Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 103431 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103431 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
“Oh, Sweetpea, I don't always understand you, but I do respect you. And since you brought the subject up, when are you going to find you a nice man?”
I really did walk right into this one, I think sourly.
“Or is that one of those boundary questions I'm not allowed to ask?” She’s absolutely fucking with me. My mom, with her heart of actual gold and boundless good intentions, wouldn’t know a boundary if it walked up and slapped her in the face with a fish.
“It's fine, Mom. I'm single, not really looking to mingle.”
Okay, so I’m lying. I’d love to not be single, but with the way things are going, I will be for the foreseeable future. Men seem to only want one thing from me, and typically it’s the same thing I want from them—a good time. But if I’m being honest… I want more. I just haven’t met a man worth risking my heart for yet.
She glances skyward as if asking for patience. “You're not getting any younger, Scarlet.”
“Okay, slow down. I’m twenty-four.” I cross my arms and lean back against the booth.
“Knocking on thirty’s door.” Oh, good god, this woman. I love her, but…
“You know, not all women want to have kids.”
She tips her head to the side, contemplating my words. “This is true, and there's nothing wrong with not wanting kids. It takes all kinds to make the world go ’round. But I know you.” She points one ring-clad finger my way. “I know you.”
My shoulders slump under the weight of her stare. “I know you know me. You literally birthed me. But at this stage, it doesn't really matter what I do or don't want. We’ve already established, I’m single. Hell, there’s not even anyone warming my bed at the moment.”
“I’m sure you could easily find yourself a companion.” She has the audacity to waggle her perfectly sculpted brows at me.
I hold up a hand to stop her, knowing if I give her an inch, she’ll take way more than a mile. “Like I said, I’m flying solo right now, Mama. I’ll be sure to send a carrier pigeon out to sea if that changes while you’re gone.”
“What about that one fella…”
I swear my entire body turns to stone. “Not sure who you mean.”
I know exactly who she means.
“Oh, you know, your little friend’s boyfriend’s friend. The cop.”
Nora and my mom have only met a handful of times, so I don’t know when exactly they had time to conspire together about Ellis and me, or why they’re both dead set and determined we’re meant to be together. But to quote the original 90’s queen, Cher Horowitz, as if.
Obviously sent by angels, Amelia comes by with our order. “Here you girls go. Enjoy.”
I take that first sip of my delicious, cinnamon caffeinated bliss and sigh. “It's perfect, as always.”
“Let me know if I can get y'all anything else,” she calls, already on her way to another table.
Unable to wait, I break off a piece of the muffin and shove it into my mouth. “Oh my god, this is heaven.”
My mom eyes it and swipes a piece before I can stop her. “Oh yeah, that's good shit.”
“Should’ve gotten one.” I smirk, loving that I get to turn her words back on her. Sure, it’s a muffin and not a cruise, but whatever. It still feels good.
“Well, this is delicious, too.” She nods down at her bowl. “I'll get that after my cruise. You know I have to keep this body swimsuit ready.”
I laugh under my breath. “Mama, you'd look good in anything. Even a burlap sack.”
She smiles like I've just told her she’s won a million dollars. “And that's why you're my favorite daughter.”
“I'm your only daughter.”
“Semantics.”
We chat a little more about life, until she finishes her bowl and blots her lips with her napkin. “Well, I'm gonna run to the restroom and fix my lipstick. If Amelia comes by, here's my card.”
“You don't have to buy my food.”
“Scarlet, let your mother do for you,” is all she says before pushing away from the table and flitting to the bathroom.
Sure enough, the second she leaves, Amelia comes back. “Do you ladies need anything else?”
“Just the check.” I hold out Mama’s card.
“Actually…” She pauses. “Your bill’s been taken care of already.”
“Oh, wow!” I love these random acts of kindness, but they rarely ever happen to me. “That’s awesome. Can… can we take care of someone else’s bill? You know, to pay it forward.”
FOUR
ELLIS
Whenever I get too amped up—I run.
Stressed—I run.
Angry, frustrated, scared, sad, you name it—I run.
These days, I’m all of the above, and right about now, the sound of my shoes slapping against the pavement in time with the music blaring through my earbuds is the only thing keeping me sane.
It’s been a more than a year since I walked away from the Lake Fortune Police Department. Sixty some odd weeks since I watched the life drain out of my best friend’s monster of a father. Nearly five hundred days since I lied and told my former employer that his death was a suicide.