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“I know,” Casey said as he followed the guard out. He tossed her a cocky smile that didn’t meet his eyes, and the door closed behind him.

Violet sat down at the table for a moment or two, trying to regain her composure. Finally, she made her way back out front, and Tracy met her with an almost gleeful expression.

“What’s got you so happy?”

“Let’s get outside first,” Tracy said, leading the way out the door. Once they reached her car, she continued, “So, I was talking to the guard, and he said that Casey’s hearing will most likely be with Judge Gambit, since it’s before lunch.”

“And he’ll go easy on him?”

“No, apparently he’s a hard-ass, but Casey will most likely get sent to this new military boot camp for the duration of his sentence,” Tracy said.

“How is that a good thing?” Violet asked.

“Because”—Tracy paused to climb into her car, and Violet did the same—“from what he said, it’s way better than juvie.”

“God, he’s going to have legal fees, and I’m sure I’ll have to pay a fine.”

“You need a sugar daddy,” Tracy said.

“Don’t be gross.” Violet couldn’t stop the sneering face of Mr. Walker from flashing through her mind. He was a longtime friend of her dad’s, but the guy gave her the creeps. She’d seen him around town a few times, and the way he watched her made her skin crawl.

“Well, you at least need a win. Because right now, with everything you do for those kids, you have a bigger heart than fucking Cinderella—and that bitch got a prince and a castle.”

“I gave up on princes and castles a long time ago, Trace.” Staring out the window, she pushed away the memory of Dean’s dark eyes filled with white-hot desire. “Besides, I’ve been handling my business without a guy to rescue me. Why start now?”

Chapter Ten

One Week Later

VIOLET PULLED INTO the parking lot of Alpha Dog Training Program and parked in an open spot right in front of the large brick building. Peering at it through the windshield, she smiled.

“Hey, it doesn’t look so bad. It doesn’t have any bars on the windows.”

She glanced over at Casey, hoping to see his normal glimmer of optimism, the one he always used to have, even during their hardest struggles. Instead, he was huddled against the door with his face turned away. Casey’s public defender had encouraged him to plead guilty and apologize, which he had balked at until Violet had warned him that if he didn’t cooperate, he wouldn’t get to come home with them. He’d been sulking and silent since, lashing out at Daisy and her like they had been the ones who had gotten him in trouble. Violet had been trying hard to be patient with him, hoping that he would tell her what seemed to be bothering him, but he just kept shutting her out.

When they’d gone back for his sentencing on Friday, the judge had ordered him to report to Alpha Dog first thing Monday morning to begin his six-week sentence. Even though Violet had tried to convince him that it was a great opportunity and it could have been worse, his attitude hadn’t improved.

Unbuckling her seat belt, she placed her hand on his arm, but he shrugged it off with a jerk.

So much for patience.

“Look, I know this sucks, but there is nothing either one of us can do to avoid it. You need to go in there, serve your time, and hopefully, the experience will teach you something.”

“Like what?” Casey finally turned, his green eyes blazing at her. “Is i

t going to teach me how to be a man? How to say, ‘Yes, sir?’ ”

“Maybe how to respect other people’s property, for one thing!” she snapped.

“Screw you.” Casey practically leapt from the car, slamming the door so hard the windows shook.

Violet took a deep breath and counted silently, trying to rein in her temper before exiting the vehicle. She was at her wit’s end. She had tried everything she could think of to get Casey to talk to her, but he just said he was fine. She’d look into getting him a psychiatrist, but the only way insurance would cover it was if he was referred by a doctor.

When she’d brought up the idea, Casey became even angrier. The last thing she wanted was to push him so far that he took off—or worse.

Sometimes it made her question whether she’d done the right thing, keeping them together. Should she have let them go into the system? They might have ended up in good homes . . .

Violet shook her head. Stop being an idiot. This is just a rough patch, and you love him. That’s the most important thing to remember: You are stronger as a family, and you will get through this.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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