Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 103356 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103356 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 413(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
“You need to tell him why you ran off. And why you’re here. It’s not fair to leave him wondering. Why are you here?”
“Wow, you’re nosy, huh?” Opal asked as she walked up, carrying Kye.
Shit. This was just what this situation needed.
The other woman blinked at Opal. Today, she was wearing thigh-high boots with a pair of daisy dukes and a tight corset-like top.
“Who’re you? And why are you giving my best friend here the shake-up?” Opal asked.
“Shake-up?” the other woman said.
“She means shake-down,” Lilac explained. “This is my friend, Opal. And this is . . .”
“I’m Hannah.”
“Well, Hannah, if you don’t mind, we got some shopping to do. This place is fucking stocked, considering we’re in small-town Texas, huh?” Opal said loudly. “This town is too cute. Did you know they even have a sex toy shop?”
Lilac sighed as everyone in the pharmacy turned to look at them in shock. Reaching over, she took Kye from Opal, pressing him against her chest. She kissed the top of his head, then glanced up to see Hannah staring at Kye softly.
“You should have told him,” Hannah said. “He’s a good guy. If you were in trouble, he could’ve helped you.”
Turning, she left.
“Well, she’s lots of fun, huh?” Opal said.
“I’m going to grab this stuff. Can you go to the grocery store?” She needed another job.
“You bet, sugar. Damn, there’s some real eye candy around this place.” Opal eyed an older man who was walking down the aisle.
He gave her an admiring look back.
Lilac had to smile. There was no one quite like Opal.
Lilac moved through Dirty Delights, fatigue making every movement hard.
She could do this. Tomorrow was Sunday and she had the day off. Perhaps she’d see if she could find a second job.
“Lilac, sit down,” Devon ordered.
“I’m fine. I’ve got another order to take out.”
“Sit. Down.”
Her eyes widened at the stern words, and without thought, she took a seat on a bar stool next to Jeremy, who sent her a smile. Jeremy was a regular customer who was here every night the bar was open. Which kind of made her sad. She wondered about his home life, but he never seemed down or upset. He always had a smile for her and the other girls.
“Hey, girlie.”
“Hey, Jeremy,” she said.
“You look like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
“I’m fine. I didn’t need a break,” she complained to Devon, who just gave her a stern look back.
“If you don’t take your breaks, then you’ll get tired and make mistakes. This is for me, not you.”
Uh-huh.
Devon disappeared out the back and returned with fish bites sitting on a bowl of fries and some mayo and ketchup. Damn, that smelled good. They didn’t offer meals at Dirty Delights, but they did have bar snacks.
Devon placed the bowl of food in front of her. She frowned. “Oh, you want me to deliver this? Where is it going?”
“It’s for you,” he replied.
She couldn’t afford this and they didn’t get food with their wages.
“I’m fine. Thank you, though.”
“Eat the food, Lilac,” Devon said sternly.
“I didn’t order it, though.”
“But you’re eating it before you go back to work.” Devon disappeared down the other end of the bar.
How rude.
Who did he think he was?
“Better do as he says, Lilac,” Jeremy advised. “Devon’s got a real stubborn streak, and he means what he says.”
She sighed and pushed the bowl toward him. “Want some?”
“I’m not eating until you do.”
She picked up a fry and forced it down. Her stomach grumbled. When was the last time she’d eaten? Shit. She couldn’t even remember. Her hand was shaking; in fact, she felt incredibly weak. Fuck. Maybe she should eat something.
After a few bites, though, she was feeling uncomfortably full.
“I’ve eaten. I’m heading back to work.”
Devon frowned, taking in how little she’d eaten, but he nodded.
Getting up, a wave of dizziness hit her, but she ignored it. She had to keep moving forward.
There was no going back.
16
Shit, it was busy tonight.
Far busier than last weekend. Apparently, there was a stock sale on in the next town over and people had spilled over to Haven.
Which wouldn’t be so bad, except it seemed like a lot of the locals had been scared away. And she was left dealing with people that weren’t as nice.
Lilac had been working here for a week and a half and she still felt like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop. For people to show her that they weren’t as nice as they appeared. That they didn’t look out for each other.
People weren’t like this anywhere else. Even the sheriff, who had come to talk to them the other day, seemed like a good guy.
Although his talk of needing to have a guardian was unwelcome. He’d given them another week to think it all through. But what was there to think about? She didn’t need anyone telling her what to do. Not even Linc, who’d offered to act as their guardian.