Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 79940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
King walked back inside with two more full paper grocery bags. I stared at them, then at him as he set them down with the others.
“I didn’t order all this. I only gave Maeme eighty dollars. This is all way more than that.”
King shrugged. “The list was too short. You need more than that. I looked at what you wanted and used it as an idea of what you liked. Then added a few things you should have put on there. Like the Oreos and real milk.”
“What? How much did all this cost? And I ordered the almond milk. What if I have a dairy allergy?” Which I didn’t, but that wasn’t the point.
“You ate the cornbread with butter on it last night. Both of those had dairy in them,” he replied with a smirk. “And I saw you eating the cheese grits at breakfast. Dairy. Not to mention, you had creamer in your coffee. The only creamer Maeme has is dairy. You can’t properly eat Oreos without real milk. How the fuck do you milk an almond anyway? It just sounds nasty.”
I sighed. “Okay, fine. I can have dairy, but this…this is a lot of food. How much did it cost?” I was trying to be frugal. This was not being frugal.
“Doesn’t matter. Take it up with Maeme if you have a problem with it. She paid for it, and good luck getting her to let you give her any more money.”
I peeked into the next bag, and there were the Oreos he’d spoken of, along with a multitude of other items I hadn’t asked for. “This is too much food for one person, King.”
He frowned. “No, it’s not. You don’t have to eat it all today. Pace yourself.”
I would not get upset about this. It was done, and I needed to be thankful. Let it go. If this was what Maeme wanted, then there wasn’t much I could do to stop her. She had made it clear that when she wanted something, she got it. And I couldn’t even be upset about that. This house was more than I would have ever dreamed up in a million years.
“One more thing,” King said and pulled out a phone from his pocket, then held it out to me. “You need a phone. My number is in there, and so is Maeme’s. It’s untraceable, and before you argue with me, this is something Maeme ordered. You might as well take it.”
I reached out and took the phone from him. “Thank you, really. I know I’ve been difficult, but I have reasons. I just didn’t want to bring anyone else into my mess. But I appreciate it.”
He smiled then. That distracting one he had. The one in the photos on the wall at Maeme’s. “You’re welcome, sweets. If you need anything, call.”
I nodded, and then he turned and headed out the door. Leaving me here in my new sanctuary. It all seemed too good to be true. I’d never known people this kindhearted existed in the world. I just had to be sure I didn’t take advantage of it. I would do everything I could to make it up to Maeme and King.
But first, I was going to settle into my temporary home.
• ten •
“They see your cocky ass coming a mile away.”
King
Sitting across from the man who had been the cause of my name, I took a drink of the whiskey in my glass.
Barrett Kingston, Storm’s father, had made a bet with my father thirty-four years ago that my dad lost. Technically, my dad was supposed to name me Kingston because he’d lost to Barrett, but my mother had been furious, seeing as she had planned on naming me Bash. In the end, she had settled for King. It was one of those stories I’d heard a million times, and I couldn’t say I was mad about it. I liked my name. What kind of fucking name was Bash anyway?
“Where is Stellan?” my father asked as he stepped into Stellan Shephard’s office.
He seemed annoyed that we had all been called here, and Stellan not being here yet was going to be an issue.
“Pour yourself a drink and stop scowling, Ronan,” Barrett said to him. “Stellan is on his way. He went in the lead car that escorted Blaise back to the airstrip. Before you ask about their whereabouts, Thatcher and Storm are in the follow car, and Monte is in the library, downloading files that Wilder sent him.”
Dad sighed and shrugged out of his jacket, then made his way to the bar, only giving me a brief nod as he passed. I didn’t bother to respond. I just took another drink and cut my eyes over to Wells, who was arguing with his father, Roland, about the fact that his younger brother, Teller, wasn’t more involved yet in the family business. Teller was only nineteen, and, sure, we’d had to step up at that age, but why make Teller? He could actually enjoy college without the stress of the life he’d been born into just yet. Wells saw it differently though. He’d not gotten to finish his four years at the University of Alabama as QB one because of his responsibilities to the family. He was still fucking bitter about it too.