Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 132031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 660(@200wpm)___ 528(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 660(@200wpm)___ 528(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
“What’s for dinner?” he asked.
“Mama said you’d fix us dinner,” Abi said, working on her homework.
Of course Tena did.
She was such a fucking bitch.
~~~
Dev stepped out onto the back porch, quietly shutting the screen door behind him. He didn’t turn on the light, needing a few minutes of darkened solitude before he spent the next few hours going over the custom designs he had to ink over the next few days.
Why was it so damned hard to get the kids to bed at a decent hour?
Their little bodies needed peaceful rest, and he bet their brains did too. It had to be after nine. Abi was still awake, reading. Who read before bed? But Abi liked her books in that same way that Shanna always had and look how good that turned out for his sister. A nurse. Pretty impressive. He wished the girls had a better relationship with Shanna. They needed a good influence.
At least the nanny had found a way to add structure to the girls’ evening rituals.
Homework, dinner, bath, pj’s and bed.
Maybe he remembered his mother trying to do those same things when he was little. No one could have wrangled him into bed like he did the girls, and if they had, it was only because he planned to sneak out the minute the lights went out.
Abi was a real influence on Mae. She allowed Mae to share a bedroom because of her fear of the dark. He found his heart regenerated under the love and care his children had for each other.
Dev tucked his fingers into the front pockets of his jeans and listened to the sounds of the night. They had space here on the property, maybe two acres if he remembered correctly. The lawn was nicely manicured, per the requirements of the HOA. The prospects had built a privacy fence around the property line. They stayed hidden. The fence and their utility building office made it easier for them to do their jobs. Eventually, he wanted to build the girls a swimming pool.
It all felt so normal to be there in Sunnyvale. A good, protected life. Why didn’t Tena see it that way?
He’d also gotten into the rental property game, but he’d kept that a secret from anyone inside the club for fear his brothers might want to move in. They sucked at paying bills on time, or at all for that matter. Right now, that investment did nothing more than hemorrhage money. All the code requirements for the remodels were a government-issued pain in the ass. He was months into owning the property and hadn’t made a dime yet. He had to stop thinking about that. Otherwise, anything good left in his attitude would tank.
His ink business had taken off. He’d signed off on a merchandise line on a whim tonight. Apparently, he had a YouTube Channel that Millie had created and was working on a TikTok with Abi’s help. That might have been the only time Abi had ever shown him true respect before. His budding entrepreneur daughter wanted to monetize his appearance on Ink Life.
“She came back for the shoes,” Con-man said, stepping out from his hiding spot.
Dev swung his head toward the prospect who startled the shit out of him. His heart pounded under the fear. His fists ready for the fight.
“What the fuck are you wearin’?”
Shit. The glitter wings. He’d completely forgotten about them. He clamped his jaw shut hard. If he could shoot laser beams from his eyes, he would have vaporized Con-man in his spot.
“What the fuck do you think I’m wearin’? I’m a goddamn fairy. This can’t be the first time you’ve seen them on me. You’re supposed to be lookin’ out for my kids.”
The prospect looked confused.
There was a moment when the guy opened his mouth then closed it again. He finally lowered his gaze to the concrete. “I don’t normally look in the house. I don’t wanna see nothin’ I shouldn’t…”
“You better not be lookin’ in my goddamn house,” Dev shot out protectively. “Unless you hear somethin’ that makes you need to look.”
He understood the difficult position he put Con-man in but didn’t give a single shit. He had to offset the pussy position these colorful wings put him in. He was an authority figure to the recruits. He had to show strength at all times.
“I…” the prospect started. “You…”
“I. You. Yeah, shut the fuck up,” Dev grumbled, as if the guy were as stupid as he could be.
Only then did Dev shrug the wings off and drop them on the patio table. He pulled out a heavy iron patio chair, scraping it along the concrete, and took a seat. He pushed his legs out in front of him, crossing at the ankle. “Has anything out of the ordinary happened?”
When the awkwardness between them continued, Dev let go of a sigh and kicked at the chair closest to Con-man. The only invitation he was going to give. Dev crossed his arms over his chest. Warmth and humidity hung in the air, dampening his forehead.