Filed To Story: Secret Shifters Next Door Series PDF Free
“Yeah, that would actually be great.”
I spent the next several days reconnecting with my family. To their credit, neither of my brothers asked about the tabloid stuff. Which I very much appreciated. One thing I couldn’t deal with was trying to explain to my brothers why I’d had an orgy with God knows who while stoned out of my mind. That stuff slipped further into the rearview the longer I was back home. Like some
other me had done all those awful things.
I also spent a good bit of time getting to know Aiden. We’d already developed a bit of a ritual—after dinner, we played
Uno for an hour before he went to bed. He really reminded me of my brothers, and it only took a day or two before I was head over heels in love with him. Knowing that this awesome little man had been here all this time, that I had opted not to be a part of his life, was a gut punch. So much had been missed, but I was back now. Even if I did find my way back into the world of fashion and glitz and glamor, I’d already decided I would visit much more often. Not only Kellan and Kris, but my parents as well.
A week after my arrival, I found myself helping Kris get the bar ready for the night. I was polishing glasses while he swept the floor and wiped down tables. My brothers had elevated the place. When Mom and Dad had run it, it had been a cozy, warm little place where loggers, plumbers, and similar tradesmen relaxed and ended their days with a few cold beers. The boys had changed the décor and refreshed the paint. They’d also expanded the beverage menu to more microbrews and even a liquor and wine menu. The same workers still came in, but other clientele had started showing up, and business was much
steadier than it had been even when Mom and Dad were at their busiest.
A question had been on my mind for several days, almost since I’d crested that hill and saw Lilly Valley again. Knowing it would be a sore spot for my brothers, I’d done my best to push it to the back of my mind. Right then, while polishing wine glasses, I had to ask. Had to, or I might literally explode.
“Hey, Kris?”
He glanced up from where he was sweeping the floor. “Huh?”
I took a steadying breath and tried to seem as casual as I could. “Have you guys ever heard anything from Steff?”
Kris frowned almost immediately. His knuckles went white around the broom handle, and I realized even old wounds could still seem fresh.
“Yeah. He’s around.”
His tone held nothing but disgust. Things between Steff and my brothers had ended poorly when he broke things off with me. We’d been the
it
couple in high school. I’d truly believed that we’d end up married. When Steff broke up with me and moved across the country on a baseball scholarship, I’d been beyond heartbroken. My brothers loved me, and even though they’d been best friends with Steff, they’d basically sworn a blood feud with him. It was almost like something from the Middle Ages.
Through the grapevine, I’d heard that he’d gotten hurt and his career had been cut short before it really ever began. Thoughts of him had popped into my mind multiple times over the years, usually when I was at my loneliest and most depressed. My mind would do the thing where it would play out how my life might have been had we stayed together. That usually sent me deeper into my depression. Then I’d drown those feelings out with a glass of wine or some sort of pill.
“He came back a few years ago with some buddies he’d picked up. They started some security agency or some shit like
that. Kellan and I avoid him as best we can,” Kris said, going back to sweeping.
He was pissed off even talking about Steff. Deciding to leave it alone, I went back to polishing the glasses. After a while, I glanced at my watch and realized I needed to go meet the realtor. As much as I loved catching up with my brother and getting to know Aiden, I really needed my own place. Larry had contacted the realtor and set up a meeting so I could see a few places.
“I’ve got to meet the realtor. I’ll see you tonight, okay?” I said.
Kris nodded. “Sounds good. See you later.”
Larry called me on a video call about the time I pulled up to the real estate office. “April? How are you doing?”
“Good, Larry. How are you?” Had I not been on a video call, I’d have rolled my eyes.
“Fine, fine. Is the realtor there?”
“Jesus, Larry, I just got here. Yes, I’m walking up to her right now.”
A middle-aged woman dressed in a sharp-looking business suit greeted me. “Hello, Miss Knight?”
“Yes.”
“Deborah Whitmire. Great to meet you,” she said, shaking my hand.
“Hey, Debbie, Larry here,” the tinny voice from my phone called out.
From the look on her face, Deborah did
not like being called Debbie. Instead of dwelling on how uncomfortable Larry had made everything, she and I made the silent decision to get started without much preamble. We got into her car and went to see three different properties that might work for me.
The first was a tiny studio apartment above a vacant office. It was way too small, and Larry was irritated that it was even a suggestion. It was almost to the point that I wanted to shut off
the call. I looked like an idiot, walking around holding my phone out so he could see everything.
The second place was better, however, it was way out on the edge of town. It would have worked, but I didn’t want to have to drive twenty minutes to see my family after coming halfway across the country to reconnect with them. Of course, Larry liked it because it was secluded and tucked into the woods. But by that point, Deborah and I had officially begun to ignore him.