Page 12 of Rent Free

I wasn’t going to be like my parents.

I was just different.

Too different.

Women tended to hate me after a while because I was ‘too much.’

So after the last one had gone off the deep end, I’d decided that I would be the cool uncle.

The one who had all the money, the cool house, and the fantastic cars.

Kids wouldn’t happen for me.

A wife certainly wasn’t on the radar.

But a one-night stand… That I could definitely do.

The only question was, would bakery girl be willing?

Wish I’d paid better attention during my first rodeo.

—Pepper’s secret thoughts

PEPPER

I waved at the neighbor who nearly took me out with her three bags of trash.

“Sorry, sorry,” I said as I moved as far to the side of the hallway as I could to keep from getting clobbered.

The woman gave me an apologetic look and said, “Sorry.”

I waved her off, then walked up to the door I’d been aiming for and stared at it with trepidation.

“Just do it,” I muttered to myself.

Before I could knock, though, she yanked the door open, already glaring.

“What are you doing here?” Sage snarled.

I narrowed my eyes at the ungrateful bitch.

“I’m here to tell you some important news since you can’t seem to answer your phone.” I tried not to snarl back.

Sage crossed her scrawny arms over her chest. “You expect me to answer your phone calls when y’all don’t meet me at the hospital after I was kidnapped by a serial killer?”

I nearly rolled my eyes at her. “But were you, Sage?”

I watched the familiar eye twitch, which was her ‘I’m lying through my teeth’ tell.

No, we both damn well knew that she wasn’t hurt by any kidnapper, even if she made the world believe that.

I wasn’t born yesterday, though.

And neither had anyone in our family.

When we’d gotten the call about Sage, we’d been skeptical.

Mostly because, the week before, Sage had called to tell us that she was in love.

---