Page 17 of Chasing the Wild
Willing my self-control to at least put in an appearance—to make some sort of effort not to outright stare at her—I sit on the concrete mantle that spans either side of the fire, leaning on my knees. Focus locked on my hands, I study the creases of my knuckles.
“Want to tell me what that was all about?” My voice is hard. But then, I don’t know any other way to be, especially not with someone soft and pretty and so fucking young. She’s got to be close in age to Kayce, and that puts her in her mid-twenties at the most.
That puts her firmly in thetoo-youngcategory.
Inwardly, I cringe. What the hell was I thinking that first day I saw her at the gas station? She seemed so much older and easy to talk to, and I must have had fucking heat stroke or something for even considering asking this girl out.
Out of my periphery, I see how she twists her lips and shakes her head gently. “It’s nothing. Just my whole life exploding in front of my eyes.”
The fire cracks and pops to fill the silence.
“Why the rush to get out of town?” I’m still not entirely convinced it hasn’t got anything to do with the fact she’s dating, or has dated, my son.
“My new job starts tomorrow.” She takes another small sip of water. “I’ve got bills and things owing, and without sounding like the useless idiot you probably think I am… I promise I work really hard. Just seem to have shitty luck.”
“Like when your card declines at a gas station.” My eyes sweep over her and she’s got her gaze fixed on a spot on the floor.It’s a quick look. One I allow myself under the guise of checking that she’s ok. Nothing more.
I’m allowed to look at a person in need of my help, aren’t I? This is me being dutiful and caring.
She lets out a resigned sigh. “Exactly like that.”
“Still doesn’t explain why you’re out here hunting for Kayce.” I can’t help but glance at her stomach again. She doesn’t look pregnant, but if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck…
“He and I—” The girl stumbles over her words before trying again. “We had a joint account, and I needed to withdraw my savings to cover some unexpected bills, until my next paycheck. But if he’s not here and I can’t get hold of him, I don’t know what to do.”
My jaw works. I don’t buy it, but that’s none of my concern. There’s no telling what shit Kayce has got himself into, but I’m certainly not letting him screw this girl out of her hard-earned money. At least she’s got a job and a plan for her future, which is more than I can say for my own kid.
“How much do you need?”
Those green eyes of hers glimmer with tears. Fuck. It’s that bad.
“You don’t have to fix this for him.”
“Let me handle Kayce, and I’ll front you the amount until he’s able to get his ass back up here and make this right.”
“It’s over two thousand dollars.” She blurts out.
“Will a bank transfer do?”
“You can’t be serious?” This girl is looking at me like I’m a lion, and she’s just been asked to stick her hand inside my cage.
“Deadly serious. Consider it done, and if you want some free advice, don’t open a joint account with a useless prick like my son.”
Her eyes nearly hang out of her head.
“Noted.” She dips her chin while still gaping at me.
Cracking my knuckles, I figure it’s best to keep her talking. “What do you do for work?” What I’m expecting her to say is: admin, or office shit, or marketing, or something that townie girls like her seem to do. But her answer surprises me a little.
“I’m a vet. But I’m only in training.” The second part is tacked on hastily. Like she’s quick to point out a perceived flaw.
A vet student on her work placements.
While hearing that puts some parts of this story into context, it still doesn’t explain the panic attack. From what I understand, their apprenticeship programs can span a few years of part-time work, nothing to warrant a dive off the deep end about.
“It’s Layla, isn’t it?”
She nods.
