Page 50 of Tainted

Sasha and I were her world, and now a piece of it was missing. I felt incredibly guilty imagining her lying in bed, hiding under the covers so nobody could see her crying.

Kenyon pulled me closer to him to avoid being run over by patrons, bringing me back to reality.

“Everything alright in there?”

“No, but a caramel apple will make me feel better.”

Kenyon cracked his knuckles, staring at the ocean before replying, “Can’t disappoint your Mom on her birthday now, can we?”

“Nope.” Grabbing his hand, I pulled him toward the pink and blue shop, eager to get my hands on one of their famous candy apples.

As we approached the entrance, I noticed a little girl tugging on her mother’s hand, her eyes wide with longing as she stared at the colorful treats inside.

“Mommy, please! Just one,” she begged, her voice tiny and hopeful.

The mom sighed, clearly worn out. “Not today.”

“But why?”

“Because I,” she stopped abruptly, sighing, “Because I said no. Maybe another day.”

I glanced at Kenyon, wondering if he noticed, but he seemed focused on holding the door open as I stepped inside. Staring up at the menu, I didn’t know where to start. All the flavors looked so good.

“Should I get the Cinnamon Spice Dream or the Cookies and Cream Xplosion?” I asked, peering back at him.

His shoulders hunched. “They both sound nasty as fuck.”

I sucked my teeth, studying the menu one last time before we got to the register. After placing our order, his phone rang, but he didn’t answer. I was caught up in childhood memories when the worker slid our order across the counter.

“For somebody who didn’t want to come to Luna’s, you sure are greedy,” I said, nodding at the two candy apples in his hand.

Kenyon just pushed the door open with his elbow. On our way out, the little girl was still standing there, her shoulders slumped in disappointment.

Without a word, Kenyon stopped and asked, “May I?” while the little girl looked at her mom for approval.

“Thank you,” the woman said, her voice soft with surprise and gratitude.

“Didn’t know you had a soft spot for kids,” I teased, biting into my apple.

He waited until I was perched on the ledge of the pier, my legs dangling, enjoying my sweet treat before asking, “Can I ask you something?”

“You just did,” I joked.

“Why aren’twespending the day with Mom?” He asked, giving me his undivided attention, and I wished he hadn’t. His dark eyes blazing into mine made me extremely nervous, toggling between the truth and a story to sell.

“Now, who’s nosey?”

He stood next to me, using the ledge as a makeshift table.

“I’m just curious.”

“We had a difference in opinion, so I left and moved back here to pursue dance,” I replied vaguely.

His free hand palmed my shoulder to soothe the sadness on my face.

“You can borrow mine.” He talked about my wide smile, but the one he flashed just now could give mine some competition. “She doesn’t have any girls, so she’d be happy to do all that girly shit mothers and daughters do.”

“She has Sydney.”

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