Things Lost In The Fire Read Online Free PDF

cash and accepted the bag, sniffing inside hungrily. “I’ll have to get you next time for a tip. That’s all I got right now.”
    One of Juan’s eyebrows lifted as he shook his head. “Man, you always say that shit. If you’re that poor maybe you should go get a real job or something.”
    “What, like you?” Brody snorted, their eyes meeting. His mouth twisted in a wry smile. “Then I’d be the sucker not making tips.”
    He closed the door against Juan’s threat to blacklist him from the restaurant. Chuckling to himself, Brody carried the bag into the kitchen and set it on the cheap laminate countertop. Grabbing a single box of chow mein and a pair of chopsticks, he returned to his seat on the couch and dug in.
    He mindlessly watched the game as he ate. A few moments later, his cell phone rang on the table beside him. When he read the caller-ID he rolled his eyes.
    “Yeah?” he answered, his words muffled by the food in his mouth.
    “ Hey, how’s it going? ” Chase, Mr. Perfect himself, asked cheerfully.
    “Just peachy, you?” Brody swallowed and set aside his food. He leaned back against the sofa, rubbing his face with his free hand.
    “ Good. Abby’s due in a couple of weeks. She’s so calm somehow, I don’t know how she does it. I’m a freaking mess. ”
    “Having babies is a scary business,” Brody drawled, toying with his lighter. He flicked it on and off, his eyes honed in on the flames. “If you’re looking for brotherly comfort you’d have better luck with a shrink.”
    Chase laughed. “ Probably. Hey, I wanted to remind you that Dad’s sixtieth birthday is coming up and we’re throwing him a big party at the house. He’d love for you to come. ”
    It was Brody’s turn to laugh. “You’re kidding, right?”
    “ No, not really— ”
    “The last time I attended one of these parties of yours, Dad and I nearly went to blows across the punch table. Trust me, he doesn’t want me to come.”
    “ Brody, please, ” Chase began. “ I know you guys don’t always get along, but it’d mean the world to me if you could just try for once. ”
    “You make it sound like I’m the problem,” Brody fired back, feeling bitter. “Don’t forget that Dad’s a part of the equation here, too. That stubborn old piece of shit just never really liked me. It’s okay, I accept that. You should too.”
    “ It doesn’t sound like you accept it. ” Chase’s voice went cold, a sure sign that he was at his wit’s end. “ You can keep trying to push me away, but I don’t give up so easily. Even when you’re an arrogant ass, you’re still my brother. ”
    “Gee, thanks.”
    “ Anytime. ”
    The line went dead as Chase hung up. Brody held the phone to his ear for another long moment. Eventually he set it aside, shutting his eyes tight against the guilt.
    His brother had a way of making him feel selfish when he was pretty sure avoiding the family was in everyone’s best interests. There was no reconciling with his father, so why bother trying?
    No longer feeling hungry, he packaged up the chow mein and tossed it and the rest of the boxes into the fridge. He swiped his gym bag off the floor of his closet-sized bedroom and slung it over his shoulder, eager to sweat out his frustrations. A good session kicking the shit out of a boxing bag would do the trick.
    He grabbed his keys and left the apartment, locking it behind him. As he trotted down the stairs, he passed his elderly neighbor who was headed up. She scowled at him, muttering something in Spanish under her breath. Like many of the residents in the complex, she knew who he was and what he’d done. There was no escaping it.
    “Hello to you too, you old bag.” He clenched his teeth around the words with a fake grin as he passed.
    He ignored whatever else she grumbled and headed for his car, shaking off what remained of his guilt.

 

     
     
    S HE DROVE down the 101 and watched the city come alive with light. It was impossible not to