“Where is he then? I haven’t seen him.”
I hadn’t seen him either. He stayed that first night, but when Roxy, Axton, and Eric arrived, Sullivan disappeared faster than a pot brownie around Stoner Joe.
My dad kissed my cheek and left.
When my sister and Allen came to the hospital, they brought flowers and a card that Scotty made. Eventually Jacks sent Allen to get me some ice chips, but really, she just wanted some privacy.
“I’m so sorry for those things I said, Rose.” I could tell by her puffy, red eyes she’d been crying.
“No, Jacks, it’s okay. I love you. You’re the best sister in the world.” I think I was feeling a little loopy from the sedative the nurse had given me.
“I love you, too, Rose, just the way you are. And you’re not a loser.” She laid her head on my stomach and began sobbing.
I patted her hair until I fell asleep.
Ma didn’t let me work for a week. I told her I needed the money, but she insisted it would be a paid sick leave. That was really generous of her.
After I got home from the hospital, Axton bought me a new TV and a DVD player. He christened it with Mars Needs Women—which according to him was a classic. He and Eric stopped by every night for a week and usually brought pizza.
Ma and Ray came in the afternoons and brought real food. Jorge’s wife, Marisol, sent enchiladas.
Roxy came bearing anime DVDs and nail polish. My toes never looked better. And I was hooked on Eden of the East. “Told you,” she said smugly.
Jacks stopped by every morning with a latte and a fresh danish.
Even Janelle dropped in, bringing my graded assignments with her. I looked them over and knew my major would never be in accounting. She also brought me a gift from Tariq, something called a Knuckle Zapper. It looked like brass knuckles, but acted like a stun gun. It was very cool.
Dane came as well and brought flowers. “Rose.” He dropped next to me on the futon. “I should have stuck to you like glue throughout all this. I feel responsible.”
I patted his leg. “You’re not responsible any more than I am. Steve Gunderson was a nutball. No one knew. Apparently he pulled this stalker shit on his ex-girlfriend and she was too scared to report it.”
He picked up my hand and kissed the back of it. “As soon as you’re feeling up to it, I want to take you out. Anywhere you want to go.”
I smiled, gently pulling my hand from his grasp. “I can’t.”
“Why not?”
Because I’d killed a man and it had changed me. I’d do it again. It was Steve or me and I chose me. I didn’t feel guilty about it, not exactly. But I didn’t feel okay about it, either. And I couldn’t just go back to my life like nothing had happened. I certainly couldn’t think about dating.
“I’m a mess, Dane. I can’t be with anybody right now.”
“Is it Sullivan?”
God, I was so tired of men and their fragile egos. “No, Dane. But it’s not you, either. I’m not what you want and I don’t know if you’re what I need.”
“You are what I want and I’m not going to give up on you, Rose Strickland.”
“Now you’re starting to sound like Kevin.”
“That was cold.”
I nodded.
That was the first week. On day eight at five a.m. on the button, I threw on jeans and a Ma’s Diner t-shirt and went back to work. Ma protested, as did Ray. But Roxy set the salt shakers in front of me. I ignored everyone and refilled them.
By the middle of my shift, I was exhausted. All the sleepless nights and the stress had taken their toll. Ma made me sit down and eat. I felt weird, sitting at the counter with the customers, eating breakfast. But I did it, then finished my shift.
They wouldn’t let me help clean up, though. Ma sent me packing just as soon as she flipped the closed sign.
I drove home, and when I pulled up to my building, I saw him standing there, waiting for me. He leaned against the hood of a black Lexus sedan.
After I parked, Sullivan walked toward me. I met him halfway and we stood awkwardly in the middle of the parking lot.
The autumn sun made his skin seem more honeyed than usual. He looked handsome in his dark tailored suit.
“How are you, Rose?”
The wind picked up a strand of my hair and blew it across my cheek. Sullivan reached out and tucked it behind my ear. His fingers brushed lightly over my still bruised jaw.
“Better. You?”
“I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I’m fine.”
“No you’re not. But you will be.” He dipped his head toward mine, his lips grazing my cheek. “If you’re ever in trouble again, promise you’ll call me.”
I wasn’t about to promise him anything. I had just rescued Axton, outsmarted Thomas Sullivan, and survived a psycho. I was Rose Freaking Strickland, and I was a badass.
Reader’s Discussion Guide
1. Rose went to great lengths to rescue Axton. Would you have done the same? How far would you go to save a best friend? Would you put yourself in danger?
2. Which secondary character was your favorite and why?
3. Some of the characters have questionable ethics. Roxy used to steal, Axton uses drugs, and Sullivan is a criminal. Do the positives outweigh the negatives in these characters?
4. Compare and contrast Rose’s “adopted” family with her real family. What are the positive and negative traits of both?
5. Rose’s mother, Barbara, repeatedly tells Rose to do something with her life. Is she wrong to pressure Rose to get a degree and find a better job?
6. Did Rose evolve over the course of the book? Why or why not? If so, what brought about the change?
7. Who is more successful, Rose or Jacks? Why?
8. Do you think Rose regretted her decision to break away from her family and gain her independence?
9. What were the major themes throughout the book?
10. Which character do you relate to the most and why?
11. Do you wish the characters had done something different or made a different choice?
12. Describe what you liked about the writer’s style.
About Terri L. Austin
When Terri isn’t writing, she enjoys eating breakfast at her local diner, watching really bad movies, and hanging out with her kids when they’re home from college. She lives in Missouri with her funny, handsome husband and her high maintenance peekapoo.
Visit Terri at www.terrilaustin.com to see what’s next or drop her an email (terri@terrilaustin.com), she loves to hear from readers!
If you liked this book, try these mysteries from Henery Press…
New Mystery: Portrait of a Dead Guy
In Halo, Georgia, folks know Cherry Tucker as big in mouth, small in stature, and able to sketch a portrait faster than buckshot rips from a ten gauge — but commissions are scarce. So when the well-heeled Branson family wants to memorialize their murdered son in a coffin portrait, Cherry scrambles to win their patronage from her small town rival.
As the clock ticks toward the deadline, Cherry faces more trouble than just a controversial subject. Her rival wants to ruin her reputation, her ex-flame wants to rekindle the fire, and someone’s setting her up to take the fall. Mix in her flaky family, an illegal gambling ring, and outwitting a killer on a spree, Cherry finds herself painted into a corner she’ll be lucky to survive.
Available August 2012