Page 33 of Puppy Love

Heat rushes to my cheeks as I reach for the door handle. Violet points accusingly at me.

“Ha!” she exclaims, her smile widening. I twist the handle, pushing the door open.

“Shut up,” I say, blushing. Then, I step through the frame and walk out.

twelve

Haircut Stickup

Violet

“In the storage closet?!”

I wince, snapping my phone away from my ear. Has Ruthie always been this extra? I pinch the inner corners of my eyes and rub them for a second, like that somehow makes all of this better.

“Ruth, can you please shut the hell up?”

Ruthie gasps dramatically, and I can only imagine the invisible pearls she’s clutching.

“Don’t use my legal name, Violet Jean Wolfe. I’m not the one who fucked my employee, in a storage closet!”

“Technically she’s an independent contractor,” I mutter, like that changes anything.

Not that I want anything to change. Well, maybe Angela’s stupid, twat-blocking policy. But the rest of it, I’m pretty pleased with.

Pleased, and completely shocked. I knew Cam had an attitude, but given her constant stuttering and dislike toward the majority of humanity, I have to admit, I’m impressed. I didn’t expect her to do something so ballsy, like kiss me.

I definitely didn’t expect her to let me do that.

“Same difference. Are you coming down for Christmas? Tyler won’t stop talking about how much she misses Reese.” She pauses. “And you, of course.”

I let out a soft chuckle, knowing she added that last bit just to make me feel better. Rough fingertips trace my scalp as I run my fingers through my hair.

6Do I miss Ruthie and the girls? More than anything. But I don’t know if I can stand being within a thirty-mile radius of my parents for more than a few hours. And the fact that they’re leeching off Ruthie, living in the house she and Jeramiah worked so hard for?

“Vi, please come. I can’t do another holiday without you. Plus, it’s going to be their first Christmas without Mal.”

“Are you really going to play that card on me?”

Truthfully, she has a point. Even though Ruthie was never really a fan, the girls loved their Aunt Mal. Willow is too young to really miss her, but Tyler’s old enough to know things are different. Mallory used to teach her different dance routines during the holidays, and at the end of the night, Tyler would make everyone huddle on the couch to watch her perform. It was the only thing that could force me into the same room as my parents.

Sometimes, I wonder how Ruthie is able to cut them so much slack. They dragged us away from Oregon when we were too young to remember. So instead of growing up surrounded by culture and family and jaw-dropping views of the Pacific Ocean, I got to live in Happy Trails Trailer Park in Clarkston freakin’ Washington. I don’t know if that name was intentional, but I like to think it was, seeing as it’s the only interesting thing about the place.

But that isn’t even a portion of my issue with Elon and Gemma Wolfe. My feud is fueled by the fact that they spent their twenties becoming addicted to whatever they could get their hands on, rather than raising the two kids they chose to put on this planet. So, as the only one home with the motor skills to function, I single-handedly kept Ruthie alive.

She turned out alright, considering.*

“Fine,” I grunt, checking the time. Shit. “I’ll be there. But I gotta go. Love you.”

“Love you!” Ruthie calls out. I hang up and slide my phone into my pocket.

Remember when I said looking at someone that you’ve kissed like you haven’t kissed them is impossible? Yeah. Trying not to look at someone whose pussy you ate like it was angel food cake in a storage closet is so much harder.

“Are you having another stroke?” Cam asks in a tone I’d like to fuck out of her. My eyes dart up to meet hers. Shit. Was I staring again? “I told you he’ll be ready in ten.”

A pair of curved shears glide over the top of a golden retriever’s grinch-like feet. The loose feathers fall as she slices through them seamlessly, golden threads floating through the air.

“Right!” I smile but still don’t move. It feels like my feet have been cemented to the floor. Like my eyes have been super glued to Cameron. She lifts an eyebrow, jutting her chin out with attitude.

---