Page 121 of Rigid

She shook her head and laughed. “Either way, I’m really excited.”

I took another bite. “Me, too.”

After digging around in the tub for a minute, she managed to excavate another bite from the matter stuck to the edges.

She poked the fork in her mouth and placed the empty container between my legs. She nodded toward my burger. “I won’t tell if you won’t tell.”

I raised my hand. “Girl power.”

She slapped her hand against mine. “Girl Power.”

I poked the last part of the burger in my mouth and savored every morsel of it, closing my eyes as I chewed.

“What in the fuck are you two doing?” Smokey snarled from behind us.

We both jumped, me so high, the cardboard ice cream container shot from between my legs and slid across the tile floor.

I spun around, swallowed my food, and shrugged one shoulder.

He glanced at the empty platter, and then looked at the ice cream tub. “Well?”

There was no sense in lying, so I told him the absolute truth.

“What do you think,” I said with a shrug. “I’m feeding the twins.”

FORTY

Smokey

It had been a month since Tank came up missing, but there were no missing person’s reports, no nosey ATF agents poking around, and no arrests. Convinced the investigation was over, and he simply went to harass someone else, I exhaled and began to live my life the way I saw fit.

P-Nut was right.

I was scared.

Not of Tank, or of the thought of resolving the issue with him.

But I did fear two things.

Snakes, and making the commitment to marry. As easy as it was to come to terms mentally with the thought of doing it, and as much as I wanted a family, I simply couldn’t develop the courage to ask Sandy any more than I could pick up a snake.

So, I decided to do what it was that I spent a lifetime suggesting others do.

Face my fears.

“Be a badass piece when we’re done,” he said.

I looked down at my chest. “Got three solid days in right now. Been tough to hide this fucker.”

The tattoo artist stopped. “Hide it?”

I nodded. “It’s a surprise.”

“How the fuck you hide a full chest piece?”

“It isn’t easy, believe me.”

He positioned the needle over my stomach. “Ready?”