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My brother moved to the southern part of Kentucky a year before Gran passed. Which was bad since I lived in the eastern part. My nerves were all jumbled and lodged in my throat as I forced down my burger. I could call Holly, but her relationship with her boyfriend was still new. I hated feeling awkward in someone’s home. I was going to feel uncomfortable no matter where I went if it meant having to stay with someone.
I thought of the little boy, wondering if he and his family had the luxury of having someone to call like I did. I’d be welcome, whether I called my brother or Holly. But if there was anything I hated more, it was asking someone for help. It made my insides go all wonky, and my heart felt like it might rip out of my chest.
I thought of Gran’s screen door and shook my head quickly, as if to make the image fade from my mind.
The biggest problem was that I had to get my stuff out of the apartment ASAP. I grabbed what I could before I left, but there was a risk someone might steal what little I had if I held off too long. I still had my key, but with the hole in the roof of my kitchen, my neighbors had free access to my stuff. They could lock the door as they left, and I’d never know if they were snooping.
The thought made my skin crawl. I grimaced and took another bite of my burger.
It’s fine. Everything’s fine.
I decided I’d hold off calling my brother until the next day. Instead, I’d rent a room at the Holiday Inn. My boss had a lot of connections. Maybe he knew of someone who had a place to rent.
Yes. I’d find out tomorrow, I thought as I sat in my vehicle and munched on my food with renewed vigor.
FOUR
Hudson
“Max,” I warned my giant white Pyrenees as he stepped on my flannel slippers. He had a bad habit of getting right in front of me when I walked. He wagged his tail and must have decided to behave since he stuck to strolling alongside me instead. All I did was leave the kitchen and move toward the window, but Max still treated it like an adventure.
I made some hot cocoa and chocolate chip cookies. The forecast indicated snow during the week. Besides some flurries, we hadn’t yet had a bad storm that winter and Christmas was a few weeks away. I peeked out the blinds. Nothing moved. Everything was dark and still. The trees were bare. Honestly, snow would make those mountains beautiful.
Max whined at my feet, and I walked away from the window. “No cookies for you. Go to your food bowl.”
I stoked the fire before getting in my recliner. Putting my plate on my lap, I patted Max on the head before sitting back.
I groaned as I stretched out and turned on the TV. Max plopped beside me on the floor.This is nice.Really fucking nice. I worked seven days a week, but I saw change in the future. More plans. More time to relax. My restaurant, Homestyle, might not have been what my father wanted for me, but it was what I wanted. And I was doing really damn well with it. The restaurant had only been open for a year, but I could branch out if I wanted and see if the place had the potential to do well elsewhere. Like my grandma said, my recipes were passed down through her family, but with my own added touch.
My food was my pride. In a kitchen, I was the fucking king. That was why I didn’t want to rush the process of opening another place. I had to find the right people. Those who could do right with the food we served. Randall and Daisy were getting there, but they’d been working with me since the restaurant opened.
It didn’t help that Grandma Sue pestered me about finding love and starting a family. Yada, yada, yada. She didn’t realize I’d never give her grandchildren. I preferred animals. In my younger days, I chased after women for fun—not marriage. I had a lot of good memories doing shit I shouldn’t have. I’d had one relationship that lasted a year. Hilary and I drifted apart because I couldn’t give her my time. I’d finally left my dad’s construction business and thrown most of my savings into my restaurant. Because of that, I was busy, but it wasn’t like I wasn’t busier working with my dad. We had been out of town most of the time on jobs, but Hilary hadn’t complained then. I was probably giving the woman too much credit. It was clear she hadn’t had faith in my restaurant. I made great money working for my dad and would have made more if I had taken over his business, but that was more my brother’s thing. Not mine. But I wasn’t a prick when it came to people’s wants. I knew I wanted to put all my time into Homestyle when it opened, and I couldn’t give Hilary the time she wanted.
For a moment, I let myself wonder: Was I too harsh on our relationship? Should I have gone slower with the restaurant to make things work with Hilary? The answer to my doubt ended when I saw how quickly she chased after my younger brother the second we split. He would inherit the company one day, since I didn’t want it.
I questioned everything after that. Whether she liked me at all during our time together. Whether I liked her. Why were we together? Was it money or status for her? Ending things with her had been more of a relief, which made me wonder if I had the capacity to give love to someone romantically. Wouldn’t I have been angry, at least, about Hilary chasing after my brother so quickly if I cared? None of it hurt. I was excited to have all my time to myself again. Which proved I wasn’t the man my grandma wanted me to be. I couldn’t— Iwouldn’tchange my lifestyle to make anyone happy.
A sharp pain snagged my chest, and I grunted, rubbing the spot. I didn’t need the company of others to be happy. Not having to worry about anyone else seemed better than feeling alone while with someone. I supposed Grandma’s words did get to me every so often. Maybe something was wrong with me.
Why didn’t I want to share my life with someone?
I took a sip of my hot cocoa. “Ain’t nothing better than this, Max. Ain’t no woman better than my own company.”
I believed those words. Spending a year with someone taught me one thing. I didn’t know how to care, and part of me did feel sick at the thought.
FIVE
Eugene
I was sweating bullets as I waited for the sheriff in his office. I shouldn’t have answered my phone that morning. In fact, I should have stayed in that uncomfortable bed with my blanket pulled over my face. I was so nervous my stomach rumbled. If the dude wasn’t quick, I was about to wreck their poor toilet.
It didn’t matter that I was innocent. My skin itched at the situation I’d gotten myself into. All because I worked for Danny Hopkins. Apparently, the lawyer was more of a sleazeball than I thought. After the call from the sheriff, I guessed the electricity wasn’t out at the office the day before.
“Sorry to make you wait,” the sheriff said, his black shoes squeaking on the tile as he stepped into the room.
I sat straighter in my chair. “It’s no problem.”
The questions began, “Did you notice anything strange? Did you know Danny was planning to take off with everyone’s settlement money?”
