Page 7 of Loving My Enemy

This work allowed me to do what I wanted and to make a modest living doing it, but more than that, I was a completely self-sustaining organism. I could go days without leaving the house, as long as I had food and water.

Which I currently did not have, and therefore needed to venture outside of my home. Since I had to do it on foot, I changed out of another pair of cutoff shorts, and changed into an eggplant maxi dress with an empire waist and slipped on my favorite hemp sandals. I felt pretty and comfortable as I started out with my patchwork purse slung over my shoulder, filled with the necessities, plus cloth bags for my trip to the market.

But first I decided to stop for lunch at the pub I’d seen when Sheriff Henderson towed me into town. Maybe there would be someone there to talk to If not, I had my eReader. Screw credit cards; I never left home without my Kindle. Pulling open the heavy wooden door of Black Thumb took some effort, but inside,it was cool and dark, and the greasy smells hit my stomach right away.

As soon as I jumped up on a leather stool, a blue-eyed woman with a lot of tattoos stood in front of me. “You’re new. I’m Nina. What can I get you to drink?”

I should have expected the question. It was a common enough question in a bar but still I drew a blank. “Um, I don’t know. What would you recommend?”

She blinked. “Wine? Beer? Booze?”

I shrugged and leaned in. “I’ve never had a drink before so I don’t know what I like. Can you recommend something? Please?” It was embarrassing to admit, and when she asked for ID, I handed it over as heat flared in my cheeks.

“All right,” she said with no judgment in her voice, as she returned to the table with my drink. “Let’s start with a beer. This one is dark and full bodied and it has a slightly higher ABV. Don’t make me regret this.”

I frowned. “Um, okay. Thanks.” She was tough, that much was clear. I wondered if she’d come by it naturally or if she had to learn to be that way.

There was something like pity in her eyes as she slid the frosted mug my way. “Why don’t you drink?”

“I wasn’t allowed to,” I told her simply. It was true enough but it wasn’t the whole story. Then again, how did you tell a complete stranger that you’d only been born to save your older brother’s life and therefore had to always be in optimum health? You couldn’t, so I accepted her pitying smile and took a sip of the beer. It was cool and slightly bitter. “Kind of chocolatey.”

She smiled. “Right?”

“Your tattoos are beautiful. Did they hurt?”

She looked down at her arm and shrugged. “Some. Sounds like you’ve experienced things that would hurt a lot more.” She stayed where she was, staring me.

I didn’t know what to say as she sized me up. “I’m Elka.”

“Nice to meet you, Elka. Welcome to Tulip.” Nina made her way down to the other end of the bar where two older men sat with empty beer mugs, and refilled them quickly, offering a flirtatious smile that had the old men laughing. “Guys, meet Elka. She’s new to Tulip.”

Both men offered distracted waves which I returned meekly. When Nina returned, I ordered some food just as a loud growl sounded. “I’ll have the black bean nachos with extra jalapenos, please.”

I ate my food alone and in silence, letting those old fears and doubts creep in. Did I really need to move so far away from home? What if a year later, I didn’t feel any different? Or, worse, what if I wasn’t any different? Those thoughts weren’t helpful, so I finished my nachos and my beer, left Nina a tip, and went on my way.

“Hey, Elka,” she called out and I turned with my hand on the knob. “We do trivia night every Wednesday at seven. It’s a great way to meet people, if you’re interested.”

“Um, thank you, Nina. Bye.” The sun hit my face as soon as I stepped outside, making me lift my face to the sky and smile. I slipped on my favorite sunglasses with the purple lenses and took my time walking the few blocks to the grocery store. Before I got there, I saw something that drew my attention: a statue that looked like it had seen better days. The closer I came, the more it all came into focus.

The statue was of a woman, or had it been, surrounded by a garden with a fountain between the two. I bet it had been beautiful when it was clean and functioning, but now it looked sad. “Tulip’s Tribute,” the placard on the ground said. I couldn’t believe it. This was how they treated the memory of the woman who’d started this town? It was unbelievable and I shook myhead, heartbroken, as I walked away and slipped inside the cool air of the store.

Since I had to walk back home, I decided to pick up just a few necessities or else I’d have to stop every block to rest, turning my two-hour trip into a half-a-day ordeal. Most of the items in my cart were healthy because it had been my way of life for as long as I could remember. Every day I ate a salad, and at least three servings of vegetables too. As my mother always said, “You can’t help your brother if you’re not healthy.”

It had never mattered what I wanted. Only Austin.

“But that was the old you,” I whispered to myself and turned down the junk food aisle, grabbing potato chips, cheese puffs, and a variety pack of chocolates. Maybe I was a junk food person and maybe I wasn’t, but the only way to figure it out was to try.

I smiled to myself as I paid the cashier.Look a me, living my life.

Chapter 5

Antonio

Pissing off the boss definitely had its downsides, especially when that boss was also your closest friend. Tyson had given one of the other deputies the night off and put me on shift this evening, probably just to make sure I didn’t make it to trivia night at Black Thumb. And it was all because of that damn blond pixie, Elka.

I was itching to run a background check on her, but so far, I had no legal basis for it, and she wasn’t worth risking my job. But I was a patient man; waiting was my specialty and I knew she’d give me a reason to check her out sooner or later. No one, especially not a single young woman, picked up and moved to a small town in the heart of Texas if she wasn’t running from something. Or someone. I didn’t want to think about her running from an abusive or angry ex, so I comforted myself with the idea that she was too open and unguarded to be an abuse victim, which only left trouble.

With a capital T.

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