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“Can we do this later? We're really exhausted and just need to get some sleep.”

My mother took another long drag of her cigarette, blowing the smoke straight in my direction. “And you want to stay here?”

“If that's alright with you, yes.”

“Do I have a choice?” she asked. Her jaw went crooked as she tapped her cigarette against the edge of the sink. The hot ash dropped into the basin, sizzling into silence. “Because it doesn't seem like I do.”

“I'm asking you for help.”

“You're not asking me for help because you need me. You're asking me because you have nowhere else to go.” She turned on the water and doused the cigarette. “You can use the spare room. It's the last door on the left down the hall. There's extra sheets and blankets in the closet. Shower if you feel like it. I want yougone in the morning. I'm going to bed.” My mother waved a defeated hand and walked off, leaving us alone.

Poppy looked up at me and gave me a slack smile. “That wasn't awkward at all.” She giggled softly. “So, that's your mom? Pleasant.”

“Yeah. Not what you expected?” I asked.

“That was definitely not what I expected. Not that I had any preconceived thoughts because I didn't expect to be meeting your mother.”

“She wasn't always this way. But she's had a tough life. She has her own demons.”

“Don't we all?” Poppy asked. She walked around the table and took a seat. “So, this is where you grew up?”

I opened my eyes wide and shook my head. “No. I grew up a couple of towns over. This is where she moved after—”

“Your father died?” Poppy asked.

“After she lost everything,” I answered. I sat at the table with her and wrapped my hands around my head. “We need to keep moving. We can't stay here long. I've already caused her enough pain. I can't cause her any more.”

“We're safe here, right?” Poppy leaned forward and touched my shoulder.

“We're not safe anywhere.” I lifted my gaze to hers. “Not yet.” I exhaled a stressful breath and frowned. “Let's get cleaned up and just get some sleep. I'm so tired I can't think straight right now. Tomorrow I'll be able to see more clearly.”

Poppy nodded in agreement. We found the spare bedroom. The room was hoarded with stuff: stuffed animals, clothes, shoes, and baby toys. There was an old crib against the left wall and a twin-sized bed against the right. I had to climb on top of a pile of junk to get to the closet and retrieve the blankets.

The shelves, the ceiling fan blades, and the corners of the room were all covered in a thick layer of dust. Cobwebsdecorated the cracked and peeling crown molding like Hell's ivy. My mother really had spiraled into someone I didn't recognize. Her home was a disaster. She didn't care about anything, even herself.

I sifted through the clothes on the floor and found some that looked like they could fit Poppy. “Here, these should work for you.”

“Whose clothes are they?” she asked.

“I have no idea. But they have tags, so they're new.”

Poppy took the outfit from my hands to examine it. “It looks like it's new from twenty-five years ago.”

“It's better than nothing, right?”

“I guess,” she said.

“You can go shower first.”

She gave me a gentle smile and then went back into the hall. Poppy showered, and then it was my turn. The water felt good. I didn't have any clean clothes, so I wrapped myself in a towel and went back to the spare room.

“Nice towel,” she said.

I looked down at my waist and smiled. “I don't have any extra clothes, but I'm sure we can find something in this mess.”

“I'm sure we could, but why rush it?” Poppy asked. She reached up and ran the pads of two fingers down my chest. Her fingers danced across the top of the towel and back to my navel. “Come here,” she said as she rolled onto her side to face the wall, and patted the mattress.

I wasn't going to say no. She was inviting me in willingly. The way her eyes turned sultry and she bit her lip made my cock jerk. I slipped into the bed, curled up behind her, and molded my body around hers. Her ass fit perfectly into the dip of my hips. Her back rested against my chest as the top of her head snuggled under the curve of my jaw.