Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 77793 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77793 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
I can’t say what standing inside the house and hearing Echo scream did to me. It raised the hairs on the back of my neck, gave me a pure heaping shot of adrenaline, and sent me flying straight through the house. Granny was already at the patio door before I got there. She gave me a quick two-liner about keeping Echo safe and watching out for her, then opened the door for me before I could plow through it in my hurry. I was so relieved to find that it was only a spider. Hearing someone scream is not a fun thing. And thinking they’re in danger on your watch? Also not cool. This isn’t about pride or anything. It’s about keeping Echo safe because, even if she hasn’t decided to join our family yet, she still might. And if she doesn’t? It’s my fault that she’s here.
I know Granny would have told me to keep watch. She technically didn’t, but I wasn’t making stuff up with Echo when I was up there. I’m doing the right thing.
I strain my ears and flex my butt cheeks again when I hear what sounds like soft footsteps above me. They drift across the wood floor, and then the door creaks open, and I see bare feet descending before Echo’s long legs and the rest of her come into view.
She pauses at the bottom of the ladder and peeks around like she’s sneaking somewhere. When she sees that I’m awake, she freezes.
“Are my eyes glowing in the dark?”
“I have to pee,” she huffs. “I came down to use the bathroom.”
I sweep my hand toward the back porch, which is illuminated by a glowing light attached to the house. “Okay, go ahead. The door’s unlocked at the back.”
“Ahh. You have your eye on both of them. I see. Multi-tasking. That’s very clever.” She says it like she’s still angry with me for not going into the house in the first place.
Her eyes are sparking like a fire. She doesn’t move, and I’m not really sure about the peeing thing. Her jaw clenches until a muscle in her cheek jumps near her jaw. She crosses her arms, which pushes her breasts together in her T-shirt, which, no, I don’t notice because I’m looking at her face. I swear I am. I notice she wets her lips quickly with the tip of her tongue before glancing around the backyard.
“I’ll just go then,” she says.
“What, right here? Should I turn around or close my eyes?”
“No, not right here!” she exclaims.
“I was just double-checking.”
“I’m going into the house.”
“Okay. I’ll watch to make sure you’re not in danger. I heard the raccoons were planning on staging a full attack before dawn. I don’t know if my sources are accurate, but be on the lookout. The trash can is at the front of the house, but this one is personal.”
She bites down on her bottom lip, and yup, she’s about to laugh. But she does quite an admirable job of holding it in.
“Got to watch out for the spiders too,” I go on because, yeah, now that I thought about hearing her laugh, I really want to make it happen, and I’m not going to stop until I do. “You never know when one might call for backup, and we might have an army of spiders moving into the backyard. They’re sneaky, and they can parachute in. Gotta have all your bases covered with them and their eight-legged offensive.”
She rolls her eyes, but still, her lips are barely wobbling. That’s just not going to do. I’m going to have to pull out the big guns here.
“And alas, you have to watch out for the air mattress monster. He’s the most sneaky of all because you think he’s just inanimate, but he’s really waiting to prove you wrong and devour you whole.” I leap up as fast as my mostly still numb behind will let me and look around before staring at a spot on the fence. I drop into a crouch to demonstrate the ninja skills I don’t have. “What’s that? Did you hear it? He’s coming?”
“Stop,” she begs. “Just stop. This isn’t scary without a flashlight and a spooky voice.”
I stand back up and stretch the kinks out of my slightly cold, damp, and sore muscles.
“I changed my mind. I don’t have to pee anymore. I’ll just go back up there.”
I shake my head, finding that I want her to stay. Not just because it’s boring down here or because sitting on the ground by one’s self is so much less fun than sitting on the ground with someone else, but because I really do want her company.
“There was something you wanted to ask me, wasn’t there?” It’s a stab in the dark, but when she clears her throat and looks at the exact place on the fence surrounding the yard where I just said the air mattress monster would be, I know I’m right. “So, peeing was an excuse?”