AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My lips twist, and I attempt to lighten the mood. “Who said it’s for Miss Gina?”
His tone turns impatient. “Are you able to stand?”
“Not with you in here.”
A fresh pinch of annoyance tightens his attractive features. “I’m right across the hall if you need help.”
He leaves, and I finish off the juice. I started having trouble with low blood sugar when I started having my periods, but I’ve learned to manage it. I’m pretty embarrassed this happened, but everything falling on me in the last week has been a lot—from the surprise of taking care of my brother to the question of where we’ll live.
Still, I have to be more responsible. Edward needs me to take care of myself, and the last thing I need is a lecture from meanie Zane Bradford.
I wring out the towel and hang it on a hook inside the shower then I grab a dry one from the cabinet. I’ll have to do a load of laundry to help with this mess I’ve made. My hair is wet, and water is all over the floor.
Taking a minute, I clean it all up before I dash across the hall to get dressed, securing my damp hair in two braids on the sides of my head. I pull on leggings and an oversized, light-green sweatshirt, then I swipe up my bag and motion for Edward to follow me.
“It’s ‘take your sibling to work’ day.” His brow furrows, and I point to the Kindle on the dresser. “Bring that so you’ll have something to read. You have your phone, and I’ll find something constructive for you to do.”
He’s twelve, not two, and he can sit quietly while I workduring the day. He’s been doing it for a while now, ever since I had to pull him out of school, which was a total shitshow.
They talk about mainstreaming kids like him, but if he’s bullied and fights back, they insist he be medicated. Edward has never had a problem at school, but it didn’t matter to his new teacher. That “leader” only cared that my brother behave like every other kid in the class.
Scrubbing my fingers over my brow, I swallow the lump in my throat. I was supposed to start working with Miss Gina in August, but getting him settled delayed everything.
Gran finally told me to go ahead and come here and pursue my life, but when the fight happened, I had to go back and get him. Our grandmother has a good heart, but she’s old-school. When she called to say she was going to have to medicate him or move him to a group home, I panicked and raced back to Birmingham.
Now our entire future is uncertain.
When I took this job as Miss Gina’s nurse, it really did feel like my life was finally taking a turn for the good. I had my own room in a mansion on the bluffs overlooking a beautiful bay. I was taking care of a sweet old blind lady, who wasn’t demanding in the least and gave me as much free time as I needed.
It was all going great—if you don’t count Zane Bradford, the super hot and grumpy handyman who took one look at me and decided he’d rather be enemies than friends. I didn’t need him—I made friends with his little sister Dylan and the staff at her hilariously wild family restaurant Cooters & Shooters.
Dylan is nothing like her brother. When she found out what happened with Edward, she insisted we stay here in her family home. She even offered to help me get him enrolled at the school here—if that’s what I decide to do.
We hustle down the stairs to where Zane is sliding his feet into his work boots. His dark hair is still damp, but he’s in his uniform of jeans, a gray T-shirt, and a plaid flannel overshirtrolled up at the sleeves. He has a dark scruff on his cheeks, and sometimes he adds a baseball cap to make me drool.
Straightening, his heart-stopping blue eyes fix on me for a second. He lifts his chin and heads out the door. Exhaling heavily, I follow.
The wind blows loud around us as we drive north along the bay. If I had to guess, I’d say he keeps the doors off his Jeep so he doesn’t have to do things like have a conversation with his passengers.
Edward is in the back seat with the hood of his sweatshirt pulled over his shaggy, blond head. The strings are tied tight under his neck, so it creates almost a cocoon. I’m sure he doesn’t like the wind, but bless his heart, he’s learned to cope with a lot in his twelve years on this planet.
When we finally arrive at the house, Zane exits the vehicle without a word. He reaches into the back of the Jeep for his bag, but he doesn’t get far before he takes a halting stop. He tries so hard to hide the muscle spasms, but I’ve been trained in sports medicine and physical therapy.
“My massage offer remains open.” I reach behind my seat for my backpack and to help my brother out of the Jeep. “I saw that video of your injury, and I’m sure you still have trauma in your hip and lower back.”
“No thanks.” It’s a flat reply, and I decide to try a teasing olive branch.
“It’s only fair now that you’ve seen me naked that I get to see you naked.”
His voice turns stern. “I didn’tsee you naked. I didn’t have a choice.”
“You mean you didn’t look?” I squint one eye at him. “I don’t believe you.”
His square jaw flexes attractively, and his dark brow lowers. “Is your father Jayden Wells?”
Wow. I didn’t expect that comeback. My stomach pits at themention of my father’s name. It’s like a slap, and my chin pulls back reflexively.
“Why… what?”
