Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 71289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
The cute little waitress that’d done her best to get me to look at her the entire time I sat there eating my lunch, waved at me as I left.
I nodded at her, not wanting to encourage her behavior.
Her father owned the one and only gas station/grocery store called ‘The Mall’ in fifteen square miles, and it was inevitable that I ended up there at least once a shift.
Hurrying to my car, I finished off my hot dog before I’d even pulled out of the parking lot.
Picking up my radio, I called in to the station.
“I’m responding to the call on the interstate,” I told the secretary that was there to answer our calls. “I’ll be out of district for at least a couple of hours.”
That was only a guess, though.
It could only be minutes, but would likely be quite a bit more than that.
When an accident happened on the interstate, it was probable that it involved more than one car.
I had my EMT license and would be of some help, even if only a little bit.
But by the time I arrived at the scene, I knew I’d be way more than just a few hours.
I’d be lucky if it was just six.
Finding the scene commander, I walked up to him and introduced myself.
“I’m Deputy Ridley Walker with the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office. What do you need from me?” I asked.
As I introduced myself, my eyes slowly scanned the scene, taking in the complete and utter chaos.
That’s when my eyes lit on the familiar black truck that I’d let Capone borrow that morning. In fact, I’d pretty much demanded it, seeing as Capone had been nice enough to take Kitt to her doctor’s appointment in the first place.
There was no reason that the man should have to put all those miles on his truck.
My truck was distinctive.
It had a yellow ‘baby on board’ sign hanging in the back window, with a sticker that declared the driver of the vehicle as a ‘State Trooper Association Member.’
My dad had been a state trooper, and ever since he’d died, we’d been donating to the State Trooper’s Association.
My sister, Kitt, had demanded I put that on my truck, and I’d done it.
Why? Because I loved my sister.
Now, seeing that sticker, something raw started to roll through my belly.
I hit my knees beside the overturned truck before the Incident Commander could even tell me where to go.
The men that were already surrounding the car looked at me, startled at my abrupt arrival, when I landed, but turned back to their business as soon as they realized they weren’t coming to harm, but I was there to help.
My heart sank when I heard the paramedic’s first words.
“…man is dead. The woman isn’t though. Has a large gash across her forehead. My guess is she’s eight or nine months pregnant, too.”
“Eight,” I said roughly. “She’s eight.”
The paramedic looked at me over his shoulder and nodded. “You know her?”
I nodded tightly.
“She’s my sister.”
My belly rolling, I pulled out my phone and called the one person that was always there for me no matter what.
“Boyo?” Peek’s thickly accented voice called loudly into the phone. “You better make this good. I’m between my wife’s thighs, about three seconds away from being in the promise land.”
“My sister. She’s hurt. Accident,” I said gruffly. “You need to handle Apple.”
Chapter 16
Things could be worse. How, you ask? Sex could be fattening.
-Text from Kitt to Apple
Apple
Seven hours prior
“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll be back at a normal time tonight,” Kitt said to me, grabbing my hat that’d been on the foot of the bed and placing it on the top of my head with a small smile gracing her beautiful lips.
My eyes shifted from the buttons I was trying to fasten to her face.
“And why’s that?” I asked, finishing the buttons and pulling her into my arms.
She came willingly, tipping my hat up with her finger before going up on her toes to give me a kiss.
“Because I have a special congratulatory dinner planned,” she informed me. “And I’ve got plans to move your clothes from your house to mine.”
I blinked, surprised.
“Yeah?” I asked. “How are you going to do that?”
She grinned.
“Your father has agreed to loan the use of his scooter,” she giggled. “But I’m not getting much. Just enough to get you through the weekend.”
“So you’re going to hold me hostage for five days?” I asked. “What are you going to do once those days are up?”
She pouted slightly.
“Send you back to work, I suppose,” she shrugged. “And not see you for days on end.”
I bent down and placed a kiss on the tip of her nose.
“I stayed away and did overtime because I wanted to keep my mind occupied,” I explained to her gently. “I won’t have to do that anymore, unless I want to.”