Coming Home- Rock Bay 1 by M. J. O’Shea Read Free Book Online Page A

successful enough that he’d been able to help them with painting and paid for a few renovations and landscaping in the front yard. It meant a lot to Lex that he could help them. They’d never had enough money to pay for much, but he’d always been certain they loved him and Emily. Not every kid could say that. He worked hard to make sure he had enough to cover his own bills and do some things for them now and again. Of course, he had to talk them into accepting. He rolled his eyes and glanced at the can of paint on the floor. His father wasn’t going to let him do the work without putting up a decent fight.
His dad had been fully retired for five years. He’d spent the previous thirty doing janitorial work and maintenance in the town hall building. Their family had always been invited to the city’s holiday parties and the Carrington’s Fourth of July barbecue—which was always full of the country club elite and their designer-clad children. Lex hated them. He hated how they flourished on the backs of people like his father, who made sure their expensive little world was clean and sparkling. It had prodded both him and his sister to be successful, though. Neither one of them wanted to have to smile at the rich assholes of the town while they were looked at like servants.
He hauled the can of paint from the floor of his car and grabbed a few other supplies he’d bought from the trunk before struggling it all to the front door and banging lightly with his toe so they’d let him in.
“Lex, darling, what are you doing here?” His mother had on her kitchen apron and was carrying a dripping pot.
“You said the baseboards were looking chipped. I was going to take care of the dining room and living room tonight. I’ll get to the rest as soon as I can. I’ve been pretty busy.”
“Oh, yes, dear. That’s very sweet of you.” She backed away from the door to let him walk through with his supplies. “Are you still having a hard time finding someone to help you? I swear, the people in this town. What do they think you’re going to do with their children? Convert them?”
“Mom, I’m sure it’s not that.”
Actually, he was pretty sure it was. He’d been looking for an employee for months, and while no one had a problem eating at his cafe, every time he’d found someone interested in working there the kid would come back with a disappointed face, saying their parents wanted them to concentrate on schoolwork or that a job would disrupt the football season. It was frustrating as hell.
Lex didn’t know why he didn’t correct his mother’s assumption that he hadn’t hired anyone yet. Well, that wasn’t true. He knew exactly why he was hiding that volatile little piece of info. Telling his mother that he’d hired Tally, no, Tallis Carrington , wasn’t going to be fun. She’d witnessed a few of his private breakdowns after he’d been tortured to the point of near tears back in high school. She hated the memory of Tally and the years of damage he’d done to her son’s selfesteem. Lex didn’t blame her. It had taken him a long time to get over what’d happened to him back then. He wasn’t sure if he was over it yet, to tell the truth. But the past two days had been eye opening for sure. Even if he wasn’t quite done with the past, it was hard to keep blaming the guy who it seemed Tally had turned into.
Lex’s mother had gone back to the kitchen to finish up with the dishes she was in the middle of doing, but his father wandered in from the family room with a bowl of ice cream. Lex smiled. He knew exactly where the whole exchange was headed.
“Let me change, son, and I’ll help you with the painting.”
He’d been putting down his drop cloth and getting the wall taped off so white trim paint wouldn’t get all over the blue.
“Dad. I got it this time. You can help me when I come back and do the crown molding.” He pointed at the ceiling, where the molding looked faded, although not chipped like the