Page 31 of Pen Me

Sammy Jo

I turned the letter over front and back, all but willing more of her beautiful mind to appear between the lines. When it didn’t happen, I brought it up and discreetly sniffed the paper, curious of her scent.

“Fuckin weirdo.” I cursed myself, shoving the letter aside.

I laid back with Nyx, and finished the entire book before bedtime, and wrote her back just so I could hurry it along to the mailroom with Larissa in the morning.

Sammy Jo,

I like your taste in book boyfriends. Nyx is a real stand-up mother fucker. I’d have sponsored him. I read all of it, by the way. Now I have questions, but they can wait until I answer a few of yours. Monogamy is a requirement. Disloyalty of any kind is an instant deal breaker. I’m not like the buy here, pay here place, having a source of income does not appease me from further digging. I’m not a ‘going off scout’s honor’ type of fella, either. I’m more of an–investigate that ass better than any of these uniformed pricks could ever dream of doing.

I better not encounter more than one “I used to date her,” in the background reports. Any and all rumors of past cheating is an insta-swerve in my book. Oh, and drugs because well– Ain’t nobody trying to pack Sandy sniffle-snot around on the back of their bike. That shit isn’t cute.

I’m a single man, though. So, who and what I indulge in is of no consequence. Figuratively speaking, would I be willing to match energy and effort, though?

If you’re the one that’s asking, I’m willing to discuss it…

Because, the way I see it, not only are you the ultimate as far as exclusive pieces go, you’ve probably got better aim than I do. I bet you could knock the nose off a squirrel, from fifty paces, huh? Regular Jesse Jane. Plus, you’ve been in the military for how many years now? I heard somewhere they give people in boot camp five minutes to shower. That’s about how long they give us inmates, too. So, I figure you can’t be too awfully high maintenance.

You’d be worth putting a thought or two toward monogamy, I imagine.

What about you? Is Nyx the standard you hold all men to? What are the qualifications to cuff you since you asked after mine?

Oh, and which scene did you find hottest?

And what are we reading next?

Lennox

Ps. Girl, you really don’t know what charges I’m fighting?

I finished the letter, but it still wasn’t enough. Sammy Jo Nash was quickly becoming the only thing that crept into my mind between bouts of worrying about the future. Her letters all smelled faintly of a candle store. Not the kind my mom used to take us to that mostly smelled of yet to be burned marijuana.This was that shit people bought in the mall. It reminded me of the fall, like warm pralines.

I wanted to curse myself, but instead, I started to doodle on the edge of the page. The next thing I knew, birds were singing outside, and dawn was threatening.

“Shit.” I stuffed the letter in an envelope and hastily addressed it.

“Look at you,” Larissa cooed when she arrived to drop off my breakfast tray.

“Yeah. Early worm, or whatever.” I mumbled tapping the envelope between the bars.

“What do we have here?” She took it and stared at the name on the front. “Nash?”

“For the mailroom.” I simply said, before giving her my back and pretending to busy myself with the tray.

“I figured as much.” Larissa laughed.

She lingered a moment, but when I paid her no mind, she eventually fucked off. She reappeared before I could get my toast down. She didn’t say anything, she just stood there until I pointedly turned and eyed her back.

“Why did you lie to me?” she whispered, her voice carrying an edge of hurt despite the lowered tone.

“What?” I tipped my head forward like she’d thrown a twenty-pound anchor off my chin.

We had a handful of good times, but it wasn’t anything serious. I don’t even think we were around each other long enough for me to have had a need to spin a tale at her.

“You told me once that you didn’t date women when you were locked up.”

“I don’t,” I verified, without hesitation.

---