Page 130 of Of Flesh & Bone

"How can you be sure?"Her eyes tell me without words that she believes me.She knows that I know it isn't Paul, and she wants to know how I can be so sure.

"It wasn't Paul.He'll never bother you again.I need you to trust me and not ask questions about this."

Eve just looks at me.She doesn't say a word and seems to examine me for the answers to the questions she hasn't voiced.Eventually, she looks away and nods, accepting what I've told her.She saw this in me that first day in the library.It's likely part of the reason that she refused my lunch invitation.I'm only now confirming what she always believed I'm capable of.What she doesn't know is, now that I have her, I am capable of so much worse.

CHAPTER 43

Eve

Saturday!Moving day!

I'm excited about the possibilities and I'm actually looking forward to decorating.Well, I'm looking forward to making our house a home with the help of V and Ada that is.Adam and I have spent our free time shopping online and in local furniture shops, making sure that we have a place to sit and sleep.Adam insisted on a new, larger bed for the master bedroom.There have been multiple tense disagreements about which of us will pay for what.I kept insisting that we share the furniture expense and Adam insisted that he pay for everything.

We decide to spend our first night in the house with our friends, doing a pseudo housewarming.The gifts range from a sex swing from Cal, to throw pillows with her face printed on them from Ada, matching paintball guns from Eli and Vaughn, to the finale gift from Cotton.A one-eyed bulldog with alopecia.Cotton volunteers at the animal shelter and pets aren't allowed in Eden House.He's constantly campaigning for pet adoption, and the aptly named Mulligan was about to be put down if he wasn't adopted.Adam simply explains to Cotton that, if Mulligan shits in our house, he will bag it up and deliver it to Cotton's pillow.

The dog is really something to look at.He isn't completely bald.He's patchy, which almost looks worse, I think.The pirate patch over his missing eye does edge him up a bit, but overall, he's just sad looking.He's this semi-hairless, t-shirt wearing, pirate dog named Mulligan.

Cotton doesn't know the story of how Mulligan lost his eye, and this is a travesty as far as Cal is concerned because he desperately wants to know.

"Come oooooon, man.You've got to give me something here.Don't hold out on me.What happened to his eye?"

"I told you, Ashford.I have no idea what happened to the damned eye."

"Yeah, but you've got to have a theory.What's the theory?"

"The older I get, the less and less time I seem to find for your bullshit."

Cal is grief-stricken.He looks as though he can't go on another day without knowing the fate of Mulligan's left eye.

"I have a theory."Ada's voice is pure rapture amidst the pleading.

Ada saves the day with an outlandish tale of villainous fairies, heroic pirates, and an army of vigilante crocodiles, with Mulligan as their unlikely leader.Cal.Is.Riveted.Although, I'm not altogether certain that it's the story that has his smile painted on and his eyes all doughy.

Sometimes, I think I see something in the way that he looks at Ada.I would never say anything to Adam because he's too protective of his little sister.More so than any older brother I've ever seen.Instinctively, I know that if Cal were into Ada, it would not be well received.

The guests are all leaving at the same time, so Adam and I walk them out.Cal, Cotton, and Ada have ridden together in Cotton's SUV and Eli and Vaughn are on Eli's motorcycle.I love that bike.Eli has taken me for rides, but he's afraid to let me drive it alone and he apparentlydoesn't ride bitch,so he can't be on there to teach me.Ada has her own bike and easily rides just as well as Eli does.She's a beautiful badass.

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