AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Listen, I get it. You’re a good guy. We didn’t hang out because, let’s be honest, you’re way too smart to hang out with a Spencer.”
“That’s bullshit, and you know it.”
His eyebrows rise to his hairline. I know that we don’t have much in common. Mason has colorful tattoos on his arms and a piercing in his nose. He’s a free spirit in a lot of ways. But we do have something in common.
“We were always looked at by our classmates differently. I know it couldn’t have been easy with what happened to your parents.”
He shrugs and looks out at Sammy. “Yeah. It wasn’t.”
“The attention… it’s annoying.”
He looks at me, and I know he gets it. His parents died in a car wreck, and the town came together to help his brother raise Mason and his sister Everly. Wyatt was old enough to adopt his younger siblings, but it couldn’t have been easy—even with the town’s help.
“Yeah. And people always wanted you to be like your father and his brother.”
I nod.
“But Liv loves her sister more than anything, with the exception of her kids.”
“And you?”
“Getting there,” he says with a smile. “I’m a close third behind Avery. I think.”
His tone tells me he isn’t that upset by the situation.
“So, you’ll break my legs if I hurt her?”
A bark of laughter catches me off guard. “No, dude, you don’t have to worry about me. I’m easy. You need to worry about the O’Bryan sisters.”
“I do?”
“Yeah. Anything hurts Avery, they will descend upon this town ready for your blood.”
Yeah, right. He must read my thoughts because he shakes his head.
“A lifetime with Everly taught me one thing. Women are always more vicious, protecting what they love. Those sisters? They will take you apart, piece by piece.”
“I’m touched you’re worried about me.” I can’t help the sarcasm in my voice. It’s my go-to defense when I’m dealing with emotions I don’t like.
Mason doesn’t get irritated with me. Instead, he smiles. “And part of it is that I want to tell my woman that you aren’t going to hurt her sister. They all worry about her because of some douche she dated in her past.”
“That Chet guy?”
He nods. “It was a long time before I met Liv, but I know it was rough for Avery. So, just do me a favor and play nice. I hate dealing with bail money, and those sisters would definitely take the location of your body to their graves.”
ChapterFourteen
Avery
It’s one in the morning, and I can’t sleep. I lay in my bed, looking up at the ceiling. I’m exhausted since Mr. Egg White woke me up early this morning. My head is spinning with thoughts of my situation, of work I should be doing, and the creepy neighbor. I need sleep and crave it like Houdini craves chaos. Unfortunately, my mind doesn’t care how I feel. At all. Stupid mind.
There’s only one way to get my brain to let me rest, and that’s to pace it out. I look at Meredith snuggled next to me. I hate waking her, but I have to get up and move. It’s something that I have done for years. I know that my ADHD goes into overdrive when I’m tired. Right now, I have so many thoughts tumbling through my head. I can’t grasp just one. With a sigh, I pull myself up out of bed. Meredith blinks awake. Her gaze tells me she is not happy with the interruption.
“You can stay here. I’m going downstairs.”
I would pace in my room, but as much as I don’t like my new housemate, I’m not about to bother him either. My entire body is worn out, and I don’t have it in me to fight him right now. My eyes burn, and I know I’m about to cry. I press my fingers to my eyes, trying to get my emotions under control. I do the deep breathing exercises a therapist once told me to use, then open my eyes again. I glance back at Meredith, whose eyes are closed. Shaking my head, I realize I picked the only cat in existence who does not get up in the middle of the night. Figures.
I head down the stairs, avoiding all the creaks in the steps. I’ve walked up and down them the last few weeks enough times to know where they are. Tea is definitely in order. I will try some chamomile, although it doesn’t always work.
