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“What do you do in this office downtown?”
“I watch the market and handle hedge funds.”
Her brow lifted. “You know how to do that?”
“Yeah. I used to watch my dad follow the market when I was younger. He taught me when I was a boy.”
Parker had a real job. She was so impressed and speechless, she hugged him.
His shoulders tensed, then relaxed. His arms slowly wrapped around her. His skin smelled of clean soap. “Hey, what’s this for?”
“You. I’m so proud of you.”
He laughed uncomfortably. “Thanks. I’m proud of you too.”
He seemed reluctant to talk about his job. She stepped back and shoved him. “Don’t act like it’s nothing. You have a real job. I bet you even have benefits and a retirement plan working in a fancy office like that.” When he blushed she smacked his shoulder again. “I knew it! Parker, that’s incredible. You must be making a ton of money.”
His expression grew hard. “I make enough to survive. It isn’t about the money, Scout. It’s a means to an end. That’s it.”
She shook her head. This was the same argument they always had when it came to money. “Call it what you will, you have it, and because you have it, you have security.”
He stared at her, unblinking, an odd expression on his face. Self-consciously she touched her hair and looked away.
“I have security,” he agreed. “I could afford to take care of you.”
She frowned. Where had that come from? For the first time ever, she wondered if Lucian’s theory about Parker was true. She suddenly felt like she might have made a huge mistake. He’s just your friend and he knows that. “Park, I . . .”
“I know. You can take care of yourself. I’ve never doubted it, Scout.” That wasn’t what she was going to say, but before she could correct him, he surprised her by adding, “I just want you to know that you don’t have to worry about me being another bum. I’m not. I know you hated being homeless. I should’ve gotten us off the streets a long time ago. I could have. I just didn’t see the point. I hate the business world, but I’d do it for you.”
She frowned. “You mean for you.”
“Right.” He lifted his armful of blankets. “I’m exhausted. I stupidly allowed myself to get manipulated into sleeping outside last night. I’m gonna hit the hay.”
She smiled and let him pass. As he made up the couch, she quietly watched him. When he stood, makeshift bed in place, she said, “Parker?”
He turned and she could tell he hadn’t realized she was watching. “Yeah?”
“Thank you. For everything.”
He matched her smile and nodded. “Anytime, Scout. Anything you need.”
Chapter 25
Suspicions
They arrived at the New Day Rehabilitation Center a little before noon. “This place is nice,” Parker said as he held the lobby door.
Scout carefully signed them in at the front desk and handed Parker a visitor’s pass. “Yes. It’s a shame Pearl doesn’t see it for what it’s worth.”
He pinned the visitor’s badge on the lapel of his tweed jacket and offered a sad smile. His hand gently coasted over the sleeve of her sweatshirt. “She will . . . eventually. It takes time.”
Scout led them down the long corridor. Doors were decorated with bunnies and cutouts of colorful flowers. She envied the childlike decorations because they reminded her of what a grade school might look like, although she had never attended school.
Pearl’s door was open, and they found her sitting in a chair by the window in her room. “Momma?”
She turned. Her complexion was so much more alive than it had been in the years past. “Scout.” Pearl smiled but it didn’t reach her eyes. Her face was a bit fuller. She no longer looked the eighty pounds she had been when they admitted her.
Parker stepped in behind her. “Hi, Pearl.”
At this, her mother’s eyes lit. “Parker! My, my, you looking good. What brings you here?”
“I came with Scout.”
Pearl looked back to her. “Where’s that other man?”
“Lucian isn’t here.”
“Good. I don’t much like him. He bosses me and I don’t like to be bossed.”
Scout shot Parker a quelling look when he snickered. “How are you feeling, Momma?”
“Old. I wanna go home.”
Scout sat on the clinical-looking bed dressed in bleached linens. She should probably see about getting her mother some colorful blankets. “I’m working on it. I’ve moved into a new place.”
“I don’t see what there is to work on. I gots a home. Never needed no invitation to go home before.”
“Momma, you can’t go back to the mill. We’re going to get a new home, as soon as I save enough money. You’ll have your own room and we’ll make it our own like we never had before.”
Pearl crossed her arms over her narrow chest and made a rude noise. It was nice seeing her dressed in put-together clothing that fit her body and matched. “I don’t need no fancy home. I got my own stuff. Or I used to until that bossy man stole it all.”
