Page 14 of The Bad Brother

H OLY SHIT.

I did that.

I actually did that.

Leaning against the door I just slammed in River’s asshole boss’s face, I close my eyes and drag a deep, shaky breath in through my nose before releasing it out my mouth.

You did excellent, Sloane. You stood up for yourself. That shows real progress.

Opening my eyes, I turn around. Standing on my tip toes, I press my eye to the peephole in the door.

River and her boss are still standing in the hallway, in front of my front door.

They’re talking—or rather he’s talking while she listens quietly, shooting quick, worried looks at the door I’m hiding behind.

Shit.

Dropping myself back onto flat feet, I turn again.

Reaching into my pocket for the coffee shop receipt I jammed in there earlier, I pull it out.

Spitting the hollowed-out shell of my spent Atomic Warhead into it, I wad it up and carry it into the kitchen.

Taking a guess, I open the cabinet under the sink, looking for a place to throw it away.

Sure enough, next to a caddy full of cleaning supplies, is a trash can.

Tossing it in, I close the cabinet and turn.

Leaning my hip against the counter, I look around my new home.

Temporary home.

But that’s okay. Three months will give me plenty of time to save some money and find a new place. Give me time to regroup. Replant my feet and start?—

Someone knocks on the front door, the sound of it quick and light—like whoever it is, doesn’t want to be heard.

Hurrying to the door, and after a quick check of the peephole, I open it to find a worried looking River standing in front of me.

Before I can say anything, she pushes her way past me, gesturing me to close the door behind her.

“I know what I said,” I tell her, sure I know why she’s here and what she must think about the way I just behaved. “But I knew he’d never force me to call my attorney about this.” Jensen Barrett is an asshole but he cares about River—that much is obvious. I’m just glad he didn’t call my bluff.

Stopping somewhere between the front door and the living room, River turns to look at me.

“What?” When she gets the gist of what I’m saying, she waves an impatient hand in the air between us.

“Oh, that? No, that was awesome. I’ve never seen anyone stand up to Jen like that.

The only ones who even come close are Cade and Colt—but that’s just because Cade is an asshole and Colt is…

well, he’s Colt.” Chewing on her lower lip for a moment like sh e’s not sure she wants to say what’s next, she sighs.

“You lied to me. You said you didn’t have any money.

” Gaining speed and confidence, she frowns at me.

“You said there was no way you could afford?—”

“I can’t.” Shaking my head, I take a step forward.

“I gave you the last bit of money I have—and to tell the truth, I was lucky to have that.” Saying it out loud makes me realize how true it is.

Aside from a little wiggle room on my credit card and a gas card I keep for emergencies, I’m broke for the next two weeks.

Still frowning, River’s gaze drops to my hands. “Jen says that bracelet is worth about twenty-thousand dollars.”

How would he know that?

Before I can ask, River keeps talking in a rush.

“You didn’t have to lie,” she says quietly. “I liked you. I still would’ve?—”

“I didn’t lie,” I tell her, suddenly desperate that she believes me, even though it doesn’t matter if she does or not.

It’s a done deal. The lease is signed. Neither she or her boss can get rid of me—not without risk of legal repercussions.

All I know is that I want her to believe me.

“I like you too. I—” Suddenly worn down to my bones, I sigh. “Can we sit?”

Giving me a shrug, River turns away from me to make her way to the living room area.

Sitting on the couch, I take the chair across from her.

As soon as we’re both settled, I nod. “Your boss is right—the bracelet was probably expensive but I honestly don’t know how expensive because my mother gave it to me when I graduated med school.

” It’s a miracle I still have it. If I hadn’t worn it and the diamond studs my mother gave me for my twenty-first birthday to the engagement party that night, I’m sure Ethan would’ve kept them too.

When I went through the bag he packed, I noticed my more expensive items were missing.

The emerald and diamond pendant my mother gave me for my high school graduation.

A pair of Louboutin slingbacks from a shopping trip in Paris.

Amy had always liked the shoes. Even though her feet are a full size bigger than mine, she’d begged to borrow them more than once.

I’m sure she’s been hobbling around in them since Ethan packed my bags.

I hope they give her blisters.

“Med school?” From the look on River’s face, I just made things worse somehow. “You’re a doctor?”

“I’m a surgeon,” I answer her, matter of factly.

When I say it, the color drains out of River’s face. “You cut people open?”

“I’m a trauma surgeon,” I clarify. “Generally, they’re already open when they come to me.

I just put them back together.” When she doesn’t say anything, I lean forward on a sigh.

“Last week, I found out my boyfriend was cheating on me with my best friend.” I don’t tell her that Ethan was actually my fiancé or admit that Amy was never really my friend because the half-truth I’m giving her makes me sound pathetic enough.

“He moved her into our condo and drained our bank account. I’d just gotten my paycheck from the hospital the day before so?—”

“Your best friend?” Her expression hardens and her eyes narrow. “What a couple of assholes.”

You have no idea.

“Yeah…” Saying it on a quiet laugh, I shake my head.

“The only reason I had the money I was able to give you to re nt this place is because I made a cash withdrawal, right before it happened. I took the money out to buy him a gift but I got tied up at the hospital and wasn’t able to find the time.

Aside from a gas card and a few hundred left on my Visa, I’m broke until my next paycheck from the hospital comes in. ”

Two weeks.

While Mark paid for my tuition and housing, throughout college, everything else was my responsibility.

I lived on ramen and peanut butter for six years.

I can do it again for two weeks… dropping my hand onto my wrist, I feel the bracelet my mother gave me for graduation.

“I suppose I could sell the bracelet.” Even as I say it, I know I’d never be able to do it because it’s the only thing my mother ever gave me that symbolizes how proud she is of the hard work I put in to get where I am, even though I know it wasn’t pride that prompted her to buy it. It was pretense and perception.

“No you can’t.” River shakes her head at me like I’m crazy.

“You have to keep it. Your mother gave it to you.” Giving me a long look, she nods, slapping her hands on her bare thighs before she stands.

“Jen’s pissed. He’s super weird about creekers so, he’s not going to make living here easy for you. ”

Creekers.

I’ve heard the term before—it’s what people on the Barrett side of the river call the people who live in Clearwater.

I want to ask what her boss has against people who live in Clearwater but I don’t.

It’s none of my business. Instead I ask the only question that matters. “Is he going to kick me out? ”

“No…” Looking down at me, River sighs. “but maybe we should forget it. I can give you your money back and?—”

“I’ve been sleeping in my car in the hospital parking garage for the past week,” I tell her bluntly.

“My boss found out and gave me four days to get my shit together before she fired me—I’m on day three.

” Shaking my head, I stand slowly. “I’m really sorry—I know this whole thing has probably gotten you into trouble with your boss, but I can’t do that.

I have to stay—I don’t have anywhere else to go. ”

Giving me a long look, River finally nods her head.

“Don’t worry about Jen—he’s all bark and no bite.

” She rolls her eyes. “For the most part.” Reaching out, she squeezes my hand on a wry smile, her thumb brushing against the links of my ridiculously expensive bracelet.

“But to be on the safe side—you should probably take this off.”