Page 7 of Property of Bones

It’s calm. Familiar. Very quiet. But I don’t rush. I love this place. I love helping Marv run it. I truly enjoy my job. Plus, I get to meet new people all the time.

There aren’t any new people here right now though. Just me, my list, and a serious craving for strawberry cheesecake ice cream. Which, hallelujah,isin stock.

I head to the front, greet the cashier, Jeremy…sweet kid…still has braces…and chat while he rings me up.

“Looks like someone’s having breakfast for dinner,” he teases, eyeing the eggs and pancake mix.

“Only if I don’t eat the ice cream first,” I smile.

He laughs, and I pay, thanking him before heading for the door.

The sun’s almost completely down now, casting a pinkish hue across the parking lot. I unlock my car, load the groceries into the trunk, and slide into the driver’s seat with a content sigh.

No chaos. No complications. Just a quick trip to the store and back.

Sometimes, that’s all a girl needs.

And, sometimes, having a life this calm is a whole lot boring.

Maybe Mama’s right. I need to go out and find someone to spend some time with. It’s not that Ineedsex. I could go the rest of my life without it. Haven’t even had sex in over a year. But, I do crave that emotional connection.

Or, maybe I’ll just read a good book.

***Bones***

She shouldn’t be here this late.

She shouldn’t be anywhere this late… alone.

Not even two blocks away, a fight broke out between some tweakers. What if that happened here? What if it happened next tohercar?

I shift in the shadows, leaning against my bike parked across the street under a busted streetlamp. I didn’t plan to be here this late. Hell, I should’ve been home by now.

Sunny moves through the sliding glass doors like she’s walking on sunlight, grocery bags swinging at her sides. She smiles at someone walking in. Of course, she does. Always smiling. Always kind. The world hasn’t earned a single thing from her but she still gives those smiles away anyway.

My jaw tightens as she heads to her car, completely unaware I’m here, watching like some creep in the dark. She pops the trunk and loads her bags one at a time, humming something under her breath I can’t make out but wish I could. Something soft. Happy.

She gets in and drives off, not even glancing in my direction. Not realizing that a dangerous predator has his eyes on her. But I would never hurt her.

Her tail lights vanish as she drives away.

Good. She’s safe.

But it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. Like the fact that she doesn’t know I’m here means I’ve failed at something. Like I should be more than just a shadow with a scarred face and a gun.

I swing my leg over the bike, fire it up, and tear out of the lot. I’m done for the night.

I need to get this woman out of my damn head.

She’s a distraction. One I can’t afford.

Chapter Four

Bones

“How much ground beef should we get?” Riley asks.

Glancing down at the woman, I just stare. How the hell am I supposed to know how much ground beef to get when I have no idea what she needs it for?

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