Total pages in book: 248
Estimated words: 236036 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1180(@200wpm)___ 944(@250wpm)___ 787(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 236036 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1180(@200wpm)___ 944(@250wpm)___ 787(@300wpm)
So he sent a text to Tex, the sheriff of Oddity, letting him know that there was an odd stranger in the playground who might be on something.
“That’s bad for your teeth,” Wyatt informed her.
She pointed the stick of the lollipop at him. “Like I told you before, it’s all a conspiracy to make you go to the dentist. Ain’t nothing wrong with my teeth, small man-child.”
“No, it’s not,” Jeb said with alarm as his son started nodding. “It’s a proven fact that sugar is bad for your teeth.”
She shook her head sadly. “They got your dad, too.”
Wyatt glanced up at him. “Yeah, he’s always talking about that sort of stuff.”
“Conspiracy,” she whispered.
Christ.
“Wyatt, we’re going.” Time to get his son away from her.
“I don’t want to go. I haven’t had a swing. I need to go on my swing,” Wyatt told him.
“Wyatt, don’t test me right now. You ran off when I wasn’t looking. You’re already in trouble. We’re leaving.” He reached down to grab his son’s hand but Wyatt snatched it away from him.
Jeb tried to tell himself that it didn’t hurt. But he had to fight hard not to react.
Give him time.
He lost his mother.
He’s hurt and just a child.
“No!” Wyatt cried.
“Wyatt, we have to go.”
“So you can find some stranger to look after me? I don’t want that. I only want Granny!”
“Wyatt, you know that’s not possible. Now, we’re going.” He reached for his son again and suddenly the girl was up and between them.
“Don’t you hurt him.”
Jeb gaped down at her. “Hurt him? Why would I . . .” He trailed off as he studied her face.
Her pale face. Her clenched hands. The way she was trembling.
Something wasn’t right here. Her freckles were standing out starkly against her pale skin and her wide blue eyes weren’t even focused on him. As though she was seeing someone else.
She looked so small. The top of her head didn’t even reach his chin.
“I wasn’t going to hurt him,” Jeb told her firmly. “I was just reaching for his hand so he would come with me.”
The girl didn’t appear to believe him as she kept herself between the two of them.
“Well, it didn’t seem like he wanted to go with you,” she told him.
“I don’t!” Wyatt complained. “I want to swing. I don’t want to go back to the ranch and have some weirdo take care of me.”
Wyatt stomped over and sat on the swing that the girl had jumped out of.
“Hey!” she said. “We haven’t rock, paper, scissored for that!”
“You left the swing.” Wyatt shrugged. “Swing rules.”
Swing rules? What did that mean? Jeb was about to tell his son there was no such thing when the girl sighed and nodded.
“So true, small man-child. Can’t go against swing rules.”
Wyatt nodded. “Exactly.” He put the lollipop back in his mouth. Another thing that Jeb had to talk to him about. He knew better than to take candy from a stranger.
A wave of exhaustion washed through him. Sometimes he wondered if he was fucking everything up. His son seemed to hate him. The ranch was doing all right, but it took so much of his time and attention.
Was it worth it if Wyatt hated him?
“You look tired. Are you getting enough sleep?”
He glanced down at the girl in shock. Why was she asking him about his sleep? And he wasn’t the only one that looked tired. She had dark marks under her eyes.
“I only ask because your aura seems all out of whack,” she added.
“I don’t have an aura.”
“Everyone has an aura!” she exclaimed. “If you don’t have an aura, you’re soulless. Or a zombie. Basically the same thing, really.”
“Zombies are cool, though,” Wyatt said. “My dad isn’t cool.”
Great. Now he rated worse than a zombie. Could things get any worse?
Pounding footsteps had them all turning and he groaned as he saw Happy heading toward them.
“Hey! It’s Happy!” Wyatt said. “Happy’s so funny, Casey. You’ll like him.”
Casey? That was the girl’s name? It kind of suited her, he guessed. Although he’d thought she’d have a crazier name.
Like Moonbeam or Starburst.
Are you being narrow-minded?
Maybe he was. But she had been talking to him about his aura. That sounded like a load of horseshit to him.
“With a name like Happy, I’m sure I will,” Casey said.
Actually, Jeb didn’t think she would. Since Deputy Hapleston or Happy as everyone around here called him, was here to move her on. Jeb was starting to feel a bit guilty about messaging Tex. Especially after she’d tried to protect Wyatt from him. Even though he’d never hurt his son, she hadn’t known that. She was a tiny thing, getting into a large, strange man’s face.
And even though she acted and spoke weird, he was starting to rethink his initial thought that she might be on drugs.
“Hey, Jeb! Hey Wyatt!” Happy said as grew closer, still moving at high speed.