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The veins of his neck swell as he throws a handful of photocopies at me. They sprinkle onto the floor, and I vaguely make out Sadie’s naked silhouette facing my truck’s front window. This is the fucking nightmare I’ve been dreading.
“Can you put the gun down so we can talk?”
“You’re fucking my Sadie? Huh? You’re fucking my daughter? You think you can bring your big-city dick to lure my daughter into your bed? You fucking dick! I ought to shoot your dick off!” He raises his gun at me.
My throat is in my stomach as I have nothing to defend myself with. My own handgun is back in storage because the last thing I was worried about in Hillpike was this. I should’ve known to never underestimate this town. I would’ve imagined Evan over Braxton doing something as severe as this.
“Braxton, we’re family, man. Let’s talk.”
“Well, family doesn’t fuck family. I’m not sure which backwards town you’re mistaking Hillpike for, but fucking family doesn’t happen here.”
“I’m sorry, Braxton. It...it happened honestly. We…Can we talk, please? Can you put the gun down, so we can talk? I don’t want to call the authorities.”
“That other day, a couple weeks back. That was my Sadie in there with you! No wonder you were a fucking mess, trying to push me out your door! If only I fucking knew…I should have thrown a weight at you at the gym!”
I move around him, and he follows me. However, it helps because now I can back out of the room and into the parking lot. I think he will be less inclined to shoot me in front of others if anyone else is in the parking lot or looking out of their motel windows at the commotion. I pray someone is.
“Let’s talk, Braxton. Please! If you shoot me, you’ll get arrested, and it’ll make it worse for everyone like Julia and Sad—”
“You don’t get to say her fucking name! You don’t get to fuck her! How could you do this, bro? How could you do something like that to me? Huh? To my family? I’ve treated you like family when you were still pissing in your pants. When your mama gave up on you because your daddy left her!”
That was low. Very true. Painful. I didn’t want it this way.
“You’re right, Braxton! I fucking suck.”
“You should be ashamed of yourself!” He’s still holding his gun up, barrel a couple inches from my nose.
The morning sun is potent, and I’m sweating for many reasons.
“Put the gun down, Braxton. We can talk or not. But you shooting me, isn’t it. You have a store to run and a family to—”
“You stay the fuck away from my family!”
“Done. I will! Just put the gun down. Please!”
The motel owner steps out, holding her own rifle. She cocks it, causing both Braxton and me to jump.
“Braxton Jameson, you put that gun down right now! The only person shooting anyone on my property will be me!”
I swallow, thanking my guardian angels as I watch Braxton lower his gun. He’s equally sweaty as me.
“I’m sorry, Elizabeth. Didn’t mean to overstep, but this piece of shit better be out of your motel today, or I may have to come back and take my chances with you, ma’am.”
Braxton doesn’t look my way at all but yells at me from over his shoulder.
“Youbetter pick those devil-ridden papers up and burn them!”
I glance down, taking in all the inappropriate pictures of me and Sadie. Disgusting. Courtney ought to go to hell for this.
“You’re a fucking disgrace.” Elizabeth scowls at me before retreating back into her room.
She slams the door at the same time Braxton starts up his truck. A pillow of dust covers me as I bend over to pick up the pictures.
This is absolutely awful.
Braxton is the only person I have tight roots with here in Hillpike. We know each other’s origins like the back of our hands. We could write each other’s childhood stories, and here I am, picking up pieces of explicit evidence of me sleeping with his daughter. My gut aches for Sadie. If I’m going to call her, it has to be soon. Braxton just left. It could be easily theorized that Sadie and I have deep lust for each other, but in reality, I think I sort of love her.
I step inside and pick up every single photocopy of Sadie and me. Even though it’s all over, even though I feel for Braxton, and I feel like shit for doing what I did…I genuinely could get turned on by these photos. And for that, I should feel shame, but what I feel is confusion. It has to be because I have to figure it out. I literally believe I’m simply in shock.
