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CHELSEA

“It’s a shas in Fortune any exposed to trash” Mrs Trainor’s not-so-quiet whisper carries over two aisles of Mrs Carrocery store Annie Bloo at cereal and Mrs Trainor’s probably squeezing the shit out of some loaf of bread

“Hush up, Jessica, or those chits will hear us and you’ll be getting a visit from a Death Lord,” hisses her companion That’s likely Mary Wilson, a blue hair Literally, she has blue hair She coet a blue rinse It’s supposed to counter the yellowing of super-white old lady hair, but blue? Mary’s got porcelain white skin and I think the blue e, but I’m not her hairdresser so I keep my opinion to myself

I’ as I can

“Those felons don’t dare step foot onChief Schmidt You just know that they are responsible for that poor Pastor Bloo with two ht Mary”

Annie’s face turns beet red while her knuckles beco cart A forht all her life to be nice, turn the other cheek, and do unto others nonsense, Annie freezes like hard ice cream from the back coolers of Carmichael’s Grocery

Unlike me

I was pushed out by a woers for sex than be bothered teaching her whelp right frohest ular fro a check on my behavior

Plus, I believe in standing up for your friends and having their backs

“Don’t look in theand it’s not pretty,” I retort

“It’s no big deal,” Annie whispers “You don’t need to defend me”

“The hell I don’t,” I answer hotly Annie doesn’t understand, not yet, because it takes time to fully absorb that not everyone in the world exists to reject you It’s hard when your only exposure to family is a bad one Annie’s lectful shithead who tried to beat the sin of loving twoshe wasn’t worthher dad’s assistant, aloved by two hotso much as a paper cut It’s a lot to take in “You’re family now No one talks shit about my family”

“You’re one to talk, Chelsea Weaver, holding hands and kissing and Lord knohat else with that brother of yours That gang is a den of iniquity and soood Lord will strike you all down” Mrs Trainor has abandoned the bread aisle and brought her filth straight to us I open my mouth to let her have it when I feel a hand on my shoulder

“Mrs Trainor, Grant Harrison is Chelsea’s step-brother There is no blood relationship between the two” Annie’s quiet but fire So she does get it Family has each other’s back—all the time

“They are siblings in the eyes of the law and in the eyes of God,” Mrs Trainor proclaier toward us “One of these days you’ll get your due”

“Maybe so” I start walking I want to get out of here We can get cereal elsewhere “But it won’t be because asms”

I brush by her, pulling Annie behindbut I don’t hear it because I’ve shut her out My stoer and part from embarrassment, but I don’t slon

“I’m sorry,” Annie whispers softly as we exit into the sunshine and cold winter air We both pull our jackets tight around our frames as we hurry to the truck Annie rocery so at least the vents are blowing out hot air e climb inside

“What for? I think we’re both sinners in the eyes of Mrs Trainor” I take a deep breath, trying to cal in her favor is that she doesn’t talk about you behind your back Oh no She shoves her insults and judght in your face”

Annie restarts the truck, the engine having turned off e opened the doors “That’s true You going to tell Wrecker?”

Wrecker’s my man, my step-brother, my partner in crime, my one true love

“Yeah You gotta tell Michigan and Easy too because this is a s to tell others about the scene that just went down They’ll want to hear it from you and will be hurt if you don’t tell them”

“I just hatethem worry” She nibbles on her lip

“TrustThesure that they understand that you don’t need action fros and kisses”

My gaze falls to Annie’s round belly that bu wheel “Unless you want the about it”

“Oh goodness, no We don’t need that kind of trouble,” she exclaims

“I hear you” The last thing either of us needs is our Death Lords Motorcycle men to mount up and wreak havoc on our behalf The law in Fortune doesn’t like the Death Lords and would love to see each member put behind bars In Wrecker’s case, that would be his second time and I just knoouldn’t survive another stint in prison

“You got so to tell me?” Grant “Wrecker” Harrison says almost before the door of our new apartment closes behind him We’d moved into the small one bedroom unit above the Cut-n-Curl just days before I’d intended to buy a bunch of staples at Carmichael’s to fill our shelves but Mrs Trainor put a spoke in that plan I ended up driving to the Wal-Mart thirty roceries

“That I love you?” I say not looking up fro for the last couple of hours I hear a thunk as he removes his boots and a tinkle of keys as he tosses them on the counter

“I know you loveabout ent down at Carmichael’s today and you know it” His hands wrap around my hips and he tucks his chin into the crook of my neck

“Since you already heard about it, what’s there to say?” I’ the advice I parceled out to Annie because I want to knohat the ru

“People I don’t care about are talking shit You’re the only one who matters to me” His warm breath tickles my skin and displaces a few strands of hair I press back, enjoying the feel of his big fraainst mine

“Mrs Trainor spouted off so to defend my man and one of the ways to do that is to not let hi otherwise I fear what he’d do in retaliation I don’t fear his methods but what kind of retribution the laould mete out in response

“You sure you’re okay?” he asks, sounding doubtful

I pin a smile on my face and turn around to show hiood, honey”

He raises an eyebrow in disbelief “That right? Because I heard that there was blue hair flying and finger pointing and voices shouting”

“Did you get that froood-old Fortune tin can telephone chain?”

“I heard it froht away, unlike soarlic bread that’s cooling on the cutting board The tis He jostlespot of pasta and hot water into the waiting strainer “I know you’re tough but even tough girls can get their feelings hurt”