Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 70417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
I reached for her hand. “Skylar, I’m sorry.”
Skylar nodded. “So, it was just Dad and me. I worked a couple jobs and took care of the house. He worked and tried to help me with money for school.”
I was curious. “What did he do?”
She smirked at me. “He was the local prosecutor. He put the bad guys behind bars.”
I had to chuckle. “Oh. Guess he wouldn’t have liked me much.”
“Nope,” she sang. “He’d kick your ass.”
I waved my hand at her. “Keep talking.”
“So, I finally got enough money for the tuition and earned a scholarship to go to college. I got a job by campus at a small corner store and lived in the dorm. I didn’t have the money to go home and see Dad except at Christmas, but we kept in touch. The first summer, I found full-time work as a nanny that included room and board, so I stayed. Dad surprised me with money for tuition the next year, so things were a little easier.” She stopped again, and I felt her hand tremble. I held it tighter.
“When I went home for Christmas, Dad didn’t look well. Finally, he told me he had cancer.”
I shut my eyes at the pain in her voice.
“Terminal?”
She nodded. “He didn’t tell me that at the time. I went back to school because he insisted, then returned home for the summer, and he was so much worse…” Her voice drifted off.
“You never went back to college?”
“No. He was dying. He’d tried everything, and there was nothing else they could do. I nursed him all summer and fall, and he died not long before that Christmas.”
“What happened? How did you end up on the street?”
“Dad’s insurance coverage wasn’t very good. The medical bills were huge. Then when I went to the bank, I found out he’d taken a second mortgage to help me with school. Between that and the bills, what I got for the house barely covered it. I didn’t really have any friends and there was no one I was close to in Oakville, so I came here, thinking I could find a job, save some money, and go back to school in a year. I sold everything I had left, which wasn’t much.
“I found a small apartment and got a job. Then the company I was working for closed. I couldn’t find another job. I couldn’t afford my apartment, and I had to move to an even smaller place. A few weeks after I moved in, I was robbed and they…they got everything. Including the money I had hidden away.”
She was quiet as I inwardly cursed the bastards who’d taken what little she had.
“The landlord didn’t care. I couldn’t pay my rent, and he kicked me out. I had nowhere to go and no one to turn to… Every week that went by, things got worse. I couldn’t find a job, so I couldn’t find a place to live, and I ended up on the streets. I kept telling myself it would get better, but it didn’t. I could barely stay clean and presentable. Fall passed and winter came, and things got even worse. And eventually…I gave up.”
Skylar stared at our entwined hands. “The rest, as they say, is history. You found me in the warehouse. And here I am.”
I knew there was more. I knew her life on the street must have been horrific. But she was shaking, and I knew her emotions were starting to overtake her. I took her mug, dumped it in the sink, and poured us both fresh coffees. I added cream the way I knew she liked it and sat back down. She sipped in silence for a minute.
I was about to ask her a question when we heard the sound of footsteps. I turned and watched Sean enter the kitchen. His face was inscrutable as he stood in the doorway. He was disheveled and still looked sleepy. He glared at both of us.
“Are you finally talking?”
I nodded.
“Have you told her?”
“I’m about to.”
“Good. You would have saved me this fucking headache if you’d done it before.”
“I know.”
Skylar stood. “Sean…”
He held up his hand. “You fucking drugged me. I made sure you were fed and warm. That you had books and games. I pushed and pushed Cian to trust you. And you fucked me over.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m furious with you.”
She only nodded.
His voice dropped. “Are you okay, Skylar?”
“Yes.”
“Cian?”
“I’m good.”
“Okay. I’ll leave you two.”
He turned to go, but Skylar stepped forward. “Sean…”
He looked back. She moved so fast, she was almost a blur. One second, she was beside me. The next, she’d flung herself at Sean. His arms went around her as she cried. Her words were muffled, but I caught some of them as she gasped and sobbed.
Scared… feelings…had to get away…
He bent down, speaking quietly to her. Then he pressed his lips against her head and stepped back, cupping her face.