Royally Broken by Elle Boon Page 0,11
yours is far superior even when you...were asleep and clearly it was too.”
Silas looked down at his no longer sleeping penis as she called it in her proper southern drawl. If the good ole boys from town saw them, he’d be locked up behind bars or worse. It was the or worse that got him moving, even though every ache in his body let itself be known.
“Do you need some help back there?”
“No, I don’t. Girl, you’re trying to get me killed,” he wheezed. Finally, he had his jeans up, the damp denim at least no longer had dirt and grime on them. His T-shirt was dry, and it was marginally cleaner. Moving back to the bank, he stepped on rocks, careful not to fall into the water.
She watched him until he was next to her. “You’re holding your side. Are you sure you don’t want to see a doctor?”
He let out a frustrated sigh. “In two months, I’m leaving here, Palmer. The last fucking thing I need is to have the doc take a look at me and put something in a chart that will make the Navy not accept me.”
“You’re leaving?” Palmer whispered, her hand coming up to his chest.
She was five foot nothing while he was over six feet in his stocking feet. He looked at her tan hand against his dirt stained shirt. Her nails were painted a pale pink with white tips, some professional name he couldn’t think of. Shit, the absolute last thing he needed was to have her touching the likes of him, especially when his dick was reacting to her closeness. Eighteen and fifteen might not be illegal in most states, but in their little town of backwater Missouri, it damn well was.
He put his hand over hers, glad the dirt and shit all else was washed away so at least he was touching her with clean hands. “Palmer, this town has nothing to offer me but a park bench when I graduate.” Sure, he could’ve lied and said something, anything else, but she had to know his reality.
“Why do they treat you so poorly?” Her hand ran a slow circle over his heart.
Fuck, it felt good having another touch him without expecting pain. “I don’t know, Sunshine, I really don’t. You being here is dangerous for the both of us though. You know that, right?” He stopped her hand before she could continue petting him. He wasn’t a damn house pet you tamed; she needed to remember that.
“I...I know. I should be going. MeMaw will be wondering where I ran off to. You sure you’re gonna be alright?” she asked, staring up at him, blue eyes glistening.
“Yeah, I’ll be right as rain, Sunshine. You best get on before you’re missed. I’ll see you on the bus.” That was the only time he ever saw her, the only time he allowed himself to. She was too sweet, too good, and too young for him.
That night, he watched dumb and dumber drive down the road, whooping and hollering like usual. He knew they’d be drunk when they got home. Their mama was every bit as mean as they were, but he was bigger than she was now. Palmer had left him a bag of food. Of course, she hadn’t let him see it until she’d gone. For the last two years or so, he’d found similar bags near his tree where he got on and off the bus. The confirmation wasn’t needed, but it was somewhat welcome.
He looked at the shed he slept in most nights. The space had a tin roof, which kept him dry when it rained, but until he’d gotten all the cracks filled with straw, magazines, and whatever else he could scavenge without the Langley’s missing them, it had been a cold and wet space. He hated his entire existence, worked to keep away from the place for as long as he could every day. If he could’ve, he’d have run away, but the old bitch who had taken him in promised to tell him who his parents were when he graduated high school. One more month and he was out.
Silas thought about sleeping in the shed, then remembered his wake-up call from before. Instead he slipped in, grabbing some things he’d need for a few days. Hell, he wasn’t sure if he’d be coming back. Not like they offered much in the way of creature comforts, nor would they report him missing. All he had to do was