King agreed with a slight nod of his head.
“I didn’t say I wanted that,” I quipped, shrugging my shoulders. “I just didn’t know people actually did that. Thought it was made up or something you only see on TV.”
“It is,” Bear said. “What you just saw there was a lie. The dad is probably fucking his assistant, who’s a dude, mom’s knocked up by the principle of junior’s school and has a thousand dollar a day drug habit, plus junior is so high on ADD meds he doesn’t know his dick from a wet noodle.”
“I feel like you’ve given this way more thought than it deserved,” I observed as the family eating dinner grew further and further away. “Wait?” I faked a gasp. “Are YOU the one fucking the dad?”
Bear punched me in the shoulder and smiled. “Boring as fuck,” he said again, like it was a fact he wanted me to remember. He slid his cigarette to the side of his mouth so he could use both arms to row against the growing current.
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Boring as fuck.”
As we approached the island everything was cast in shadows, making the long roots of the mangroves look like hundreds of skinny legs dipping into the water. The trees themselves appeared to be large spider-like creatures standing guard around the island.
I held the flashlight, trying to find the clearing we’d hacked out months before. The light caught the yellow glowing eyes of a dozen or so gators lingering at the surface of the water. Some darted under the second they found themselves in the way of the beam, other braver ones slinked toward our boat without creating any sort of wake to better inspect the intruders.
Us.
“It’s like a gator orgy out here,” I said.
“Yeah, so let's get over there quickly without tipping the goddamned boat before it becomes a gator buffet,” King said.
Once we found the clearing we paddled toward it with all of our strength to keep the tide from pushing us back. The second the boat made contact with land King jumped out first pulling the boat further onto the shore, scraping the metal bottom of the boat over the rock and shell.
Bear and I followed, each of us carrying backpacks with our stash. It only took us an hour or so to locate our hole, dig it up again, bury our stash and cover it back up.
As we made it back to the boat my flashlight again caught the yellow eyes of the gators surrounding the boat. One thrashed as it caught a fish in its mouth before diving back under the water with its meal between its teeth. “Great night for a swim,” I sang, looking back at King and Bear.
“You afraid?” Bear said, slinging his empty backpack into the boat.
“You’re the pussy out of the three of us,” I said. “Bet you wouldn’t dip your big toe in the water.”
Bear raised a brow. “Oh yeah? I’ll do you one better, I’ll run in, knee deep if you run in with me.”
“One lap around the boat?” I asked, already kicking off my shoes and rolling up my pants. Bear did the same. We both looked to King.
“Fuck,” he said, tugging off his boots. “The only reason I’m doing it this is so I don’t have to fucking hear about it for the rest of my goddamned life.” He stood at the edge. “Don’t tell Grace a word of this,” he muttered.
The three of us stood at the edge and Bear pushed the boat halfway into the water.
“Ready?” I asked, cracking my neck and rolling my shoulders. “First motherfucker to get eaten...well, dies.”
“I’m not scared,” Bear said.
“Me neither,” King chimed in.
“Okay then,” I said. “Ready. Set. Goooooo!” I shouted as the three of us splashed through the water like a herd of zebra running from a lion. It only took a few seconds for us to round the boat before we collapsed onto the shore, breathing hard from the adrenaline rush.
“All thirty fingers and toes accounted for?” King huffed.
“Yeah,” Bear and I both said at the same time. I held a finger in the air, “But Bear’s pinky toe on his right foot is weirdly smaller than the rest of his toes, so the ‘all finger and toe’ thing is subjective at best.”
“Shut the fuck up, Preppy,” Bear said, reaching for me to hit me but his fist fell short, smacking the ground instead.
“That wasn’t so bad,” I said, still gasping for air.
My life would never be like the perfect-looking family eating dinner in that window, but it didn’t have to be, because at that moment, with my friends by my side, I decided I’d much rather live the kind of life that had me splashing through gator infested waters, feeling very much ALIVE.
I glanced over to King and Bear who recognized the look on my face and cringed.
“Wanna go again?”
CHAPTER SIX
Dre
After Preppy left with Kevin I called my dad to reassure him I was okay. He sounded as if he’d been waiting by the phone so it took quite some time to calm him down and put his mind at ease that I was safe, which was hard when I wasn’t so sure myself. Apparently, I didn’t do that great of a job convincing him because he decided to stay in town for a while. At least until he was sure whatever threat was looming out there was gone.
After we hung up and I promised we’d get together in the next day or so, I realized that in all the confusion over what had happened the night before I’d forgotten a few things. Number one, I didn’t get a chance to give Preppy his surprise, but he’d seen it and thanked me for it with his tongue between my legs. The shiny black classic Chrysler was now sitting in the darkened back corner of the parking space under the house, covered with a tarp.
I’d also almost forgot that Mirna’s house was now mine again.
Not mine. OURS.
That thought made me smile from ear to ear.
I don’t know how Preppy and Ray pulled it off, especially without telling me for so long, but I was beyond grateful they had. That house meant so much to me and I couldn’t wait to get back in it. It was like the start of a new life and the rebirth of an old one.
Moving was the perfect distraction I needed to take my mind off the events of the night before. When the rental truck showed up at the house I immediately felt a sense of relief that I could focus on something other than who could be out to get me, although the stinging pain from the wound on my leg and other numerous scrapes and scratches, took the liberty of reminding me every other movement.
Besides one small scrape on the side of his arm you’d never thought that King had been in an accident the night before, never mind one where the truck flipped on it’s side. When I thanked him for coming to my rescue, he looked at me as if my thanks were ridiculous, and then him and Bear started loading up everything from the garage apartment into a we-haul rental truck, including the sofa, and the bed, which had already been dismantled. Come to think of it, the bed being in pieces was probably the reason I’d woken up in Max’s room that morning.
We didn’t have much by way of furniture, but we didn’t need it. Thankfully Mirna’s house was cozy and it wouldn’t take much to fill it up.
Everything else we owned, clothes and all, had already been packed up into boxes so it didn’t take long for the boys to get it all onto the truck.
Ray came back from the beach with the kids and when Bo came bounding out of Ray’s new SUV I hugged him tight and didn’t let go until he started to wiggle in my arms. “Are you okay?” I asked. The sound of him calling for me still echoing in my thoughts. I shook it off, not wanting to pass on any of my worry or fear to him.
Bo nodded and pointed to a scrape on my cheek.
“I’m okay,” I said, touching my fingers to the small scab. “It’s just a scratch.” I took his little hand in mine and we piled back into Ray’s car together.
After the ritual of making sure everyone was back in the car and buckled in their boosters and car seats, checking to make sure every buckle was at chest level and every safety latch was tight, we took off for Mirna’s.
Home.
Bear and King were already unloading when we arrived. Some of Bear’s g
uys were there as well, standing guard along the perimeter of the yard and at the end of the driveway.
“You remember this place?” I asked Bo as we un-piled all the kids one by one and set them free to run about the yard and house.
Bo nodded enthusiastically.
I crouched down next to him and hugged him close to my side. “Do you want to go pick your room? You can have either the first one on the left, that used to be my old room, or the room at the end of the hall.” Before I’d finished my sentence Bo was already up the steps and in the house, darting past King and Bear who were carrying the sofa inside.
It took less than an hour to unload everything. Bear and King checked with the bikers they’d left behind and took off. Ray stuck around for a little while to help put dishes away in the kitchen but it didn’t take long for the kids to grow restless.
“Thank you so much for all your help,” I said to Ray as we stood outside her SUV after packing all the kids away again. I’d left Bo in his room, the one that used to be the grow room, laying on his back staring at the ceiling fan spin round and round with a goofy grin on his face.
“No problem. Thia’s sorry she couldn’t help but Trey’s got another cold and she didn’t want the other kids to get it.”
“Tell her not to worry about it and when Trey’s feeling better we can have a girl’s night.”
“Now that’s what I’m talking about,” Ray said.
“Thanks again, Ray,” I said, wrapping her in a tight hug.
“Is this pre or post kiss? Doesn’t matter. Either way, I’m very okay with your decision to step outside of our marriage...but only if I can watch.” I didn’t need to turn around to know that Preppy was standing behind me, but when I did, I was surprised to see Kevin still with him. Especially because Preppy had called to say he was dropping him at his place before meeting me at the house.
Ray got in her SUV and buckled her seatbelt. “I’ll see you later,” she said to me before turning to Preppy. “For the record, Preppy you showed up post kiss, and you missed it. It was pretty epic. Tongue and everything.” Ray stuck out her tongue as she backed out of the driveway. All three kids in the backseat mimicked her, sticking out their tongues as well.
“Can you just lie to me and tell me that really happened?” Preppy asked, wrapping me in his arms. He stared down at my lips. “Never mind. I like the idea of these lips being only mine.” He pressed his soft lips to mine then pulled back slightly. “Unless you really did do it in which case...”
I laughed and gave my man a quick kiss. “Hey Kevin,” I called over Preppy’s shoulder.
“Hey, Dre,” Kevin said. He was standing awkwardly by the front porch, looking everywhere but at us, fiddling with the strings on the front of his board shorts.
I stepped out of Preppy’s hold, not wanting to make Kevin feel uncomfortable. Preppy reached in his pocket tossed Kevin a set of keys. “Go get your bag from the van,” he told him. Kevin nodded and headed down the driveway while we went inside.
We quickly checked in on Bo who was in his new room, still on the floor, playing a game on the tablet Preppy had insisted on buying him. He gave us a smile and a thumbs up. After I closed his door I took Preppy’s hand in mine and yanked him into what had been Mirna’s room but would now be our master bedroom. I shut the door behind us. “I like where this is going,” Preppy said, pulling me flush against his hard chest.
“No,” I said, wiggling out of his grasp and walking around to the other side of the bed. I had to put some space between us before Preppy rendered me dumb and I couldn’t get my words out.
“No?” Preppy asked, looking a little hurt.
“I just mean not right this second,” I corrected. His expression instantly brightened. “Kevin,” I prompted. “You were going to take him home, now he’s getting his bag from the van.”
“Yeah, about that,” Preppy said, scratching his neck. I waited for him to continue, but his only answer was an awkward grin.
“After last night I might be a little confused,” I explained. “So bear with me. What happened? Why didn’t you take Kevin home?”
“I did take him home, that’s the fucking problem,” Preppy said with a groan. He plopped down on the bed and unlaced his boots, kicking them off he lay back on the mattress and looked at me upside down. I sat down next to him and stroked his hair. “The place where he lives is a shit hole. And I don’t mean that like it had a bulb out on the porch or like the espresso machine overflowed and stained the carpet. I mean it like I could smell actual shit from the street. Kevin said the landlady who rents him the room has a fuck ton of cats and no litter boxes. Plus, the roof over his room is non-existent. It’s covered with a tarp where there was fire damage that was never fixed.”
“Shit,” I said. “Why does he stay there? Can’t he find another place?”
Preppy shook his head. “I asked him that. He said he can’t afford anything else. Makes sense though. The kid’s only nineteen. Being a small time weed dealer with a ninth grade education doesn’t get you too far.” He sighed. “I know I should've asked you if I could bring him here, but it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. All I knew was that I couldn’t let him stay in that place so I told him to pack his shit and I brought him here.” Preppy looked up at me through his ridiculously long lashes. “He can’t go back there. I won’t let him.”
My heart squeezed.
“You mad?” he asked.
I leaned over and pressed an upside down kiss to his lips. “No,” I said. “I’m not mad. I’m very proud of you, Samuel Clearwater.”
“Thanks, Doc.” Preppy nuzzled into my touch as I continued to run my fingers over his hair, lightly scratching along his scalp with my nails.
“Do you trust him?” I asked.
Preppy closed his eyes for a beat. “No. Not entirely, but I still couldn’t turn my back on him.”
There was a knock at the door. “Uh, Preppy?” A hesitant voice asked from the other side.
“You can come in, Kevin,” I called out.
The door slowly opened. Kevin stood there with a tattered army green duffel bag slung over his shoulder. “There’s someone here for you. Outside. Some guy.”
“Who?” Preppy asked, sitting up and reaching for his boots.
“I’m not sure, but he’s kind of being a dick,” Kevin said.
I went over to the window and pulled the lacy ivory curtain to the side. I peered out and spotted a man wearing overalls, standing against a large blue unmarked semi truck that was parked in the street. The man was impatiently tapping a clipboard against his leg while glancing between bikers guarding the yard.
“Kevin, Doc, you stay here,” Preppy ordered. He opened the door to Bo’s room. “Come on my boy. It’s here.” Bo scrambled to his feet and ran after Preppy who didn’t appear to be worried. He had a little spring in his step as he bound toward the front door. He was excited at whatever was waiting for them outside.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“It’s a surprise,” Preppy called back. The screen door slammed shut behind them.
“A surprise?” I muttered, trying to figure out what kind of surprise was delivered to your house in a semi-truck. “What the hell could it be?”
“I’ve got no fucking clue,” Kevin said, coming to stand beside me at the front window. “But whatever it is, it’s making a shit ton of noise in the back of that truck.”
“Noise?” I asked, scrunching up my nose. “What kind of noise?”
Kevin shrugged and turned back toward the kitchen.
“The screaming kind.”
****
“You got him a dog?” I asked, spying the leash and dog bed in the hall when Preppy finally said it was safe to come out of our bedroom because he’d insisted I hide while he and Bo got ‘the surprise’ ready.
“Suuuurrreeee...” Preppy said. Just then a loud squeal ripped through the room followed by laughter. A blur of white and black tore into the living room and out to the backyard
through a new doggy door that had been installed in the sliding glass door. Bo followed, crawling through the door behind him.
“That wasn’t a dog,” I stated, walking over to the kitchen window.
“That depends. What’s your definition of dog?” Preppy asked.
I held up my hands to my chest with my fingers curled over my palms to mimic paws. “Wuff. Wuff.”
“Then no. No, I didn’t get him a dog. Not in the DNA sense,” Preppy said. He stood behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. He bent his neck and pressed his nose into my hair and breathed in deep, inhaling my scent. I relaxed into him. “You smell so fucking good,” he groaned.
“Is that who I think it is?” I asked, still not believing what I was seeing. Bo chasing around a giant pig in the backyard. “That’s not just ANY giant pig, is it?” I asked, feeling my hopes start to rise.
Preppy shook his head and smiled into my hair. “Nope. It’s not.”
“Oscar?” I asked, spinning around in Preppy’s arms. “How is that even possible?”
Preppy shrugged. “Mrs. Saddleston, the lady he was placed with after Mirna, died a few weeks ago. The Alzheimer's agency thinks that Oscar was too sad to be placed with another Alzheimer patient, apparently he doesn’t handle death well. Anyway, it was time for him to retire and they said he could come back and live with us if we wanted. So...”
“So you got Oscar back!” I shouted, wrapping my arms around his neck and standing on my tiptoes to place a soft kiss on the corner of his upturned lips. “You did it. You got him back!” I said, not sure if I was even making sense I was so excited.
“Yes, ma’am. I motherfucking did it,” Preppy said proudly.
“Thank you,” I breathed, turning back to the scene in the backyard. The one where my son was playing with his new, my old, pig.
“After all, every boy needs a man’s best friend,” Preppy said, running his hands across the delicate skin on the front of my throat and across my collarbone.
“I’m pretty sure that they meant dog when they came up with that saying,” I replied. My nipples hardened.
“Actually, I’m pretty sure that pussy is a man’s best friend. But we’ll just have to agree to disagree,” Preppy said, dropping his hands to the waistband of my skirt, dipping his fingers inside briefly before pulling them back out. “But just to be sure,” he said, reaching down to the hem of my skirt and pulling it up so he had access to my panties. He pushed the fabric aside and teased my wet folds with his thumb. “I’ll need to thoroughly investigate.”
Preppy, Part Three, The Life & Death of Samuel Clearwater (King, #7) Page 5