Addison (The Mitchell/Healy Family #6)(13)

Someday I wanted that – the promise of a future. For now I had to settle for one day at a time. I was in no place in my life to meet someone new, and I certainly wasn’t interested in Joe, no matter how hard he tried to get into my pants. Sure, I felt sexually deprived, but I could deal with it, because I was taking back my life, all parts of it.

“Do you need help with anything?”

“No. I’m just trying to get it done before your meeting tonight.”

I sat down on a chair and sipped a bottle of cold water. “I need to leave a little early. I promised someone a ride.”

“A new recruit?” My parents were huge supporters of what I did.

“Yeah. He’s new in town, well he was born here, but moved, and now he’s back. Anyway, I offered to get him to the meetings.”

“Be careful, Addy. I don’t like the idea of you riding around alone with strangers.”

“He’s harmless, Mama.”

“Your sister thought that too. I just don’t want you making the same mistakes. Be careful, please. If he makes you feel uncomfortable you kick him to the curb.”

I laughed at her. “Ok. I promise I’ll do that.”

“How old is this guy?”

“My age. Mom, he’s a goofball.” She was always Mama unless it was getting serious. I wanted her to know I wasn’t uncomfortable around this guy, and I’d like to think I had a little more experience with people than my sister, who had spent most of her time curled up with a book in her room. Don’t get me wrong, I envied her ability to escape, but I tended to be more sociable.

Dinner with my family was always a highlight of my day. My mom brought up my new project, also known as Cole. Briefly they grilled me about being careful. My father went as far as to make sure my pepper spray wasn’t out of date. While I wasn’t worried about Cole taking advantage of me in any way, I did find comfort in knowing my family would stop at nothing to keep us girls safe.





Chapter 5


Addison


After I showered and got ready to attend the night’s meeting, I stared at my reflection in the mirror. From being clean, and living a healthy lifestyle I liked the person looking back at me. I was happy with myself, in a good place even. I always tried to look presentable, except for this morning when I wanted to look ridiculous to prove a point. Tonight I wore a pair of khaki shorts with a red T-shirt. I let my hair down and straightened it, because unlike most Summer evenings, it wasn’t that humid to where my hair would start to crinkle up and curl.

I don’t know why, but I felt nervous driving to pick Cole up. He’d made an impression on me, one I wasn’t sure how to interpret. Despite the fact that I had rules, I knew I still wanted to look good around him, maybe just to rub in that nothing was going to happen. I wasn’t overdoing it. Obviously I wasn’t dressed slutty. I simply wanted to be me, comfortable and in control.

When I pulled up at the house I saw Joe’s police cruiser in the driveway. I honked my horn once and watched as he came outside first. He was wearing his uniform pants, but had taken off his dress shirt leaving only a white tee underneath. He leaned inside the window when I lowered it. “Don’t tell me he conned you into taking him somewhere. I told you he was trouble.”

“It’s my job, Joe.”

“This is not your job. He’s an addict.”

“So am I, but you still want to date me.”

“Addison, you’re different. You’re better.”

“Maybe I am, but there was a time where I was way worse than he is. To be honest, Cole isn’t that bad at all. He’s completely detoxed. He’s got a means for income, and he knows what he has to stay away from to remain clean. That’s more than I can say for half the attendees at the meetings.”

“Don’t go helping him because you think it’s a favor to me. I don’t give a shit what happens to him. He’s taken advantage of my parents far too long.”

This annoyed me. “Joe, I’m going to make my own decisions when it comes to Cole.” I saw him coming outside, and I’m not sure if Joe noticed, but I couldn’t take my eyes off of him.

He was wearing dark shorts with baggy pockets on the side. His shirt had regular sleeves and some kind of design on the front. The blue color was one of my favorites, and my goodness it showed off every muscle on his chest. His hair, completely messy on the top of his head, made me wonder what it would feel like to run my hands through it. “You out here trying to convince her to drive away without me?” Cole asked Joe.

“If I find out you did something to hurt her, I’ll kill you. Keep that in mind.”

Cole laughed as he climbed into the passenger seat. “Yeah, whatever, bro. I’ll keep her safe. Don’t you worry about that.”

I felt uncomfortable. There was no denying I was attracted to Cole. Everything about him was my type, and I think Joe noticed it too. He shook his head before turning around and walking back toward the house.

“Don’t worry about him, Cole. Joe doesn’t understand.”

“I know. No matter how much I change, I’ll always be a screw-up to him.”

“It doesn’t matter where you came from, it’s where you’re headed. That’s what my dad always tells me.”