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“You know damn well I can’t promise that.”
“Actually, it’s quite simple for you.”
“Fine,I won’t publish any stories.”
He nods, accepting my answer as if he were my authority. “Third order of business: have dinner with me tonight.”
“Not happening.”
He crosses his arms behind his neck. “I’ll visit you at work for lunch then. We’ll enjoy a romantic picnic in your office. I’ll find a basket and a red tablecloth to set the mood.”
My gaze darts around the diner. Briefly, I forgot we weren’t alone. “Fine, dinner atyourhouse.”
“Cool. See you at six.”
“Whatever. I have work to do.”
He tilts his head toward the window when Gage pulls up. “Me, too. See you tonight.” He winks. “Wear one of those cute skirts I like.”
“Wear that muzzle I like.”
He grins. “I love when you get kinky on me.”
4
Chloe
Age Thirteen
Dear Diary,
I hate my bedroom.
My friend Holly’s is prettier.
It’s pink, and she has a real bed, not a mattress on the floor like mine.
She lives in the same trailer court. Her parents are poor, too, but at least they give her something pretty.
Meanwhile, my bedroom walls are a dingy yellow from cigarette smoke.
I throwmy diary down and lower my head, glaring at the worn, stained comforter.
Ugh.Just writing about it makes me hate my life more.
I pick up the book next to me and open it.
Time to take myself to a happier place where I have a father, a mother who doesn’t suck, and an older sister who isn’t mean fifty times a day for no reason.
“Hey, Chloe. What are you reading there?”
I peek up from my book to find my sister’s boyfriend, Sam, standing in the cramped doorway. I smile before holding up the book, so he can read the cover.
“The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe,huh?” he asks. “Your sister said you enjoyed reading.”
“I love to read.” I wait for him to make fun of me like Claudia, my sister, does.
She’s been dating Sam for a few months now. I only saw him a few times before, but lately, he’s been coming around more. My mother hated him at first, calling him filthy names and then sinking so low as to demand he pay her to see my sister. She needed the money to buy drugs and alcohol.
