Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 84982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 425(@200wpm)___ 340(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
When she messed up the second ice cream float in a row, I decided to take over making all those and let her stick to just scooping. Barbara said not to let her near the cash register because she wasn’t good with counting out change. Juggling all the things she couldn’t do kept me busy.
Twenty minutes before closing time, the door opened, and in walked three guys about my age. I didn’t know any of them, but then again, I hadn’t gone to the local high school, and if they didn’t go to my church, our paths never crossed. I stepped up to the register, and Mandy grabbed my wrist. When I glanced over at her, she had a pained expression.
“That’s Deck Rogers,” she whispered. “And his gang.”
Gang? In Madison? She must not mean it literally.
“You want me to help them?” I asked her.
She nodded and stepped back. The way she was acting, I almost expected her to run to the back and hide until they left.
“Hello. How can I help you?” I asked the four guys as they made their way up to the counter.
They had a few tattoos. One had a big black hole in his earlobe that was on purpose, two of them had piercings in their eyebrows, and another had one in his nose. It didn’t make them gang members though. I had a feeling Mandy was being dramatic. The one with spiky, bleached hair, who I was assuming was Deck, stood out. It was a brave choice. I liked it.
He smirked at me and placed his palms flat on the counter, leaning in toward me.
“You’re new,” he said as his eyes scanned my body.
“Yes,” I agreed.
“You don’t go to school?”
I shook my head. “I was homeschooled, but I graduated two years ago. I’m a sophomore in college,” I explained. I had graduated a year early, and I went to the local junior college, but I didn’t have to give him that much information.
He laughed and glanced back at his friends. “Homeschooled.” He said it like that was funny.
“She’s probably awkward as fuck,” the black-hole-in-the-earlobe guy said.
The blond one turned back to me. “Bet you’re a virgin,” he said, tilting his head and licking his bottom lip.
Okay, they were getting out of line. But I could handle it.
“What can I get you?” I asked, ignoring the other comments.
“Your virgin cunt. It’s been a while since I’ve had a cherry on top,” the guy with a tattoo on his neck and pierced eyebrows said.
“I’ll take the cherry,” the blond one told him as he continued to look at me like he was going to have me as his meal.
I cleared my throat. “I’m sorry, is there an ice cream we can get for you?”
“She’s uptight. That wouldn’t be any fun,” one of the guys who hadn’t spoken up yet said.
The blond leaned closer to me. “I don’t know. I like holding them down. If they fight, it’s more exciting.”
His words this time weren’t just insulting; they were frightening. Perhaps Mandy had a reason to be scared of them. I wished she’d go get Barbara, who was in the office.
I had to figure out how to handle them. Every time I came across a problem, I couldn’t go running to Barbara. She’d left me out here in charge, and proving I could do it was important. At least to me.
“If you aren’t here to order anything, I am going to have to ask you to leave,” I said with what I hoped was a firm tone.
The blond leaned closer and then reached out and grabbed the neckline of my shirt, jerking me forward until I was bent over the counter. I heard Mandy gasp as the other guys began to laugh. I could hear my heartbeat in my ears, panic hitting me.
Mandy, please go get Barbara, I silently pleaded.
The door chime went off again, and I wanted to weep with relief that someone else had walked in. However, the blond guy didn’t seem to care. His grip tightened on my shirt, and he sneered at me.
“Deck,” one of the guys behind him said, then slapped his back.
The blond ignored him, and I swallowed hard, wondering if whoever had come in was going to call the cops or leave.
“You’re gonna need to let go of her.” The deep drawl was one I recognized.
The blond looked pissed and amused at the same time. He didn’t let go, but instead tugged on me again.
The guys I could still see called Deck’s name again with clear concern in their tones.
“Fuck, man, let her go!” one of them begged him.
“I’d like to see—” he started to say, but Thatcher Shephard’s hand wrapped around his neck, stopping him from saying anything more.
Thatcher leaned close to the blond, and the look in his eyes made me shiver. He was angry. Really, really angry.