Page 22 of Housebroke

And she wasn’t ready just yet.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Linc was elbows deep in wiring when his phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pocket, rolling his eyes when he saw Warren’s name pop up. He clicked and pressed speaker, laying the phone on the floor while he worked.

“What’s up, Warren?”

“Just checking to see if you’ve worked your way into bankruptcy yet.”

“Funny. And, no. But I am busy.”

“I don’t know why you insist on putting in all that sweat and labor when you make enough money to hire people to do that. Hell, man, you’re a multimillionaire. You don’t even have to be there. You could be at the lake right now, on the boat.”

He looked around to see if Hazel was within earshot of his brother’s remark about his financial status. He didn’t throw money around and didn’t like people to know about his wealth. It often changed someone’s perception of who he was, and frequently it wasn’t changed in the right direction. He liked Hazel, and he didn’t want her to think differently of him because he had money.

“I like working with my hands. Sitting at a desk all day is boring.”

“You’ve always been like that. That’s why you were always in trouble in school.”

“Fuck off.”

Warren laughed. “I see you’re doing fine. I just called to remind you the anniversary is coming up.”

Linc sighed. The anniversary of their father’s death was never an easy one. And even though it had been five years, his parents had loved each other deeply.

“How’s Mom doing?”

“That’s why I’m calling. She usually gets quiet and morose this time of year, but actually, she seems fine. She mentioned something about going on a cruise with her friends during that time.”

“Maybe it’s good that she’s moving forward,” Linc said. “She’s always wanted to go to the cemetery and then have all of us go out to eat and reminisce about Dad.”

“I agree,” Warren said. “I see this as a positive step.”

“What does Eugene think?”

“Hell if I know. I can barely get him to answer his phone. He prefers to only text, and then it’s in some bro-language I can barely understand, littered with bullshit emojis.”

Linc snorted out a laugh. “That’s cuz you’re old. Bro.”

“Kiss my ass. I’m due to argue a case in court in an hour and I’ve got to prep. Talk later. Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Linc clicked off, then stared down at his phone and smiled, feeling oddly warm and happy. Ever since their dad had died, the three boys had grown closer, not only with their mother, but with one another. The “I love you” thing had never been hard to say, since Dad had always been freely affectionate, and both of his parents had smothered them with unconditional love for as long as Linc could remember, sprinkled in with the discipline that the three boys had rightly deserved.

And they always made sure the love they had for one another was spoken. It was important, because tomorrow wasn’t guaranteed.

The back door opened and Hazel slid in, her clothes—all of her—totally drenched.

“Did you get really hot out there and decide you had to take a dip right now, fully clothed?”

She held up a finger, clearly irritated, then pointed outside where Penny stood at the door, her tail moving wildly. Without another word, she marched up the stairs.

Linc looked over at the door. He grabbed his bottle of water, then stepped outside and took a seat in one of the chairs on the patio. Penny came over and laid her head on his knee, so he gave her some love.

“You in trouble, girl?” he asked, smoothing his hand over her soft fur. “What did you do?”

Penny didn’t divulge an answer, just put her paw on his leg to be sure he continued to pet her.

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