come here?” To her house of all places. They’ve never met.
Josh looks at the ground.
“Is there anything you want to tell me?” she asks. How long is he staying? Where does he plan to go? What’s she supposed to do with him? Why the hell isn’t he talking? She snaps her fingers below his face. “Josh. Where is your mom?”
“Gone.”
Gone? What’s that supposed to mean?
“Did she leave you? Or . . . Is she dead?”
Josh’s face pales, and Olivia has to fight her anger. How dare Lily die on her before she can beg Olivia for her forgiveness. No, not possible. Lily isn’t dead. Olivia refuses to believe that.
“Jeez, Olivia. Take it easy,” Amber whispers.
“Sorry.” She rakes her fingers through her hair. Nails scrape her scalp. She takes a breath, waits a beat. She didn’t mean to frighten him. What Lily and Ethan did was unforgivable, but Josh doesn’t deserve her rage. She tries again, tempers her voice. “Did your mom leave you?”
“Don’t . . . know.” He chews his bottom lip, his gaze shifting around the yard.
Amber nudges her arm. “You’re scaring him.”
He glances over his shoulder toward the road. Amber’s warning sinks in and Olivia swears. “Hey, it’s okay. Everything’s cool. Why don’t you come inside? You can hang out until your mom gets here.” She gives Amber a what-am-I-supposed-to-do-with-him look.
Amber comes to her rescue. “Are you hungry, Josh?”
Josh looks at Amber with interest.
“Do you want something to eat?” she clarifies.
“Yes.” He looks eagerly between them and mimes eating a hamburger.
“The kid wants a burger.”
Olivia taps her finger on her thigh. She wants a smoke. She also needs food. She’s been working on deadline and aside from spoiled takeout, her fridge is bare. “Sorry, Josh.” She hates to disappoint him. “I don’t have—”
“Yes, she does,” Amber interrupts with a big smile. “Aunt Olivia has hamburgers.”
“I do?”
“DoorDash. He’s had a long day. Haven’t you?” Josh frowns, cocking his head, then nods. Amber elbows Olivia’s ribs. “Give him what he wants. He’ll feel much better after.”
“All right then. Today’s your lucky day.” In more ways than she can count. Because by some miracle or fluke, her thirteen-year-old nephew found her.
CHAPTER 4
Olivia invites Josh to follow her and Amber inside the house. He wanders into the living room, scratching his head, leaving the cap askew, the bill tilted. His gaze pans from the floor to the ceiling and along the walls, absorbing everything in between.
The room is a disaster from her whirlwind scrub of Blaze’s belongings. Books lie askew on the shelves. Half her Blu-ray collection tumbled to the floor when she picked through movies, dropping Blaze’s in a box she dumped out front. Most of the decorative couch pillows are on the floor. She tossed those to pick up his stuff that fell into the cracks: the sock without a mate, the shirt tossed over the couch back that somehow weaseled its way behind the cushion, the used condom that never got tossed because they were both too tired to make it to the bathroom afterward. That one grossed her out. He said he’d taken care of it.
Josh crosses the room to the built-in bookshelf and straightens his cap. The hair covering his nape is a soft brown, several shades lighter than hers, with auburn highlights. He wears his maroon hoodie unzipped and sleeves pushed up past his elbows. There’s an image on his graphic tee underneath, but she can’t make out what. His hands are in the way. He grips his backpack as if the straps are armrests on an airplane seat and he fears flying. His black skinny jeans, fashionably frayed at the knees, remind her of something Blaze would wear. His black sneakers look new. That’s good. Lily doesn’t neglect the poor kid, unless Josh stole them. Heck, Lily could have stolen them. She was sixteen and pregnant. Doubtful she went to college. Did she even complete high school? A twinge of guilt for thinking harshly of Lily flickers to the forefront, its flame bright, impossible for her to ignore. Maybe she can’t afford clothes for him. She must have struggled to make ends meet. Maybe she still is struggling, and that’s why Josh took off?
Or maybe she never did struggle and had help. Ethan honored Olivia’s request. He never called her back. He could have been supporting Lily all this time.
Speaking of Ethan, where is he? The last she heard, he’s living in Los Angeles but spends more time abroad as a travel journalist. Could Lily