They ignore me and go crashing into my legs. We end up in a buttery pile on thefloor.
Holy crap, thathurt.
“I can explain!” Tori shouts as she shuffles towardus.
“Watch out.” From this angle, it’s easy to see the oil slick on the floor that my kids dragged along thewood.
It happens in slow motion, Tori wiping out. Arms windmilling. Legs flying out from under her. The yelp she cries before she hits theground.
I feel helpless under a pile of sticky children.Shit.
“Babe, you okay?” I grunt as I slowly peel Mila and Cody offme.
Tori moans, slowly reaching around to rub her elbow, then her ass. Speaking of ass, mine hurts like the dickens. That floor is harder than itlooks.
I’m limping toward her when the front door closes and my brother’s voice rings out. “Holy shit. What happenedhere?”
But it’s the gasp that follows that has me looking up. “Good lord, boy. I didn’t raise y’all in a barn.” My mother chuckles at herjoke.
“GRANDMA!” my kids shout and scramble toward her, but I snag the backs of their t-shirts, stopping them in their butterytracks.
“Nope. Bath time first. Then you two miscreants can hug yourgrandma.”
My mother looks tickled to find her brood in such a disarray. “Need somehelp?”
I blow out a breath and send up a prayer of thanks. “You have noidea.”
48
Tori
It comesat the perfecttime.
I stare at the text message, wondering if I’ve somehow willed it intoexistence.
Kat:Can you help me this week? Please? I’m desperate. I’m behind on a ton of orders, but I’m too big and too tired to do this on my own. I’ll oweyou!
When I don’t respond because I’m too busy re-reading the message, another one popsup.
Kat:Want my truck? You can haveit.
She must really need myhelp.
Kat:Stay with me. Maybe a week or two? I’ll pay you! More than the sisterly wage of love andtacos.
I chuckle. She knows I’d do anything for her forfree.
A wave of relief settles over me. At least this way I can leave on my own terms instead of having Ethan let mego.
But when I tell him my plan, he looksconfused.
He’s paying bills in his office, and I’m sitting in front of him. It’s a very boss-employee moment, which is weird since we haven’t had this kind of vibe since he peeled off my panties in the back of histruck.
His eyebrows pull together. “What are you talking about? Don’t you wanna stay?” A hurt expression flashes on his face, but then it’s gone. Did I imagineit?
I nod. “Of course I want to stay, but where do you suggest I bunk? With yourmom?”
We were all surprised Beverly returned early, but she was homesick. She’s staying here for now because Logan needs “a few days to clean his house,” which probably means he needs to clear out ten million pizza boxes and trash cans full of condoms.Gross.