Page 26 of Love Unwritten
Since I despise letting any food go to waste after going to bed hungry far too many times, I eat Nico’s serving and mine while my thoughts of self-loathing keep me company at the kitchen island.
Just a typical Tuesday.
CHAPTER NINE
Ellie
I drive to my mom’s house on the south side of town, far away from the dazzling mansions lining the lakeshore and Willow’s waterfront bungalow that has survived the test of time despite the town’s real estate developer and Rafael’s cousin, Julian Lopez, trying to buy up the property.
My mom and stepdad live at the southern tip of town, close to Nico’s school and the town’s fairgrounds, which host Lake Wisteria’s famous festivals celebrating all four seasons. Our area is run-down and far less glamorous than the rest of town, but my mom has done her best to turn the dilapidated three-bedroom house into a home worth visiting every week.
My stepdad, Burt, opens the door with the biggest smile. “Ellie Sophia Sinclair. What a nice surprise.”
“Is it?” I check out their empty living room. It’s changed a lot since I was a kid, thanks to my mom’s never-ending decorating ideas and Burt’s willingness to try them out despite disliking manual labor and the hour-long drive to my mom’s favorite home decor store.
“To what do we owe this random drop-in? It’s not even Saturday.”
My smile falls. “I got fired.”
His gray brows pull together. “Who do I need to speak to?”
My laugh comes out more like a sob.
“Oh no. Not the tears. I don’t handle those very well.” My stepdad pulls me into one of his famous bear hugs. They always make me feel like a little kid again, even after outgrowing him by a few inches once I turned twelve.
“Beatrice! Come quick. Our daughter needs your help while I go murder her boss.”
“Ex-boss.”
He squeezes me hard. “Not if I can help it.”
“What?” My mom comes rushing out of the kitchen with a cloud of flour dust following her. “Ellie? What are you doing here?”
“Hi, Mom.” I wiggle out of Burt’s embrace and wipe the tears from my face.
Burt softly pushes me in my mom’s direction. “Keep an eye on her while I go searching for my ax.”
“It’s in the garage. Bottom left shelf next to the paint cans.”
“Mom.”
“What’s going on?” She cradles my head between her palms before kissing my forehead.
“I’ll tell you, but first you need to convince Burt not to murder Rafael.”
He stands as tall as his five-foot-seven frame will allow. “I wasn’t going to murder him.”
“Or threaten bodily harm,” I add. “What will my mom do if you end up in jail?”
Mom gives my cheeks a squeeze. “He’d wait until I found a way to end up in there with him.”
“You two are hopeless,” I groan before throwing myself on the sectional.
“Fortunately.” Burt draws my mom into a side hug and kisses the top of her head. She melts into him with the silliest smile on her face.
When I was a kid, I used to think it was gross that my mom had a crush on my music teacher–turned–tutor who gave me free lessons because he liked her too, but now, I can’t get enough of their love. It’s nice to know that my mom is with someone who cares about her as much as I do, especially after the train wreck of a marriage she had with my biological father.
We don’t talk about him much, mostly because we’ve both put in the work to move on from his psychological abuse, but that doesn’t mean I never think about the man, especially when it’s so easy to see how much kinder and more patient Burt is.