Page 76 of Fraud
God, I loved pancakes. And bacon.
And pretty much any food that didn’t come from a vending machine.
“You got enough cash to pay for this?” he asked, obviously seeing the unease spread across my face.
I hardened. “Yes,” I answered, hating that I couldn’t even lie to my kid brother.
The little know-it-all not only knew more than three of me put together, but he had also been able to read every one of my facial features since he was two.
“Credit card?”
“Would you stop? I’ve got it, okay?”
He settled back in his seat. “Okay.”
Long after the waitress came, took our orders, and poured gloriously large cups of coffee, a silence fell between us. It was unnerving, and eventually, I caved.
“She’s different,” I replied.
His face instantly lit up. “Different how?”
“She’s a virgin,” I answered, causing him to nearly choke on his coffee.
“Jesus, Killian. Give a guy a warning,” he said, banging on his chest as his voice settled back to normal.
“Sorry.”
“A virgin? Seriously? You shouldn’t be anywhere near that. You’re too—”
“Too what?”
He paused, setting his coffee down, as if he were contemplating something far more important. “Hold on. I’m trying to come up with the best term for it. Businesslike? No. Detached? That’s it. You’re too detached when it comes to sex.”
“You want to say it a little louder?” I exclaimed, giving him a look that could kill. “I don’t think the old lady in the corner heard you.”
“Sorry,” he apologized. “Not used to all this peace and quiet.”
I got back to the point. “You think I’m detached?”
He shrugged. “Yeah. I mean, look at how you handle family. Mom died, and what did you do? You separated yourself from everyone. You handle women the same way.”
I gave pause, thinking it over, before replying, “Well, it doesn’t matter anyhow. I stepped back. I pulled out the friend card.”
His face scrunched up, like he’d just passed a sewer line. “Man, that’s harsh.”
“It was better than a one-night stand.”
He nodded as our waitress approached, armed with plates of blueberry pancakes and bacon. My food-deprived body quivered at the sight.
As soon as she left, I dug in.
“So, why are you still here?” Liam asked, his fist full of bacon.
“What do you mean?” I asked, doing much of the same.
“If you’ve failed with the chick, why are you still holed up at the fleabag motel, spending cash you don’t have? Why not come home?”
I didn’t answer.
