Arrow of Time by Lina Andersson Read Free Book Online Page A

being the guy who never judged you for anything. Basically, he was all the things Edie needed.
     
    -o0o-
     
    I was still a bit buzzed when we got back home, and Lanie obviously noticed and gave me a pack of chocolate cookies just in case I needed them. Other than that, she didn't comment on the fact that I'd smoked pot at all, so she must've changed her mind about that since I left. She used to be dead against drugs and now she kissed my cheek while shoving those cookies into my hands.
    “I love you, Edie,” she mumbled and then stroked my cheeks. “Sleep tight, honey.”
    “ I liked Vasco,” I said. “Nice old man.”
    When Lanie turned around and stared at me, I laughed.
    “Not like that. He was just nice.”
    “ Did you like anyone 'like that'?” She asked carefully.
    “ No. Ella did her very best to get me interested in the single guys in the club.” I shook my head with a smile. “Are you worried about that flirt?”
    “ Dawg. He's... a dawg.”
    “ I got that, Lanie. Don't worry. Besides, I'm apparently 'off limits'. Not sure Ella got that info. You should fill her in.”
    “ I'll tell her. Dawg is a special case, he's... very charming.”
    “ I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. He's not the first flirt I've met.”
    I didn't add that I'd actually fallen for a few of those flirts in the past, but then again, that's how I'd learned my lesson. The fuck ups are how we learn, and sometimes we need to do the same fuck up more than once to get the message. As for falling for flirts, I'd done it more than once, got upset about it the first times, and the last time I just got pissed at myself. So I'd had my share of that type. I wasn't going down that lane again. They were good when you just wanted some fun, because they usually were fun. Hooking up with a guy like that and then having to be around him wasn't worth all the fun in the world.
    Besides, he was much too cocky to really be interesting and not half as good looking as he obviously thought. Although he was good looking. Full beard, ring in his nose, gray eyes, and I suspected dark blonde underneath that beanie. And ink! That guy had full sleeves and ink all the way up over his neck and throat. And he rocked it, didn’t look cramped or overdone at all. It suited him.
    “ I know you are. I'm just not used to how big of a girl you are,” Lanie said with a smile and hugged me. “You've become a remarkable woman, Edie. I'm so proud of you.”
    “ I love you,” was all I could think of saying, and then she was gone.
    I sat in the armchair in the guest room and ate the cookies while thinking over my situation. I had some money left. Not much, though, so I needed a job. I was planning on asking Brick if he thought Vasco was serious about helping me. If not, I'd go barhopping the day after tomorrow to see if they needed help somewhere. After two cookies, I realized that I needed milk, so, pulling on the yoga pants that now seemed to be mine, I went out in the kitchen.
    “Hey, girl!” Brick said and I jumped in shock.
    “ Shit! I didn't see you.” I took a glass and poured some milk before sitting down opposite him. “What are you doing?”
    “ Enjoying what my kitchen feels like when it's quiet. It doesn't happen often.” He must've noticed my expression. “Don't get up, I can take a break from the silence if it means talking to you.”
    “ I can go and get the cookies Lanie gave me.”
    He smiled. “Go and get them.”
    When I came back he'd taken out the milk and put it on the table with a full glass in front of him.
    “ So you don't drink?” he started.
    “ No. I realized I liked it a bit too much, so when I started working as a bartender...”
    “ ... you thought it best to not do it. Smart. Not the story you told the others.”
    “ No. But that was kind of the truth as well. I don't like myself when I drink.”
    It wasn't a big thing. I just didn't seem to be able to shut up when I drank. And I always had the worst anxiety the