think," Maggie answered. "I have some more thinking to do before heading home."
Bill nodded again. Taking her hand, he kissed it ever so lightly in a most gentlemanly fashion. "It's been a pleasure, Miss Calamity," he said, smiling up at her.
Maggie looked into his soft brown eyes, feeling warmed by this stranger she felt she knew so well after only two days. She was going to miss Wild Bill and that surprised her.
"It's Maggie," she told him.
His eyes danced as he looked her over as if for the first time.
Still holding her hand, he winked at her. "Maggie," he said, as if testing the name on his lips. "Now, that's a fine name. See ya, Maggie," he said, as he let go of her hand and slipped on his helmet.
Maggie waved as he drove down the street. "See ya, Bob," she said quietly, using his real name for the first time. Then she turned and walked into the hotel.
Chapter Seven
Kaia and Kyle stared at their dad as he explained that he'd talked to their mom the night before and she wasn't coming home yet. "She's okay but just needs a little break from everything," Andrew had said, as way of explanation, and Kaia continued to stare at him through narrowed eyes, as if trying to extract the real truth of his words.
Maybe he killed her , Kaia thought, and disposed of the body . His eyes were just a little bit shifty, after all, if you looked close enough. Just because everyone thought he was a good-looking man didn't mean he didn't have it in him. Wasn't it always the least likely person who ended up disposing of his wife, or even his whole family? And he looked nervous, as if he wasn't telling the entire truth. And what about all the tension that had been in the house over the past year? Had he finally snapped and done her in? Her stare turned into a glare, and her father finally looked right at her with a confused look.
"What?" Andrew asked, which had snapped Kaia out of her murder fantasy and back to reality.
"Nothing," she replied darkly.
"Fine," he said. "Make sure you don't miss your bus."
Kaia grudgingly didn't miss her bus, but she fumed all the way to school thinking of a few murder plots of her own.
Okay, she thought as the bus rolled on and on, stop after stop. So her father probably didn't kill her mother, but what was this bit about needing a break? What did her mother do that was so tiring that she needed a break? And how selfish of her, to take off and not tell anyone, to leave Kaia under the reign of her dad who knew absolutely nothing about running a house or being with kids. The more Kaia thought about it, the angrier she became. "Well, maybe I need a break, too," she said under her breath. "What if I just stopped doing what I'm supposed to do and did what I want?"
Kaia began to like her new way of thinking. She'd never skipped school before, but she knew a few kids who did, on occasion, and she knew she could hook up with them. She devised a plan on how not to get caught, and by the time the school bus stopped in the school parking lot to unload, she was ready to put her plan in motion.
***
Andrew's day hadn't gone very well and when he returned home that evening, it didn't get any better. Walking through the back door at the end of the day, he was nearly tripped by Bear, who rushed outside to do his business on the back lawn. From somewhere inside the house, he heard a voice say, "You're supposed to put Bear on his leash, or he'll run all over the neighborhood." Andrew poked his head around the corner to see his daughter leaning over a book at the kitchen table and eating a banana.
"Why didn't you let Bear out when you came home?" he asked, as he put his briefcase on the back counter.
Kaia rolled her eyes. "No one told me I had to," she said. "Am I supposed to do everything?"
Andrew wanted to ask exactly what she had done since she'd come home but refrained, and headed out to the yard to catch Bear and put him on his leash.
The evening swept by in a flurry of activity,
Bill nodded again. Taking her hand, he kissed it ever so lightly in a most gentlemanly fashion. "It's been a pleasure, Miss Calamity," he said, smiling up at her.
Maggie looked into his soft brown eyes, feeling warmed by this stranger she felt she knew so well after only two days. She was going to miss Wild Bill and that surprised her.
"It's Maggie," she told him.
His eyes danced as he looked her over as if for the first time.
Still holding her hand, he winked at her. "Maggie," he said, as if testing the name on his lips. "Now, that's a fine name. See ya, Maggie," he said, as he let go of her hand and slipped on his helmet.
Maggie waved as he drove down the street. "See ya, Bob," she said quietly, using his real name for the first time. Then she turned and walked into the hotel.
Chapter Seven
Kaia and Kyle stared at their dad as he explained that he'd talked to their mom the night before and she wasn't coming home yet. "She's okay but just needs a little break from everything," Andrew had said, as way of explanation, and Kaia continued to stare at him through narrowed eyes, as if trying to extract the real truth of his words.
Maybe he killed her , Kaia thought, and disposed of the body . His eyes were just a little bit shifty, after all, if you looked close enough. Just because everyone thought he was a good-looking man didn't mean he didn't have it in him. Wasn't it always the least likely person who ended up disposing of his wife, or even his whole family? And he looked nervous, as if he wasn't telling the entire truth. And what about all the tension that had been in the house over the past year? Had he finally snapped and done her in? Her stare turned into a glare, and her father finally looked right at her with a confused look.
"What?" Andrew asked, which had snapped Kaia out of her murder fantasy and back to reality.
"Nothing," she replied darkly.
"Fine," he said. "Make sure you don't miss your bus."
Kaia grudgingly didn't miss her bus, but she fumed all the way to school thinking of a few murder plots of her own.
Okay, she thought as the bus rolled on and on, stop after stop. So her father probably didn't kill her mother, but what was this bit about needing a break? What did her mother do that was so tiring that she needed a break? And how selfish of her, to take off and not tell anyone, to leave Kaia under the reign of her dad who knew absolutely nothing about running a house or being with kids. The more Kaia thought about it, the angrier she became. "Well, maybe I need a break, too," she said under her breath. "What if I just stopped doing what I'm supposed to do and did what I want?"
Kaia began to like her new way of thinking. She'd never skipped school before, but she knew a few kids who did, on occasion, and she knew she could hook up with them. She devised a plan on how not to get caught, and by the time the school bus stopped in the school parking lot to unload, she was ready to put her plan in motion.
***
Andrew's day hadn't gone very well and when he returned home that evening, it didn't get any better. Walking through the back door at the end of the day, he was nearly tripped by Bear, who rushed outside to do his business on the back lawn. From somewhere inside the house, he heard a voice say, "You're supposed to put Bear on his leash, or he'll run all over the neighborhood." Andrew poked his head around the corner to see his daughter leaning over a book at the kitchen table and eating a banana.
"Why didn't you let Bear out when you came home?" he asked, as he put his briefcase on the back counter.
Kaia rolled her eyes. "No one told me I had to," she said. "Am I supposed to do everything?"
Andrew wanted to ask exactly what she had done since she'd come home but refrained, and headed out to the yard to catch Bear and put him on his leash.
The evening swept by in a flurry of activity,
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