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“June!”
“He knows how to use it. Unlike you, Braydon. Remember that time I fell asleep while you were on top? Yeah, that wasn’t because I had a long day, it was because I could barely feel anything,” I say, and then I hang up.
This time, he doesn’t call back.
I’m assuming that’s because he’s reeling from the revelation that he isn’t a God in the bedroom. I dial Cash’s number, tapping my nails on the windowsill nervously.
“Pick up, Cash. Come on.”
Next door, Olivia emerges onto the porch and lights up a cigarette. She’s way out of line, and it makes me sick to my stomach. She doesn’t glance over at Cash’s house, but she takes her time with the cigarette.
Finally, she strolls off the porch and down the street, disappearing from sight.
I let out a breath.
I wish I had the power to solve this problem on my own, but Cash is the one with the court order, he’s the one with the lawyer, and Alex is his kid.
Even though I wish she was mine too.
Alex deserves a mother who loves her. Every child does.
Cash doesn’t answer the first or second call I make, so I switch to calling his brother. But Jesse isn’t picking up either.
“What the hell is going on?”
I’m not sure what the court order says. Is Olivia allowed to be next door? How close can she come to Alex? Calling 911 seems like a bad idea. This is not technically an emergency.
Marci’s number pops up on the screen before I can put in a call to the Heatstroke police station.
“Marce? Are you—?”
“Cash is in a fight,” Marci says, breathless.
“What?”
“I just heard from Tilly. She saw him grabbing Seth Deveraux by the collar outside Ganny’s house. He’s in a fight. Jesse’s there.”
My body goes cold. The last time we ran into Seth Deveraux, Cash acted like he wanted to tear into him. There’s tension there because of the bar and his family.
“Shit.” I swallow. “Do you know why?”
“No, but I know that two squad cars just drove past the diner heading in that direction.”
This is bad. This is really bad. “I need to call the cops.”
This is so messed up.
“What? Why?” Marci asks. “Oh, my God, is it Olivia?”
“Yeah, but I can’t talk now.” I hang up and make the call, hoping that reporting this will at least help provide the evidence for Cash to use against Olivia in court.
This is messy. Every part of this is messy, and I’m not sure how we can fix it.
Forty-Three
CASH
Jesse catchesme before I can turn Deveraux’s face into a pulp. He struggles to hold me back, and this time my father steps in front of me to stop the fight. Not that it will be much of a fight. I’m going to pulverize Deveraux for ever stepping between me and my family.
