Page 13 of Ghost

They knew it was my past talking, but I still felt compelled to say, “Sorry, I’m just having a bad night.”

“It’s cool. We all have ‘em.” Knowing we needed a change of topic, Goose looked back at Memphis and snickered, “So, what’s the deal with your ol’ man and Kay?”

“Nothing. What do you mean?”

“Is that denial, or do you really not see it?”

“See what?” Goose and I both chuckled, which only aggravated him more. “What the fuck are you two trying to say?”

Goose shrugged with a smirk, and Memphis immediately snapped, “No fucking way. They hate each other.”

“There’s a fine line between love and hate.”

“That’s crazy.”

“I’m serious, brother. The flame between those two is far from dead.”

“No fucking way!”

“I’m telling ya, people don’t fight the way those two fight unless there’s a reason, and it’s not because they hate one another.”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Memphis grumbled. “I’m done listening to this shit.”

“I would’ve thought you’d be happy that mommy and daddy were getting back together,” Goose goaded.

“Fuck you. They aren’t getting back together. Hell, Dad can’t wait to be rid of her. He sent her to California for Christ’s sake.”

“Yeah, she’ll be back, and when they ...”

“Enough! I don’t wanna hear another fucking word!” Memphis growled, then leaned back in his seat with a huff, putting an end to our conversation. I almost felt bad for giving him such a hard time, but it gave me a much-needed distraction from the two sleeping in the back of the SUV.

It was almost sunrise when we finally got back to the clubhouse, and we were all wiped and ready to get some shuteye. Unfortunately, we still had to unload the month’s take from the truck and get Whitney and her son settled in a room. I was eager to get them out of our hair, so I volunteered, “I’ll take ‘em to their room.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I’ve got it.”

“Alright, then.” Memphis handed me their duffle bags as he said, “Put em’ in one of the back rooms. It’s quieter.”

“Will do.”

I motioned my head for Whitney and Toby to follow as I started for the door. Neither of them spoke as they followed me inside and down the hall. Once we got to the room, I kicked it open and said, “This is it.”

“We have our own room?”

“Yeah, it’s not much.” The room was small, but it had two beds, a TV, and a dresser. And it had its own bathroom. “We’ll get you two into your own place when we can.”

“This is great.” She stepped inside and said, “Thank you.”

After a quick glance around, the kid stumbled inside and crawled into bed, quickly turning his back to us. Whitney sat down next to him and looked up at me with tired eyes, full of gratitude and weariness. Her injuries told the story of the hell they’d been through, and it made it difficult to look at her as she said, “I really appreciate you taking us in like this.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

I started for the door but stopped when she said, “You know...you were right.”

“Right about what?”

“Toby.” Anguish marked her face as she whispered, “It was my job to protect him.”

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