Read Online Stories Beneath Our Skin by Veronica Sloane - Free Book Online Page B

I'm not going to kick you out. Nothing much to get done today." Ace set down his plate, letting George lick up bacon grease, which clarified one mystery at least. "Do you have plans or something?"
    " Yeah. Gotta be somewhere around nine."
    " It's after nine already, man."
    " What?" Liam reached for his cellphone. "Shit. No idea I slept late."
    " You got like five hours of sleep max. Cut yourself some slack." Ace glanced at the phone. "I do need that ride back to the shop though. Get my car?"
    " Right," Liam groaned. "Okay, let me just make a call. Tell him I'm going to be late."
    " How long do you have to be wherever you're going?"
    " Two or three hours." He scrubbed at his face. It depended when Gene took his midday nap. Usually Liam went out for lunch while he slept and came back in the afternoon. "It's no big deal. I can drop you off before I run over."
    " You're late because of me. It's cool, I'll come with. I can bring a book or whatever."
    " No! No, it's fine."
    " I can wait in the car. Crack a window and I won't even suffocate. Couldn't do my hangover any harm to take a nap in a warm car." Ace was watching him now, alert to Liam's panic.
    " It's fine," Liam snapped. "Please. Let me just... I'll drop you off and then go."
    " What? Is this some kind of embarrassing doctor's visit? Gotta side job somewhere sketchy?" Ace grinned. "Sketchier than Great Sin? 'Cause I'd feel jealous if you did, but I'd understand. Can't live off what I'm paying you."
    " No." He found his shoes by the door and jammed his feet into them. "Nothing like that."
    " So what is it then?"
    " Nothing! Just... leave it, okay?" He reached down and yanked his laces tight.
    " I just don't get why you're all..." Ace waved his hands around in frustration. "It's like you have this cloud hanging around you all the time, and it won't let anyone else in. How much baggage could someone your age possibly be carrying?"
    " I'm not that mysterious." Liam tied a knot. "You know stuff about me."
    " I don't even know what college you go to! Your resume was like a master class in evasion. I don't know if you have parents or if you were hatched out of an egg. Goose is half-convinced you're a spy, and Deb thinks you're a runaway or something with a solid fake ID. You never talk about other friends or family, so I gotta guess you're not talking to anyone else either. You can't go through life like that." Ace shook his head. "Did we talk about this last night? I've got some blurry déjà vu."
    " Maybe." Liam checked his pockets, only half-listening to Ace's rant. He was already racing ahead to the hospice, counting the minutes wasted sleeping. If Ace kept arguing with him, all that lost time would only keep mounting. "Come on, if we hustle then he might not notice I'm late."
    " Who won't notice?" Ace picked up their plates, dumping them in the sink.
    " I don't have to tell you." It came out petulant, and Liam had to take in a shuddering breath. The morning had gone from peaceful to tense in a handful of seconds. Worse, he knew it was his fault. He didn't mean to be secretive. He just preferred to deal with things on his own, in his own way. "Sorry."
    " It's true, you don't have to tell me." Ace turned from the sink to look him over. "But man, it sure seems like you should talk to someone. Are there people you can call? Maybe from school?"
    " They all have day jobs or take classes." He'd tried a few times and they'd chatted in snatches, but Liam had never got the hang of talking on the phone. Besides, none of them knew why it all mattered so much. He'd never explained his history to them. Moving to California had been a fresh blank page. "And anyway, I'm fine."
    " You know that ninety-six percent of people are lying when they say I'm fine ?" Ace pushed off from the counter.
    " Yeah? What study was that?"
    " Informal one. Performed by me." Ace picked up his boots and sat down to tug them on. "Been told I'm not a bad listener."
    " Why do you care? You barely know me."
    " And