“No need to apologize. All of us had our own shit to deal with back then, especially Dad.”
“Dare I ask about him?” Frankly, I hadn’t thought too much about him. Dillon had told me once our old man was trying to get sober.
“He’s still drinking. I’ve only seen him a handful of times, and only because I wanted to get some of my things.”
I had no desire to reunite with him, and I didn’t want to ruin the day reminiscing about nightmares and asshole fathers. “So, tell me what you’re up to.”
“Later. We should eat before the big, bad brother starts yelling.” She giggled. “Dillon’s an army sergeant when he cooks.”
“I need to get a quick shower, then.”
She touched my hair. “I’m digging the long, badass vibe. Jade must love it.”
I threw up my hands. “Does everyone know about Jade?”
She pushed out a shoulder. “We’re family. We talk.”
I was living in an alternate universe. In what era did the word “family” come into our vocabulary?
The smell of bacon drifted in again. My sister was happy and bubbly and ready to fight my battles, a stark contrast to what I remembered. I was in a room that felt like heaven, with fluffy pillows, a cushy mattress, and a bathroom. If I didn’t know I was at Dillon’s house, I would’ve assumed I was at a hotel.
She batted her big brown eyes. “Hurry up. You know how Dillon likes to eat all the bacon.”
On that note, my stomach growled. I’d only gotten a chance to eat a measly sandwich after returning from Duke’s the night before.
She bounced to the door like she was a teenager again. “I think we should take you shopping to get you some new clothes. Maybe a haircut too.”
I laughed loudly. “Shopping, huh? Why not? Haircut, no way.”
After the previous day, I could use a day—or hell, a year or more—to relax and shed six years of that disgusting prison from my skin and out of my veins. Still, I wanted nothing more than to enjoy a day with my sister.
Thirty minutes later, after a hot shower in which the water didn’t run cold after two minutes, a good, solid shave, and clean clothes that Dillon had lent me, I was walking into a modest kitchen. It was small, warm, bright, and lived in, unlike Duke’s cold atmosphere.
Dillon was reading on his phone at the table by the window. The morning sun sprayed in through the slats in the blinds, and some disk-like contraption moved along the edge of the tiled floor.
“What’s that?” I asked. I suspected it was a vacuum, which was odd to me.
“Welcome to the new age of housecleaning,” Dillon said, not looking up from his phone.
I got myself a cup of coffee then joined him. Plates of bacon, eggs, and toast were scattered about the picnic-style table.
I plucked a strip of bacon. “Where’s Grace?” I hadn’t taken that long in the shower.
He set his phone down. “One of my employees called in sick. I asked Grace if she could fill in.”
“Darn. No shopping?” It wasn’t the shopping I’d anticipated—I just wanted to spend time with my baby sister.
He chuckled. “Is that how you want to spend your second day of freedom?”
“I would shovel shit to hang with her. I feel like I owe her too. I was a terrible brother.” I’d never been home to protect her from our old man. If I had been, maybe she wouldn’t have taken off, and then she wouldn’t have ended up in a sex-trafficking ring.
Dillon made himself a plate. “We all were.
I followed suit. I was famished.
“I think it’s best if you stay in today,” Dillon said. “Tito might try again.”
I shoveled eggs into my mouth. “About Tito, I’m going to head down to see him.”
