Sounds exactly like her.
“She related to Nicky?” I ask.
“The piece of shit who lives on your street?” She lets out a sound of disgust. “That’s Ellie’s nephew. His pa, Ed, is her brother. They’re trash. Always have been.”
“What does she look like?”
“You’re askin’ a lot of questions about a bitch who ghosted this town nearly twenty years ago. What’s going on, Mars? And don’t give me some bullshit answer.”
I’ve always been able to tell Aunt Darcy things, but I feel tongue-tied at the moment. Frustration churns in my gut. People, not even Aunt Darcy, will understand Sage and me. It pisses me the hell off that we can’t proudly show off that we’re a couple.
And we are.
We so fucking are.
“I think I know her daughter.” I drop my gaze to her desk that’s littered with junk, probably dating back to the early nineties. “She doesn’t like me, Aunt D. I’ve pissed her off and she won’t take lightly to it.”
Her brows lift. “You somehow found this woman and angered her?”
“She doesn’t want any ties from her hometown coming back and messing with her perfect life,” I tell her. All truth. “I’m a loose end she wants dealt with.”
“I don’t know what’s going on, son, but you need to be careful. You hung out with Nicky and then the next thing I know, you’re doing meth, which got you hauled off to jail. That family is bad news. If you’ve stirred up Ellie’s nest, she’ll sting you like the hornet she is. Mark my words. I’ve had my own choice words with that woman, back in the day.” She frowns and clutches my shoulder. “Promise me you’ll stay away from her.”
I have no intention of dealing with Eleanor if I don’t have to.
“I will try to stay away, but something tells me that won’t be good enough.” I hug my aunt and let out a heavy sigh. “All I want is to be happy and stay out of trouble.”
She pats my back. “That’s all I want for you too, kid.”
“Then why does the universe keep fucking with me?” I demand, bitterness in my tone as I pull away.
From her apron, she pulls out a pack of smokes and tugs one out. She grabs a lighter from the desk, flicking up a flame. As she holds the flame to the end of her cigarette, she sucks in her cheeks to take a long drag. The lighter gets tossed back on the messy desk as she tilts her head up to blow out the smoke to keep it from going in my face.
“I’m gonna tell you somethin’ that’ll follow you through life,” she says, her voice husky and gravelly from years of nicotine abuse. “The universe is a conniving, vengeful bitch who acts like you stole her man. All you can do is give her both fingers and make your own way. Eventually, she’ll go fuck with someone else.”
“I love you, Aunt D,” I blurt out, feeling every bit the little, motherless boy from my past. Small. Scared. Unsure of everything.
And like those old times, she reaches up and ruffles my hair. “I love you too. I’m real proud of how you got your shit together.”
“It’s gonna stay together too,” I assure her. “I found something beautiful and worth being good for.”
“Don’t let that bitch of a universe take that away from you,” she says.
“Never,” I vow with a growl.
“I need to get back out there. Mona likes to flirt and then gets backed up.”
We head out of her office, back toward the bar, but are cut off when Mona nearly knocks us over as she flies down the hallway.
“D, Sheriff Beauchamp’s here. He’s lookin’ for Mars.” Mona’s eyes dart to me, worry flickering in them.
“Did he say what he wanted?” Aunt Darcy demands.
“Said he’s in trouble again with the law,” she says with a frown.
Aunt Darcy’s hard glare slams into mine. She must see my fear because she points out the back door. “Go on,” she tells me. “There’s some money in a shoebox at the top of my closet. Take what you need and call me when you can. Get out of here until I can figure out what the hell is going on.” Then, to Mona, she says, “Go stall for me, girl.”
Mona bounces out of sight and Aunt Darcy gives me a quick hug. “If Ellie Knowles is behind this, she and I are gonna have some words. Might get ugly, so you go on and get out of here.”
I slip out the back without another word. Knowing the sheriff is looking for me, I stick to back roads as I drive. It hits me this could be the last time I drive through Duncan. I can’t help but stare at the old skating rink as I pass. The streetlights in the parking lot cast a yellow glow on the wall I tagged last year. I smirk because despite getting into some trouble for it, I know Mr. Benson likes the giant roller skate I painted on the side. They never covered it up. It definitely spruced up that shithole.