Page 83 of Truck Up
“Mom!” Chase scolds. “Christian will be a great dad.”
She shakes her head. “No, no, no. This can’t happen. I need you with me.”
“Mom, I’m here.” I walk over to her and kneel next to her seat. “I won’t leave you because I have a baby.”
She stares at me, and I can’t tell if she’s sad or angry. Either way, there are tears filling her eyes.
“You already left me.” Then she lifts her hand and slaps me across the face.
“Mom!” I block her hand when she tries to slap me again. “Calm down.”
“You can’t do this to me.” She screams. “You’re the only one I have and now I’m going to lose you too.”
“You haven’t lost me.” I grab both of her arms to hold her still. She’s erratic and out of control. “I’m right here.”
“Then get high with me.” She frantically looks around the kitchen. “Where’s my bag? I have enough for at least two good hits.”
“Mom!” I release her and push to my feet. I take several steps back and stare at her in disbelief. “I’m never getting high again.”
She snaps her eyes in my direction. “Then get the fuck out of my sight. You’re no good to me otherwise.”
Chase steps up behind me and squeezes my shoulder. “She doesn’t know what she’s saying, bro.”
“I know.” I sigh and shake my head. “I need to get out of here for a minute. You got this?”
“Yeah. Go take a breather.”
He pats me on the back as I leave the kitchen. Once I’m outside, I dig my cigarettes out of my pocket. I tap the top until one slides out. I stare at it for several seconds, debating on whether or not I should smoke it.
What I should do is quit. I’ve got a baby on the way and that baby doesn’t need to be exposed to this shit.
But my craving is strong. And at this moment, it’s stronger than my will power.
“Fuck it.” I wrap my lips around the butt and light it up. I’ll worry about quitting tomorrow when my dumbass mom doesn’t have me stressed out.
Because I need this cigarette if I’m going to go back inside and face her again.
Chapter 17
Don’t poke the devil.
Amelia
“So, what do you think?” I ask my friends after I finish showing them around the cabin.
It’s still a bit of a mess. Christian and I just moved in three days ago and we haven’t had time to unpack much. Plus, we don’t have a lot of storage space yet. We won’t until the contractor finishes our new bedroom.
“It’s going to be great,” Hadley says with a huge smile on her face. “I really love the design.”
“Me too.” I smile, happy she loves it. “This kitchen is going to be tough, though. There’s no room to cook.”
“How long before the new one is finished?” she asks.
“I don’t know.” I wrinkle my nose and think back to the conversation I had with the contractor. “Probably a couple of months.”
“Why not just stay at the homestead until it’s done?” Nova asks. There’s a hint of concern in her tone.
“You do know how many brothers he has, right?”