Page 43 of Resting Beach Face
I groaned inwardly just as Katelyn stepped into the doorway.
“There’s nothing to eat anyway,” she said.
I surveyed the contents of the fridge, and she wasn’t wrong. There was half a six-pack of beer, a few slices of cheese, and some sketchy-looking leftovers in the back that had been in the fridge too long already. I pulled out a container of cottage cheese and lifted the lid, jerking back with a cringe. Yep, that was expired.
“All right, I guess a shopping trip is in order. Where’s Mom? We can make a list.”
“She’s sleep?—”
“Where’s my fucking beer?” Dad bellowed, cutting through Katelyn’s soft words.
I was tempted to pour his precious beer right down the fucking drain. Katelyn grabbed a can from the fridge and took it to the living room.
“About time,” Dad grumbled.
I guess that’s what went for thanks in his world. I scowled.
Katelyn shook her head. “Don’t start anything. Mom’s trying to sleep.”
I closed the refrigerator and grabbed the keys off the hook by the door. “I don’t want to start anything,” I muttered. “I really want to finish it.”
Katelyn looked stressed enough that I relented. “You coming with me? You remember what foods everyone likes better than I do.”
She seized on the opportunity to escape. “Yeah, you’d be hopeless without me.” She detoured to the junk drawer under the microwave and pulled out a thick envelope. “Coupons Mom has clipped. Bet you would have shopped without them.”
“You’d win that bet.”
Dad bellowed at the television, making us both cringe. Mom shuffled into the kitchen bleary-eyed a minute later.
“What’s going on?” she asked, glancing at Katelyn as she sorted coupons. “Oh, shoot. I meant to hit the store before I got home.”
“No worries. We’ve got it covered. Right, Kit-Kat?”
My sister huffed. “Not a little kid, Cash. My name is Katelyn.”
“So formal,” I teased, tousling her hair just to annoy her. She squealed and danced away from me.
“Be quiet, will ya!” Dad called. “I’m watching TV.”
If my eyes rolled any harder, I’d probably have a brain aneurism. The man had woken Mom with his bellowing, butweneeded to quiet down.
“Do you need money?” Mom asked. “I’ll get my purse.”
“Nah, I got it.”
She hesitated, but I didn’t miss the look of pure relief crossing her face. “Are you sure? I can pick up an extra weekend shift.”
“The resort gig is good and regular, Mom. What else am I going to spend my money on?”
She frowned. “Notthis.You should be spending it on dates, or fun days out on the lake, or, or?—”
“I’m not dating right now, and Sawyer’s my hookup for fun on the lake. No money required. Besides, I just landed a second job unexpectedly, so…I’m good. Seriously.”
Her brow furrowed. “Asecondjob?”
“Yeah, so maybe you could give yourself a day or two off.” I nodded my head toward Katelyn. “This job will be flexible. I’ll work it around our existing schedules.”
She smiled wanly. “You’re too good to me.”
