Courageous Cain by DJ Davis

Author:DJ Davis [Davis, DJ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-09-11T22:00:00+00:00

22

I hugged Cain, sending him as much love as I could. He sent it right back, filling my mind with overpowering good feelings. Some of those feelings faded when Gordon took my elbow. “Time to go.”

“One more minute.”

“You’re stalling.”

He called that one right. I would have preferred raking up dog shit in the back lot to meeting Gordon’s family. The guilt about the way I had spoken to Glenda was only a small part of it. I didn’t know how to act, had no idea what to say. They would have their conversations about past events, other family members, mutual friends, and inside jokes. I would be the outsider, hearing their talk but not understanding the meaning behind it.

I latched both kennel gates and froze at the bottom step. I ran my fingers through my hair and smoothed my clothes.

“You’re gorgeous.” He offered me his arm. “Stop worrying and be yourself.”

I had on a blue shell top, khaki shorts, and my running shoes. I couldn’t bring myself to wear any other shoes these days. I flexed a well-developed bicep. I didn’t mean to, it just happened whenever I brought my hand up. “Are you sure?”

Gordon stopped and took both of my hands. They were swallowed up in his extra-large paws. “Joes, they’ll love you. And if they don’t, I couldn’t care less. Because I love you.” When he put his arms around me, his shoulder holster bumped my head. Officially, he was off duty for the afternoon; unofficially, never. “Let’s go eat and have some fun.”

“Easy for you to say.” I was all bumblebees inside. The thought of food made them buzz and swarm.

The town square was filling up. There were seventy-five, maybe a hundred people. For a small town like Rockglen, it was a good turnout, especially considering how many people had left to spend their summer vacation where there wasn’t a madman on the loose. For all anyone knew, the killer might be milling among the crowd, helping himself to fresh lemonade and strawberry rhubarb pie. I sat in the pickup with one arm hooked around Fletcher. Gordon chuckled. “Come on, you two.”

I slid off the seat, into his arms, and clung there.

A cheerful voice said, “Dad said you met someone. I didn’t believe it. Thought he was going crackers.”

Gordon’s younger brother was shorter and heavier, but they had the same sandy hair and hazel eyes. In his brother, I saw how Gordon would have looked without the birthmark and I liked him better with it. It gave him character and a resilience he might not have otherwise had.

With the same deep laugh, the brothers embraced, pounding each other on the back. Gordon put his arm around me. “Greg, this is my Josie.”

“Hi.” I held out a hand.

Greg shook it but didn’t let go. “Hi, there. So you’re the one who put that smile on my big brother’s face.” He turned back to Gordon. “Too bad I didn’t meet her first. She’s a beauty, Gordy.”

“Yes, she is,” Gordon said, extracting my hand from his brother’s.

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.