Sure. I won the queer lottery and got some hush money.
“Dad gave me the money,” I said.
Soph made a sound of disbelief. I realized the questions were gonna keep piling up until I had no choice but to admit everything, but it was a shitty time and place. The annoying drizzle, the darkness falling, and the fact that I was soaked all the way through made me wanna call it a day and check in to a nice hotel with a bathtub.
I still hadn’t gotten my shower.
“First of all, Dad doesn’t give away money,” Soph stated. “Second of all, why would he give you money to build Dylan and me a house?”
Fuck my life. I suppressed a sigh. “Is there any way we can talk about this tomorrow? I haven’t showered in four days, I’m so fucking over the rain in this godforsaken state, and my balls just crawled back inside my body because it’s so cold.”
Dylan glanced around the site before he looked back at me. “Please tell me you’re staying at one of the inns in the area.”
“I would love to, but I’ve been roughin’ it.” I nodded at the bed of the truck. “I got one of those tents for trucks. It’s all right.”
“Christ—I wish I’d known, man. We can help you out,” Dylan said.
“I appreciate it, but my air mattress is actually comfier than your couch.” I was too tired to be kind about their ratty couch.
He shook his head. “That’s not the only option. Give me one hour—I’ll be back.” He turned to Soph and murmured something in her ear, then kissed her cheek, and she nodded and smiled. A genuine smile I hadn’t seen in quite some time.
When Dylan was halfway back to the car, Soph yelled out for him to wait, and she rushed after him. To get her purse, apparently.
One hour. I could hold out for that long, right? One hour alone with my sister.
My stomach chose that moment to rumble a reminder about the fact that I hadn’t eaten all day.
I supposed it was as good a time as any to fire up the grill. I had a roof now and everything. It would be nice to get warm too.
“Can we sit in the truck?” Soph asked.
“I have a better idea.” I had a foldable camping chair in the back of the truck, and I’d bought two plastic lawn chairs. “There’s a cooler on the floor of the passenger’s seat. Mind grabbing it? I’m starving.”
In the meantime, I carried over the chairs, the grill, and then went back to the truck to pop the tent. Because I needed to get out of my wet clothes. It couldn’t wait. While I was back there, I snatched the bag of charcoal too, along with lighter fluid, a towel, and a roll of black trash bags.
“I can hear the squishing in your boots, Blake.”
“Wanna smell them?”
“Oh my God.”
I grinned and dropped the change of dry clothes in the camping chair.
Soph was suddenly in full nesting mode and didn’t need to be told what to do. After dumping coal and lighter fluid into the grill, she fanned out three trash bags on the ground to create a makeshift floor. It would get messy in no time, but it beat standing in the actual mud.
This was gonna be freezing. I shed my jacket, hung it over the back of a chair, and then stripped down to just boxer briefs. I put my boots back on too, though.
“You’re out of your damn mind,” she told me. “This isn’t like running through the summer storms in Georgia.”
I was surprised she remembered. She’d always gotten scared at the first crack of thunder and hightailed it back to the house.
“Don’t have much of a choice.” Besides, I didn’t mind. I was pretty good at making do. As long as I got clean.
I stepped out from under the roof and into the rain. For once, I was glad it was picking up. Otherwise, it was gonna take forever to wash off. Speaking of, I should grab my soap.
I trailed back to the truck once more, and I figured it was best to give the boys some extra heat too. Soap in one hand, a disposable hand warmer in the other, I opened the door to Oppy and Percy and activated the little pad.
“This is one of those times Daddy wouldn’t mind weighin’ three pounds,” I murmured. They looked all snuggly in the blankets and stretched sleepily as I slipped the heater underneath the top layer. “There we go.” I picked up some of the kibble they’d dropped around their bowl.
I closed the door carefully so as not to startle them before I refocused on my very lovely, high-standard shower in the cold rain.
It didn’t really compare to a bathtub, if I was honest.