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My next breath got caught in aze My voice ca I had only just succeeded in stopping moments before "What do youout the words

"Oh" I hoped the relief that washed through me wasn’t noticeable "Ulanced back at the door and et Keith before Deacon freaks out that a child is near hied and said, "Deacon said he’s funny Keith’s been out thereyet I’m sure he’s fine"

But I’m not

Not to mention I was terrified that Deacon’s hatred fortoward the door before I kneas ht brown eyes snapped up to ht of a real reason to pull Keith away

I ignoredstomach, and the embarrassment that still filled my veins, and looked down at Keith with a forced smile on my face "Come on, buddy"

"Moone all day, I want ti sneer forced

He doesn’t know me; I’m not like my mother He doesn’t know me; I’m not like my mother, I reminded myself, and forced myself not to react I refuse to be her

"Besides, I’h clenched teeth; the hint that I wanted hilanced back into the car "Yeah Yeah, kid, I’m done here, just need to clean up"

Keith nodded, as if he’d been waiting for Deacon’s dismissal, and walked toward me "See ya later, Deaton!"

I shut the door before Deacon could respond, and turned to seefro to let the they may have interpreted from Deacon’s or my tone, I clapped and turned to my son "What do you say atch Iron Man while I startdinner?"

He sent me a cheesy smile "Watch myself? Mommyyou’re silly" But he still turned and raced toward the couches "Last one there’s an egg!"

For the first tienuine "It’s rotten egg, buddy!"

"That’s what I said!"

But throughout Iron Man, dinner, and relaxing with my fa since slipped from my mind, and been replaced with a lance at the clock with the hopes that it would be an acceptable ti to convince myself that my restlessness was simply because I had purposefully left my soul at Ma toet to work the next day to see if the stranger had co more about them--about him, I had decided based on theto add or change about the song I wanted to know if he would still care at all once he knew I had no plans to takeforacross h my veins

Deacon

May 30, 2016

AFTER LEAVING THE warehouse, I stopped by the garage to see if there was anything else my dad needed before the day ended, then hurried to clean up before racing over to Maed the familiar voices and faces when I stepped inside, reeter’s desk

To anyone looking atIt was as if I’d just finished running a race, when instead I’d driven over here and walked inside My chest felt tight andThe past hours could haveI refused to think of for someone I didn’t know And all I could think of was that if I had stayed in the café, if I had waited for the owner of the journal to coed their mind