said their prank couldn’t injure her, and it had to be uniform. Meaning all old ladies needed to go through the same thing. That was his way of saying any bullshit they unleashed on Kellie Dee would come back to bite them. Since he didn’t trust his sisters not to fuck with the new wives, he has the bunnies do the hazing. They’re less likely to fill a balloon with bleach.”
Sighing, I roll my eyes as if I’m annoyed rather than rattled. “I don’t want girls ganging up on me. I dealt with enough of that shit growing up.”
“It’s fine. They did it to me as a retroactive-type thing. I just crouched down and covered my face. It didn’t hurt, and Lowell licked off a lot of the booze afterward. It was fun. Don’t worry your pretty head.”
“When will that happen?”
“After you get settled in, I guess. They’ll probably wait longer since you had a baby recently. But remember, Lana, that the bunnies won’t get aggressive. I know you think Bronco’s sweet as sugar, but the bunnies are well aware that he has no sense of humor about some things. Like once a bunny teased Summer about her braces, and he threatened to cut her loose. That was after he threatened to just cut her. So those bunnies will be very careful with you.”
I do a lame Mister Burns’s evil hand gesture and mutter, “Good thing I’m not the kind of person to let power go to my head.”
Topanga grins at my fake confidence. “You look ready to puke.”
“I’m not used to being the center of attention or having people paying attention to me. I feel exposed in the Woodlands because I’m with the head honcho.”
“But you were a stripper,” Topanga says, frowning as if I might have downed too many beers despite me not drinking any.
“Yeah, but the only time I had all eyes on me was when I was on stage. I felt separate from the people staring. Here, they can put me on the spot. And this won’t happen when I’m prettied up and ready to perform either. It’ll be every time I go to the store or walk outside to check the mail.”
“You worry too much,” she says, handing me a beer. “Right now, you’re a shiny new toy Bronco’s brought home, and everyone wants to get a gander. In a few weeks, you’ll just be Lana. Just like I’m Topanga. When I showed up with Lowell years ago, the old ladies like Barbie and Bambi gave me so much grief. Now they barely acknowledge me unless I make a lot of noise,” she says and then adds in a devious voice, “Why do you think I’m so loud? I won’t be ignored until I get payback for the crap they pulled when I arrived.”
“How long ago was that again?”
“Seventeen years.”
I share her grin. “If I piss you off, will you hold a grudge that long?”
“Probably, but I’ll be really friendly so you’ll never be the wiser.”
“Oh, well, then that’s fine. Bronco made fake friends sound better than real enemies.”
Topanga lifts her sunglasses and winks at me. “That’s the spirit. I’m an optimistic person. That’s the best way to be.”
Nodding, I smile as if I’m an optimistic person too. Except I’m not. I don’t want Bronco fucking bunnies, and I don’t want them throwing shit at me. I just want to mind my own business, but that’s not an option in this community. Some things are open secrets, while the things I want to know about are closed off from me.
And there’s nothing I can do about that.
BRONCO
Bambi tracks down an address for Kenny Tappan. However, the guy we hire to find him in Kentucky says Lana’s ex has moved. A few days pass before we know where Kenny is staying and a time when he’ll be home.
Lowell and Anders drive with me down to the Kentucky trailer park. I roll right up to the front door of the rusted-out metal hull Kenny currently calls home. I suspect he lived better when he was mooching off his hot wife and stealing from his kid.
Anders rides around back to prevent Kenny from running. I bang on the door, half-expecting Kenny to start shooting. Lana made it sound as if her ex was more of a conman than a badass. That’s probably why he acts confused when he opens the door and asks if I’m lost.
I drag him out of the doorway and shove him against the wall