Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 35763 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 179(@200wpm)___ 143(@250wpm)___ 119(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35763 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 179(@200wpm)___ 143(@250wpm)___ 119(@300wpm)
Willa is dressed in the standard Lighthouse High uniform. Khakis and a white polo shirt. Girls can wear the pleated dark green and blue skirts. Your shoes have to be black.
“You have school today?” I state what is now obvious to me. Even Rich had been in khaki pants and the polo.
"First day." A small smile pulls at her lips. "Aren't you expected to be our guardian or something? I think that would be on the things-to-know list."
"Clearly I'm shit at this." Willa lets out a snort of a laugh. "You even laugh like her." I utter the words before realizing I spoke them out loud.
"Who?" Her brows pull together.
"My mother. Your grandmother.”
"Really?" Her eyes widen with curiosity. "I've never seen a picture of her or my own mother for that matter. You Haven men aren't great with the ladies." I can't argue with that, so I don't.
"I have a few pictures. Would you like me to get you copies?”
"Yes, please. I'd love that."
“Consider it done.”
“Thank you.” Willa shifts on her feet. “I should go.”
“Have a good day at school, Willa.”
“You, too, I mean, have a good day. Doing whatever it is that you do.” I give her a nod. They really don’t know much about me. Do I want them to? Aren't I only here to oversee things? I’d come worried that Rich could be like his father—worried about the girl who resembles my mother so deeply.
Willa pauses in the doorway. “I don’t know what’s going on with you and Teddy, but know that her outer layer might be tough, but she’s all heart, and when you’re all heart, you feel so much deeper than everyone else.”
With that, she departs, leaving me alone. I drop down onto the couch. This is a fucking mess, and I have no clue how I’m going to handle it. I pull out my phone a few minutes later, the alarm going off.
I see the three of them together in an oversized Jeep that Rich is driving. He’s taking them to school. I clench my phone. At least she’s in the back seat. When they vanish from view through the gate, I toss my phone down on the table.
This isn’t going to work. Teddy might be eighteen, but she is in high school. That’s not the worst of what I’m realizing. I’m blind. No way to contact her or know that she is okay. Yeah, this so isn’t going to fucking work.
Chapter Ten
TEDDY
The tension is thick inside the Jeep, but I ignore it. No one is saying a word, but that doesn’t last long. When Rich has something he wants to say, he’s going to say it. He’s not particularly good at biting his tongue.
“What the fuck were you thinking, Teddy?” My eyes meet his in the rearview mirror.
“Don’t talk to her that way.” Willa glares at her twin brother. She is actually the best one to get him under control. He and Karl might have killed each other on more than one occasion if not for her.
That had all tapered down over the last year with how Rich sprouted into a giant. His father wasn’t a big guy. I wondered how he turned out so big, but after meeting West, I see that it runs in the family. Karl just didn’t have those characteristics, and he knew he could no longer push Rich around. West isn’t scared of him, though. That’s for damn sure.
“It’s fine,” I tell Willa. I want him to speak openly and not tone it down because I’m a girl. We’re all practically family at this point. “What I’m thinking is that if I were you, I’d mind my own business. You don’t see me poking into yours, and I know—” I let that last word hang in the air for a second. “You wouldn't be too thrilled about it if I really decided to.” I respect Rich, and I appreciate his concern, but I can take care of myself.
The quiet falls back over the inside of the Jeep, but I know in Rich fashion that won’t last for long, but he’ll tone it down. He doesn’t want me blurting out his little secret. Not that I would. I’ll keep it tucked away for now unless things get out of control with it. He is an adult, after all. All I’m asking for is the same in return. To let me decide what’s in my best interest.
“Does Eden know?” Did he really go there? No, my mom doesn’t know. She knew I slept in the main house, but that isn’t abnormal. I crash in Willa’s room all the time. Mom merely laughed when I came rushing in to get ready and wished me a good first day on my way out the door, handing me a granola bar.
“Know what? Nothing happened.” A bit of cuddling. That’s no big deal. Right? I’m not in the habit of cuddling boys, let alone men, because that’s what West is. I’d felt every inch of that fact.