Page 11 of Fool's Gold

I shrugged. Hell if I knew why Murph did anything. His twin brother, Lawson, was different in every way. People knew Law by his first name, and he was quieter and stealthier. Murph, who preferred to go by their last name, was a bully. He didn’t know when to stop being loud, and he always thought he was the strongest in the room.

“Law will knock some sense into him when he finds out,” I said.

Tav nodded in agreement. “The last thing they need is their ma being on the streets in her condition.”

I winced. Their mom had dementia, and without money to put her in a nursing home, they had to take care of her on their own. She was a good lady, probably the nicest woman in the park as far as I was concerned. After my mom left, Mrs. Murphy cooked me and Leo dinner when she could spare the food and left it at the front of our trailer.

“So, are you goin’ to tell me what’s happenin’ with your Bible boy? You know they’ve all got religion over there.” He waggled his eyebrows at me, and I rolled my eyes, making him chuckle.

“Fuck off, man.”

His laughter grew louder, and shouting from somewhere deeper in the park almost rivaled the sound. We paused, listening as a woman screamed at a man for humping her sister. These kinds of arguments weren’t unusual around here, even if no drama was in the rules. Some people got off a little easier, especially if they lived in thefancierpart with bigger trailers.

“His friend told Jonas’s parents that Jonas was gay, and it caused some problems.” I ran my finger through the condensation on the can and sighed. “So, I went and had a talk with the friend. I reminded him how fucked up it was to out someone else.”

Tav took a long sip of his beer. “How messed up does he look right now?”

I snorted. “Not too bad. A few punches to the gut. One to the face. I think he lost a tooth.”

“Nice. You pulled your punches.”

“Only because I didn’t think Jonas would want me to hurt him any more than I already did.” I chugged the rest of my Bonnybridge until there was nothing left and crunched the can between my fingers. I stood and kicked the empty, and it went flying, hitting the metal trash can a few feet away from us. The can didn’t make it inside, but there were already others in the grass. We usually picked them up later.

He nodded and stood, stretching tall, before drinking the last bit of his beer. “Get some rest. I heard Murph bitching about Dutch this afternoon. I told you to stay away from him.”

I smirked. “Cash is cash, man.”

He rolled his eyes. “Just be careful. If Dutch is doing a deal with the Kings and fucks up, they’ll come for him and anyone working for him. He ain’t the brightest.”

“I’m not stupid. I won’t piss off the Kings. They’re better to work with than the Demons. Those guys are a bunch of asswipes.”

Tav shook his head as if he didn’t believe me, then walked over to the trash can to dump his beer. I knew when the conversation was over, so I saluted him in a casual manner and opened the door to my trailer. Unlike the squalor outside, the inside was perfectly clean, with few possessions to make a mess. Leo had always taught me to be ready to run at any given time, and while I’d never had the need, I was always prepared.

To the left was my bed, a queen stuffed into the very end that took up nearly the entire width, and as soon as I stepped through the door, I was in my small kitchen that had a few appliances and a two-seater table. Then to the right was a small couch with a TV, and farther on, a door that led to the toilet and shower. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was mine.

I walked to the couch and fell onto it, sighing. Staring at the black screen of the TV, I thought about Jonas. His sweet smile, the wide muscles he kept hidden beneath those clothes, and the way he blushed. Everything about him was delectable, and I wanted him. I was surprised Murph hadn’t worked it out already. I’d stared at Jonas enough.

I grinned. I couldn’t wait to see him again tomorrow.

* * *

The next day, I met Jonas on his side of the river and farther down the street from his house. I sat alone in a bus shelter across from an empty field. The moment he saw me, his eyes lit up. His backpack was slung over his shoulder, and his dark hair danced in the wind. Today he wore a pair of black jeans with a dark blue T-shirt that clung to all his muscles.

Before he could say a word, I grinned. “Do you play football?”

He paused in surprise and mulled over my words before shrugging. “Not really. I used to when I was younger, but I didn’t like it much.”

“Then what’s with the body?” I gestured toward his front, and he glanced down at himself, tugging at the shirt shyly. His cheeks turned bright red and he laughed.

“I go to the gym at school. It gives me a reason to stay longer on days I don’t teach the kids how to play soccer.”

I raised my eyebrows. “So, youdoteach kids.”

He frowned and nodded. “I teach the girls and boys from the city who stay in a shelter. Those kids don’t get the luxury of just enjoying themselves. I give them that.”

I held up my hands at his defensive tone. I didn’t think he had the ability to be an asshole, and I had to admire his stance. There was a fire inside him that had been so well contained I hadn’t noticed, and maybe it deserved the chance to breathe. Obviously, Jonas had been trampled on his entire life. Well, fuck that. He deserved to stand up for himself.

“I paid your friend a visit.” I rose and went to stand next to him, and we began to walk slowly in the direction of the high school.

---