Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 72126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
“Yeah, I can see that. I’m around if you ever need anyone to look after him.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks.”
“Hey, Mom!” Toby called out from the living room. “What’s for lunch?”
“I don’t know. I’ll fix something in a minute.”
“But Maggie’s coming.”
“I know, but...”
“You go ahead.” Bridget stood up as she said, “I’m gonna get going.”
“Oh, no. You don’t have to rush off. It won’t take me but a second to ...”
“No, no. I really need to get going.” She picked up her empty coffee cup and placed it in the sink. “I have a long list of groceries to pick up and a couple of other errands I need to run.”
“Okay.” I got up and gave her a quick hug. “I’m really glad you stopped by.”
“We’ll have to get together soon. Maybe go shopping or something.”
“That would be great.”
We said our final goodbyes, and then Bridget left to run her errands. I knew Toby was hungry and eagerly waiting for me to finish making his lunch, so I went over to the pantry and started grabbing everything I’d need to make his sandwich. I made him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and then I grabbed the bag of chips. I’d just started to pour some onto the plate when I felt a slight nudge at my back.
I jumped back with a jerk, and the bag of chips slipped out of my hand.
Chips flew everywhere—all over the counter, the table, and the floor.
And Sutton stood in the middle of it all with a stunned look on his face. I felt like a complete idiot. I had no idea he was even home, much less in the kitchen with me. Horrified, I dropped to the floor and started scooping the chips into a pile.
“I’m so sorry,” I muttered under my breath. “I don’t know what happened.”
“It’s fine.” Sutton knelt beside me, and his voice was just as calm as it always was as he told me, “It’s just some stupid chips.”
I glanced up at him, and a part of me expected to find a look of frustration or impatience, but there was none to be found. He just shrugged like it was no big deal and helped me clean up the mess.
“I’m really sorry,” I repeated, and even I could tell that the words sounded heavier than they should have.
It wasn’t about the chips. He had to know that.
He looked at me for a second, then shook his head. “It’s chips, babe. It’s not that serious.”
“I know. I know.”
I forced a smile, and we finished cleaning up the mess in silence. Once we were done, we carried on like nothing had happened, but I knew it bothered him. I could see it in his eyes, but he didn’t make a big deal of it. Instead, he asked, “You and Toby wanna watch a movie later? Maybe order some pizza or something?”
“Yeah, that would be great.” I motioned my head towards the living room. “Toby could probably use a break after tutoring today.”
“Good deal.” He started for the door as he said, “The new Deadpool movie is supposed to be killer.”
“Deadpool?” I gasped. “I was thinking more like that new robot movie.”
“Yeah, yeah. That’d be good, too.” Sutton stepped out onto the porch as he said, “I gotta get to work. Goose is out back if you need him.”
“Okay. I’ll see you in a few hours.”
Seconds later, I heard the engine of his motorcycle roar to life, and then, he was gone. I tried to keep myself busy, but the rest of the day went tediously slow. Toby’s tutor came and went, and I worked on laundry and searched through the want ads. Goose came in and talked for a bit, but he spent most of the day out in the garage working on one of the brother’s bikes.
I could tell by the random curses and sounds of tools crashing against the house that he was struggling. I just didn’t know how bad it was until Sutton showed up. I was helping Toby finish up some homework when I heard him pull up in the driveway and say, “What the hell, brother?”
“It’s a total clusterfuck, man,” Goose whined. “I broke down the carburetor and cleaned it, but that didn’t do shit. So, I changed out the fuel pump, and now, the battery is flaking.”
“Damn.” I got up and watched as Sutton knelt and started looking things over. “Maybe it’s a bad fuse or something.”
“I already checked.”
“Well, it’s gotta be something.”
They both circled the bike like it was some kind of wild animal they were trying to tame. Cocking their heads and staring down at it like it had personally offended them, Sutton finally mumbled, “It’s gotta be the carburetor.”
“Nope. Not it.” Goose wiped the back of his hand across his forehead. “Broke it down twice, and it’s all good.”