Shared History by Red L. Jameson

Author:Red L. Jameson [Jameson, Red L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Red L. Jameson

The knock outside the driver’s window startled Duke since he’d been in a fog while gazing out the windshield of Ellen’s car.

John held two mugs of coffee, one of which he’d used to tap on the window. He was wearing a gray fuzzy robe over blue-plaid PJ pants. “Well,” he said, the words caught by the freezing morning, making puffs of white, “you comin’ in or just stalking me?”

Duke had come here after he’d visited Martha. She had gotten tired shortly after the sunset. Fuck, he’d felt bizarre when he’d walked into her nursing home. What the hell was wrong with him to think of stealing some Ambien from her? He didn’t want to die. But like he’d felt when he’d been a kid, death seemed the only alternative when the pain was…when the pain barbed into his very lungs, making it excruciating to breathe, stung his brain so every thought reminded him of helplessness and dirty grease rubbed into his skin that seeped into his muscles to his very bones.

Duke got out of the car, embarrassed he’d gotten caught parked outside John’s house. John lived next door to Vivian; it hadn’t taken much to remember how to get there from the nursing home.

He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I...I didn’t know where else to go.”

John extended one of the coffees to Duke. After Duke finally took the offering, John blew on the brew and sipped. “Illiamna called.”

“Shit.”

“Said if I saw your runaway ass, I should call.”

Duke took a sip, which was heavily creamed and sugared, not what he usually liked, but it was perfect, nonetheless.

“Then the nursing home called.”

“Shit.”

John laughed. “If this thing with Illiamna doesn’t work out, I’ll hook you up with Judy. She’s the night manager, the one who let you hang out with my grandma all night…cousin.”

Duke glanced up, knowing what a moron he must look like. He inhaled, trying to find the words. But there weren’t any. He shook his head. “I’m a fucking idiot. I dinah mean to…I don’t…fuck.”

John laughed again and turned, wrapping an arm around Duke’s shoulders. “That’s a mouthful. Why don’t you tell me about it inside? It’s freezing out here.”

It was barely seven in the morning, the Friday after Thanksgiving, and John’s house was quiet and warm.

“Mary took the girls to Great Falls. Black Friday shopping. Left at about five this morning.” John said, explaining his family’s absence. “I can’t stand the crowds, but my girls thrive from the people and the deals. They come back all jacked up on how much they saved.” He chuckled as he showed Duke to a stool in front of a wooden kitchen island. “Hungry? I was going to make a gouda omelet.”

“Sounds a little too delicious for a…” He was going to say a fuck-up like him, but why wallow in self-pity in front of someone he didn’t know very well? Actually, Duke wanted to impress John, but he was doing fuck all about that, wasn’t he?

John shrugged. “Nah. Tell me honestly:

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.