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.She would call her lawyer tomorrowand let him know they had moved out,and that her father could post bond.Ifthere was a protection order in place,they d have to work opposite shifts atthe restaurant.It would be a pain in theass, but it could be done.If not, though,she d have to think about finding otherwork to support herself and her son.Or,she d petition the court to remove theprotection order.Leaving the restaurant didn t scareher as much as she thought it might.Shehad a business degree under her belt andseveral years experience helping herfather.She had enough of a cushion inthe bank to carry her through for a fewmonths if she was frugal.In her heart, though, she didn t wantto leave Frog Dog Grill or her dad.She didn t say anything to Zeke aboutthe guitar, though she couldn t helpreplaying it over and over in her head.The men unloaded boxes like theywere professionals, separating themroom by room and putting them as out ofthe way as possible.The apartment waspacked by the time they were done, but itwould be manageable.Bryan and Diego cut out early.Sheoffered them gas money, but theyrefused, as she d suspected.Emberhoped it was a couple days before theynoticed the money she d stuffed into theashtray.Zeke and Chad hung out and startedhelping her unpack boxes.Towardevening, she ordered Chinese takeoutand they took another break.Chadconnected the TV and Drew fell asleepin front of it almost immediately,oblivious to the movement around him.They ate from paper plates in theliving room, sitting on the couch andchair. I can t thank you guys enough,Ember admitted. I can t believe we goteverything moved today.Chad grinned at her as he slurped upa noodle. Well, you had a squad ofMarines at your disposal, but you re onyour own, now.My leg is killing me.I mgonna have to roll out.Scooping another forkful, he woundthem around the tines, then shoved themass in his mouth.After that final bite,he shoved the plate away, hand on hislean stomach. I shouldn t have eaten allthat. Even as he said it, though, hesnatched up a fortune cookie to stuff inhis pocket.Ember walked him to the door andgave him a quick hug. Thank you forhelping.I know Zeke talked you into itbut I really could not have done italone.Blue eyes crinkling, he tipped hischin to her. No, problem, Ember.Maybe I ll see you next Saturday?She nodded. I ll be there.And thefirst round is on me.He grinned. I might take you up onthat.When she returned to the livingroom, Zeke had started to gather up theleftovers. I can get it.He shrugged those broad shouldersand continued to clean up.She moved tohelp him.Zeke seemed to be walking a littlestiffly, but she didn t want to be nosy toask him why.They put the leftoverChinese in the fridge, though she knew itwould probably be gross the next day.She threw the trash in the can and leanedback against the counter. What was wrong with Chad s leg?Zeke glanced at her, dark blondbrows lowered. The new pr-rostheticmust have been rubbing.He doesn tusually say anything about his p-pain.Ember blinked and realized hermouth was hanging open. Wait, he smissing a leg? Are you serious?He nodded. His left.That s why hewas sh-showing me his b-b-boots earliertoday.He just had them& f-fitted for theprosthetic.She thought he d just been showingoff his cowboy boots.Dipshit.Shethought of all the boxes he had carriedand all the trips he had made for smallerthings.He d never mentioned anything ofthe sort, and she d not even noticed ahitch in his gait. Damn, I feel evenworse that he helped me now.Zeke frowned at her. Why? Just b-because he s missing a leg it doesn tmean he s any less of a man.He doesn twant to be kn-known by his injuries.None of us do.Ember snapped her mouth shut,chastened. You re right.I m sorry.He smiled a half-smile. Chad willap-p-preciate that you didn t evennotice.He s self-conscious enough aboutthe arm. It looks painful, she said.She ledthe way back to the couch and sankdown into the corner. If it is he doesn t say. He sankdown on the opposite end and leanedforward to rest his elbows on his knees.He scrubbed his hands over his face. Are your scars painful at all? Sheheld her breath as she waited for hisanswer.He glanced at her out of the corner ofhis eye. Not so much.Th-this one, hetraced his finger over the deepest oneacross his forehead and down throughhis eyebrow,  has been the worst.Myskull was cracked and my occ-occ-c-ciptal bone fractured.I have a couple ofsc-screws holding it together.I getheadaches here f-f-fairly often. And there s nothing the doctors cando for that? Well, he looked away,  they canm-make it look better but they can t doanything about the h-h-headaches.I thinkI ll always have them.I have& m-medication if they get really bad, but Ican only take it if I know I m not goingto be doing anything for the next twelvehours [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]