated anyone because it was getting harder and harder to pretend. But I wasn’t ready to date any of the heavier girls in school either because of fear of what others might say.
Now I’m sitting here kicking my own ass for being such an asshole. I felt like I had to share that part of me with Belle before we went any farther. I don’t know why, but somehow I felt I needed her forgiveness for being so weak back then.
Seeing her, hearing her, watching her these past few weeks, I’ve learned just what it’s like for girls like her, who don’t fit in with the norm, especially here in Hollywood, skeleton central.