Page 79 of LOT 62

“I have a tv,” Pete said like I was dumb. “I saw the news. Plus, your brother told me.”

“And you aren’t gonna get weird about it? You trust me at your farm?” I glared at him, wanting the truth.

“Don’t be a dick, Madd,” Xavi snapped at me.

“Heck no,” Pete admitted, again like I was dumb for even asking. “But I trust your brother’s word enough to hire ya.Yougotta earn my trust after that.” He wiped his nose. “Look, boy, the work ain’t easy, the hours are shit, and the pay's not great either, but it’s yours if ya want it.”

A fresh start as a fucking farmhand. “Yes, sir. Thank you.”

He scoffed at my formality I didn’t even know why I called him that. “Up there by the Bluffs forest. You know the place?”

Knew it well. I nodded.

“Monday morning, five o’clock. Don’t be late.” Pete gave me a stern look.

I nodded again, even though I had no idea how I’d get there. I’d have to get up at midnight to start walking. Maybe I could borrow a bicycle or something.

“You work for free the first week and you can have them.” He nodded to the items still clasped in my fist. “They’re made of tungsten, so they’re tough shit. No idea what the inscription says.”

I did. After rubbing them sort of clean, it’s what made me hold on to them so tightly. “A week for free and I can have them?”

“Deal, boy.” He held out his right hand and I shook it. “Take ‘em now. You're good for it.” He gave me a tight-lipped smile, nodded at Xavi, and went back to being a vendor.

Holy fucking shit.

Xavi wrapped his arm around my shoulders and kissed my cheek like an asshole as we walked away. “When are you gonna—”

“Were you pimping me out for jobs when I was still locked up?”

“Damn right I was,” he laughed. “Almost got you on at the sewer department, and that place has benefits, but it didn’t work out.”

Farmhand sounded better than sewer rat anyway. “Thank you, Xav.”

“Love you.” He held up his phone and snapped a random selfie of us. “To show Devon the look on your face right after you got those.” He nodded at my hand.

I shoved them in my pocket protectively.

It wasn’t even noon yet and I’d gotten a job and rings. It was time to force that blond piece of shit to marry me.

36

-Devon-

Sundaynighthadcome,and with it, the Sunday night blues. We’d been living in a bubble with each other, but tomorrow, reality would set in. I had to go back to the shop to start earning some pay again, and Maddox was set to start his new job.

It scared me. Would this feeling ever wear off? I didn’t want to let him out of my sight while my dad was still out there somewhere, but if I kept holding onto him this tight, I’d smother the fuck out of him. Things changed, though. While he was in prison, I had a job to do, a purpose, a goal to strive towards, which kept my mind satisfied that I was protecting him in the only way I could. But now that he was out and life carried on, I had no idea how to protect him and move on at the same time. It’d take some getting used to.

With the place to ourselves for the night, because Seth and Naomi were checking out the new trailer that came with his new job, I sat on the couch and tried to get my head right.

Maddox walked out of the bathroom in a shitty green towel, holding up two different pairs of work pants he’d borrowed from his dad. All our clothing went untouched in the trailer on Lot 62, but with the tape around the place and a weird reluctance to go there, we made do with what we could steal, borrow, or share.

“You staying up?” he asked me. “I have to get up at four to catch that bus early so I can do the rest of the walk before five.” It was the early bus that took riggers out to the boats for transport.

I couldn’t let him go to bed just yet. I had a surprise coming for him, but Nate and Xavi were late delivering it, so I needed to distract him until they showed up.

“Come here.” I patted the couch.

“No.” He held his position. “Don’t try to distract me with sex. I need to sleep.”

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