Skin Deep by Daniels A.J

Author:Daniels, A.J.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pronoun
Published: 2017-01-26T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

SHE HEARS HER PHONE ringing somewhere in the distance but she ignores it. This dream is just getting good, and she doesn’t want it to end. Parker’s doing very dirty things to her body, and she likes it a lot. She tries to force herself back to the dream, but the damn ringing won’t stop.

She fumbles blindly around her nightstand trying to locate her phone.

“Hello?” she forces out, her voice groggy with sleep.

“Ash?” Her brother’s voice sounds panicked.

She sits up, instantly alert, clicking on the bedroom light. “Chris? What’s wrong?”

“Ash, it’s Dad . . .” His voice hitches, but he doesn’t go on.

“What about Dad? Chris, what’s going on?”

“Dad . . . had a heart attack tonight. He . . . he didn’t make it.” She can hear Chris sobbing into the phone now.

Dear God, please, no. She just talked to her dad earlier in the day. They were laughing while planning her trip home this summer, and their family vacation next year. He was laughing and happy and he was alive.

“Ash?”

“I’m still here.” She tries to wipe away the tears, but they’re coming faster than she can keep up with. “Where are you? Where’s Mom?” Even though her parents had been divorced for a few years they still cared deeply for each other.

“She’s here. We’re still at the hospital.”

“Put her on.” She hears rustling before her mom’s voice comes through the phone.

“Hello? Ashley?”

“Mom . . .” She can’t keep back the sobs that rack her body anymore. She’d had to be strong for her brother but she can’t hold it back for her mom.

“I’m here, Ashley.” Her mom’s voice cracks but she can tell she’s trying to keep it together for her and Chris.

“I’m coming home. I want to come home.”

“Ashley, you have a thesis to finish right now. Why don’t you wait until we have the funeral figured out and come home then?”

“No,” she replies forcefully and she instantly regrets it. “I’m coming home now and I’ll help with the funeral arrangements. I’ll book a ticket right now and be there tomorrow.”

Her mom sighs into the phone. “Okay. Message me your flight info and I’ll pick you up at the airport.”

“Okay. I love you.”

“I love you too, Ashley,” her mom says before the line goes dead.

…

It’s been so long since she’s been back home. She came home the first Christmas after she left for school, but with the flights being so expensive she hadn’t had a chance to get back here.

However, this was not the way she pictured she’d be coming home.

Dad had a heart attack tonight. He . . . he didn’t make it. Her life changed with that one phone call. She couldn’t even lean on Parker right now because it felt like they’d drifted apart ever since she told him about her past. He claimed he just couldn’t get the time away from the team right now; they were just too busy.

They’d caught a new homicide case the other week, and recently he’s had

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