Page 16 of The Right Woman

It’s only a few moments before she’s shoving her shoulders into my chest. I drop her, taking a step back with my hands up. She slides down the bricks while gazing up at me with defiance, albeit on shaky legs and with a dazed look in her eyes. My jaw sets with just as much irritation. She thinks she can play with me the way she has, be such a fucking brat everywhere andnotpay the toll?

While I contemplate exactly what to say and stuff myself back in my jeans, the little girl raises her palm and slaps the shit out of my cheek. The hit stuns more than hurts, and I lay my hand over the heated area as she grabs her bag and sprints down the alleyway, away from me without another word or glance. Part of me wants to follow, but the other half has no idea why.

I got what I came for. That’s it. Just this once.

Some items spill from her purse, landing haphazardly in the blowing wind. Hurrying to the pile, I scan what has dropped, and my gut twists into a knot. My eyes squeeze shut as doom comes over my chest. An unopened condom lays abandoned on the ground.

Fuck.

What did I just do?

Running my hands over the sides of my head, I pace, trying to calm myself. I mean, if she’s a member of the club, she’s clean. I should be just fine.

I don’t evenwantto think about birth control.

Bending over, I gather whatever was knocked loose from her stuff and shove it in my pocket. How did I lose control so easily?

I shuffle back to the parking lot slowly, taking deep breaths to rid the pain settling inside my heart.

I know how. Because I couldn’t save the poor woman in the cafe. The one who died under my hands. Her face turned red, then blue. The one losing air that I couldn’t give her.

Visions cloud my mind of the nights I’d have to revive Eli when he’d overdose. Terror makes my arteries buzz as I remember a teenaged Adon saving his brother. Trying to maintain a job to support Rhodes and get him to college like my parents wanted. Keeping the house clean while working a full-time and part-time job.

I stare up at the gray sky and wonder if Mama and Papa are looking at me now. I can’t help but feel like I’d be an utter failure in their eyes despite having the mechanic shop.

Divorce, Eli in prison, and now, letting a strange woman die in my hands. Fucking some young woman in an alleyway without a condom.

Shit. What if she gets pregnant?

Tate rings my phone, probably worried about me not showing up for work. As I hop in my car, I play the call through the speakers.

“Hey, sorry. There was an accident at the coffee shop, and I had to stay behind to tell the police what happened.”

A drill whizzes in the background, then stops as Tate hurries to interrupt. “What? What kind of accident?”

“Lady had some type of medical reaction or something. Not sure. I had to give her CPR, but it didn’t work.” Clearing my throat, I swallow before speaking again. It’s embarrassing to say out loud. “She died.”

“Wow! That sucks. You taking the rest of the day off? We can manage here, man.”

I’ve never taken a day off in my life. But if I’m making completely irrational decisions, like what I just did with Piper, maybe I need it. “I think I will. I’ll see you tomorrow. But if you need anything, call me.”

“You got it, Adon. We’ll hold down the fort.”

By the time I make it home, the kids are getting dropped off by their carpool. It’s good because it will keep me out of my head. Already planning a board game night, I feel some of the day’s tension leaving my shoulders. Alighting from my truck, Odin blazes past me with a quick hi and bye, slamming the door as he goes inside. I raise a hand to wave at Jayliah and her mom, but they just sit in the driveway and smile back.

Avery rushes out, and I widen my arms to give her a hug, but she brushes me off and scurries into the garage. “Dad, I’m spending the night with Jay. She and I are going to study for our Mesopotamian history test.”

Following her in the door, I scratch my head as she walks with more speed than I’ve seen her move in years. “Wait, what? Who said you could go?”

With a toss of her backpack on her bed, she stuffs her overnight bag with clothes. She pauses at my question and raises her eyebrows, then scoffs. “Dad! Come on! Can I go? Jay has an A in there!”

“That’s because she failed a year.”

Her face heats to red, and she slams her mouth closed into a tight line. Shoving a shoulder into my belly, she rolls her eyes and hurries into her bathroom, tossing more girl stuff into the open duffel. I know she’s angry, but I try to get her to stay. “I can help you study. And I thought we’d get pizza and play a game tonight.”

She throws a hand on her hip, just like Em used to do when we’d argue. “No. I want to study with mystupidfriend.”

She’s been best friends with Jay since they were three years old. I know I’ve messed up by bringing up her academic failures to Avery, so I relent. Crossing my arms, I take a step back as she finishes packing up. “Fine.”

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