Get You Some- To format

by Lani Lynn Vale

  It wasn’t until we were standing in front of my truck, with his body pressed against mine, that he finally looked into my eyes. And what he saw made his eyes harden.

  “Who were they?” he asked.

  I licked my lips. “My mother and father.”

  “Oh,” he murmured. “That’s sucky.”

  It was. I wholeheartedly agreed.

  I also didn’t know what to say.

  It was a good thing I hadn’t shared what I hated about them, because moments after he’d asked that question, my mother and father appeared, going to the truck parked directly next to mine.

  I froze at seeing the brand-new truck—which I knew damn well they couldn’t afford—parked next to mine. I opened my mouth, and a sick sort of dread started to roll through me.

  “Nooo,” I moaned.

  Then I dove for my phone that was in my partially open truck door.

  The moment it was in my hand, I started to sign into my bank app, hoping that I wouldn’t see what I knew I’d probably see.

  And when I saw the low balance of my grandfather’s account directly below mine, I moaned again.

  “Nooo,” I licked my lips. “No.”

  My spine stiffened, and I made eye contact with my father.

  A long time ago, Tennessee Common had once believed in his son. When that trust had gone out the window, so had all of my father’s access to his money.

  But, apparently, he’d still had some access, otherwise sixty thousand dollars wouldn’t be missing from my grandpa’s bank account.

  Dad smiled and winked, Mom waved, and they pulled out of the parking lot.

  I made to get in the truck, but Johnny stopped me with a hand on my hip.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “I need to go see my grandfather. Now.”

  Chapter 16

  It is not acceptable to throw your trash on the ground. It’s also not acceptable to shit on your neighbor’s lawn.

  -things Johnny didn’t know he would ever have to say to a grown adult

  Johnny

  “You want to go with me?” she squeaked in surprise.

  I nodded. “I do.”

  “But…”

  “But I’m going to have to make myself acquainted with him somehow. Do you want to be there where you can possibly control what is said between us, or do you want it to be at a time of my choosing when you are nowhere near to hear what we discuss?”

  She licked her lips, clearly torn on whether she wanted to be there or not, and inevitably chose the first meeting for her to be present. But you could tell she was clearly unhappy with being given that ultimatum.

  “You can come…but just know, I’m highly offended by it,” she grumbled.

  I burst out laughing. “That’s a little harsh, darlin’.”

  “Why?” She looked genuinely confused.

  “Because a woman should want her man to meet her family, not to stay away,” I told her.

  She shook her head. “That’s not it.”

  “What is it then?”

  She licked her lips again, looking wild-eyed and angry. So, so angry.

  “I think that my grandfather just got screwed out of a lot of money, and I have a feeling that he’s not going to want witnesses to his tears. He’s a proud man. He’s not going to want you there.”

  “Well, if it starts going downhill, I’ll wait outside. You think he’s gonna lean that way, give me a signal and I’ll leave. Okay?” he asked.

  Her shoulders drooped.

  “I have to drop this chicken off to Coke, and then I’m heading to the nursing home,” she explained.

  I held up my finger. “Let me take it. I’ll explain that I’m taking a lunch, and if needed, investigating something if we learn that your grandfather was taken advantage of like you suspect. It’ll give you time to explain.”

  Her shoulders drooped even more.

  “What did I do to deserve you?” she asked.

  I grinned and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “I think you’ve got it all wrong.”

  “Oh yeah?” she asked.

  I nodded. “Yeah. It’s not what you did to deserve me. It’s what I did to deserve you.”

  ***

  I arrived at the nursing home thirty minutes later, hoping it was time enough for June to explain, and get some of her facts straight.

  I waved at the attendants at the desk, then stopped in front of the middle-aged woman with graying black hair.

  “Can I help you?” she asked tiredly.

  She looked haggard and worn.

  “I’m looking for Tennessee Common’s room. Can you direct me to where it’s at?” I asked politely.

  I didn’t miss the slight sneer that she tried to cover up. “Tennessee’s granddaughter is here visiting at this time, but if you’d still like to go back, the room he occupies is in the far west corner.”

  She pointed at the far ‘west’ corner that actually ended up being the far ‘east’ corner, and I nodded my thanks.

  I made my way to the west corner that was actually east and stopped right outside the door.

  “I don’t…I have a check missing, June Bug. I don’t…I don’t…I didn’t…”

  I swallowed at the despair that I could hear in Tennessee’s voice.

  “I’m going up to the bank as soon as possible,” June said. “I just have to wait for my ride.”

  That was my cue.

  I knocked on the door, and June opened it moments after I’d removed my knuckles from the old wood.

  “Hey,” she said, opening the door wider. “Come in.”

  I stepped through the threshold, and my eyes immediately found the haggard, weathered old man. He seemed despondent, broken, as if he’d tried and failed to live life.

  He brought his head up and his eyes met mine, recognition flaring in them and giving him a spark of anger to go with his despair.

  “You’re the friend?” Tennessee asked.

  I grinned and then offered my hand to the old man. “I hope one day she’ll refer to me as more than just a friend,” I admitted. “But until then, I’ll be whatever she needs me to be.”

  Tennessee’s eyes warmed. “That’s…good to know.”

  I grunted. “She’s a stubborn one, your June.”

  Tennessee laughed. “Ain’t that the truth.”

  Then his eyes dropped to my chest where my badge lay. “I seem to have acquired a problem.”

  I winced. “I heard.”

  His spine stiffened to what he would call ‘straight’ but others would see as stooped and narrowed his eyes. “I want to file a police report against my son and his wife.”

  Thirty minutes later, with permission from my boss, I was at the car dealership that had taken the stolen check, trying to gather more information.

  “And you didn’t ask for ID?” I asked, looking at the man who had taken the check.

  “No,” he admitted. “But since it was a local check, and the bank was local, all I did was make sure that the funds were actually available in the account. Once I knew that we sold them the vehicle.”

  Something in my gut burned. “The check was stolen,” I told the man. “That holds you liable for the money’s safe return to the original owner.”

  In between the bank and the car dealership, I was going to make sure that Tennessee’s money was returned. Pronto.

  “I…I…that’s not how this works.” He shook his head.

  I laughed. “You should’ve checked ID before completing the sale at the very least. Probably should’ve checked with the bank to verify the transaction was legit before just processing it. It is how it works, though.” I apologized. “If you want to pursue this in court, that’s fine. But I know a few judges that’ll fast-forward this right along, so that means that you’ll be paying him back whether you want to or not. It’s just a matter of time at this point.”

  The man’s eyes narrow
ed as if he was seriously contemplating murder.

  “Get me the truck back, and I’ll return the payment.”

  I nodded once. “You’ll have it within the hour.”

  The next thing I did was pull my phone out of my pocket and place it to my ear after dialing the number that I needed. “Parker?”

  The Commons wouldn’t know what hit them.

  Chapter 17

  What the fork is for dinner?

  -Hostel PD FB Page

  June

  My grandfather offered Johnny his hand once more and then smiled, a little bit wobbly this time. “I’m glad that you were here.”

  I was, too.

  I had no idea what it would feel like to have someone having my back.

  It’d been a long, exhausting day, and if there was one thing I did not want to do when I finished dinner with my granddad, it was talk to the woman who had witnessed me losing my virginity.

  But, my life was literally a joke most of the time, so why wouldn’t the universe bring me face-to-face with her after the longest day of my life?

  So, when I saw Rosie spot us from across the parking lot, I knew without a doubt that she wouldn’t let this opportunity pass.

  She was still dressed in the clothes that she had been wearing earlier that morning when I’d seen her in the gas station as I’d been paying for a pack of powdered donuts.

  Even though I’d only seen her once across a crowded room, and again outside the VFW hall, it’d been enough for me to sear the memory of her into my brain. Especially when irrational anger and jealousy had reared its head when she had placed her hand on my man.

  Sure, I’d been pissed at that man at the time, and I was sitting at a table with a stranger for a speed date myself, but none of that mattered to my heart.

  I hated her on sight, and I had committed her face to memory.

  To make matters worse, my grandfather hadn’t even made it into the truck yet, although the car door was wide open for him to get in. There’d be no hurrying him along, either. Tennessee Common did things in his own time, and nobody rushed him to do anything, not even his granddaughter.

  I knew—I just fucking knew—that Rosie wouldn’t let it lie.

  Therefore I wasn’t the least bit surprised when she walked right up to us and introduced herself as Rosie, Johnny’s ex-girlfriend, to my grandfather.

  “Hello, y’all! Fancy seeing you two here! And who is this delectable male specimen?” Rosie asked, smiling wide at my grandfather. “I’m Rosie, this one’s ex-girlfriend.”

  Bitch.

  Couldn’t she see that this was a private conversation?

  Then I snorted. This woman obviously had no boundaries, something she’d already proven to me.

  My grandfather’s bushy eyebrows came up. “Nice to meet you.”

  I could hear the lie in his voice, and it nearly made me smile.

  My grandfather was my fiercest protector, my knight in shining armor. He wouldn’t like this woman based on pure principle. That, and he’d learned to read my body language a long time ago. If he hadn’t, he’d never have known that something was seriously wrong with me since I wouldn’t have said a word to him about it.

  That was how, when I was ten, he knew that something was going on with my parents. That was also why, at the age of fourteen when I’d started my period, he knew that something was wrong, and wouldn’t let me go anywhere until I told him why.

  Sometimes, it could be embarrassing that he was so stubborn and focused on me. However, other times, such as now, I knew that he was the best type of man to have as a protector.

  And seeing Johnny stiffen? Watching him angle his body so that I was partially covered by him? That let me know without words that Johnny was on my side and that kind of man, too.

  I swallowed and tried to blink away the stupid tears that had risen up at the knowledge and realized what a futile effort it was.

  I’d already had a long day before any of this started, and it seemed that I was in for an even longer night.

  This woman really was the last thing I needed to be dealing with right now.

  I’d hit my limit.

  Therefore, when Rosie opened her mouth with an evil smile on her face, I knew without a doubt that she was about to say something that was going to get her punched in the mouth.

  “Did June and Johnny tell you about the night we met?”

  I started to step forward, but Johnny grabbed my hand before I could throat punch her like I’d been intending.

  Stupid cop self.

  “I’m sure it was a pleasant meeting,” Tennessee, the best grandfather in the world, said. “But I’m an old man, and it’s well past my bedtime. If you don’t mind…”

  With that, my grandfather got in the car, and I was left staring at a woman who clearly had no qualms about bringing innocent bystanders into private conversations.

  Once the door was closed, Johnny turned and glared at Rosie. “You need to leave me alone.”

  “But, Johnny, I’m just trying to…”

  “No. You are once again trying to do something that you shouldn’t be doing—you know, like meddle in something that you have no business doing. So, you need to trust me here, Rosie, and listen when I say that I don’t want anything to do with you.”

  With that, Johnny walked around to the other side of the truck, opened up the door, and waved me toward it.

  I got in without a moment’s hesitation, then watched warily over my shoulder as Johnny rounded the back of the car, passing a seething Rosie again in the process, and got in. All the while, she watched with an angry gleam in her eye, as if she was planning her next attack.

  “Bitch.”

  I gasped. “Grandpa!”

  Chapter 18

  That was illegal, but it’s fine. We’re only here as decoration. Not to give actual tickets.

  -Hostel PD FB page

  June

  I don’t know exactly when the act Johnny had been putting on became obvious to me. We’d been together for well over two weeks and had a little routine going on. He came over after his shift, we’d spend some time together, and he’d leave before it got too late to go to bed.

  Then we’d rinse and repeat the next day.

  Overall, I loved it.

  I loved that he was here and wanted to spend time with me. I loved that what he gave me were things that I never even knew I needed. I loved the way he felt against my skin. I loved where we seemed to be going, what we seemed to be building and what this could be leading to…but there was also a downside.

  I could sense that something was wrong. Warning bells were going off in the back of my mind.

  Every time his parents called, he’d ignore it.

  Every time I mentioned him staying over for the night—because I wanted nothing more than to wake up beside him—he’d say that he had to get up early the next morning. There was no arguing with him about it either. He got this look in his eyes when I did, and I knew that I could possibly push it too far.

  So, I never pushed.

  Or at least I tried not to anyway.

  Today was different, though.

  Not at first, but it turned out that way.

  We’d arrived back at my place after dinner about an hour earlier, and now we were both curled up on the couch watching our second episode of Supernatural.

  It was when Dean was shooting a vampire in the face that my mind and hand started to wander.

  At first, I started by dragging my fingers along his naked chest.

  He was in nothing but jeans and socks, his feet propped up on the arm of the sofa.

  Amanda was at work and would be for the next eight hours since it was Saturday night.

  Tomorrow, Johnny didn’t have to work, so I knew that if I had any chance at all to get him to stay the night—tonight was it.

  I would accomplish my goal, too! I wanted him to stay. I wanted to wake him up with my mouth betwe
en his legs. I wanted to make him breakfast. I wanted a whole lot of things, and I was a selfish person.

  I just plain wanted him.

  So, as I ‘accidentally’ skimmed the pad of my thumb over his nipple, my lips twitched at feeling his belly stiffen in reaction.

  Johnny was beautiful with his shirt off, and his belly was a work of art.

  He had so many scars all over his beautiful body, and I’d been curious as hell about how he’d gotten them.

  My head was on his pectoral, and we were both laid out on the couch. Me on my side between him and the back of the sofa and him on his back with me wrapped around him like a half-pretzel.

  If I’d been a guy, there’d be no disguising just how turned on I was by a woman laying on me for the last hour. But I wasn’t a guy, and his head seemed to be somewhere else tonight.

  He’d been acting weird since he left my place last night after receiving a phone call. And when he picked me up to go for dinner tonight, he’d been preoccupied.

  His sudden change in behavior got me thinking. I hadn’t received one single text from him all day, and I’d sent him plenty.

  That was unusual. Even when he was working, he always made time to text me. Always. Otherwise, I tended to worry, which he thought was ‘adorable.’ His words, not mine.

  When I asked him what was wrong earlier at dinner, he said there wasn’t anything wrong.

  Which led us to now.

  He hadn’t said so much as a word since we’d started watching the show, but he had allowed me to curl myself around him. He’d also tugged me in close.

  What he hadn’t done was make any move to take me as he would’ve normally done.

  This made me wonder if he was waiting for me to make the move—which he sometimes did because he didn’t want me to freak out—or if he was genuinely not in the mood.

  But with his standoffish attitude, I wasn’t sure which way I should approach it.

  “Did something happen at work today?” I asked carefully, my hand flattening against his abdomen.

  I felt the separated ridges of his abdominals and wondered how he had them with how much he ate— which was usually a lot and not exactly the healthiest options. There were a total of two days this week that we hadn’t met for at least one meal out, and all this eating out wasn’t very good.