STEPDADDY AND I
CHAPTER 1
CHLOE
Mom’s been gone thirty-six hours and the house already feels different.
I “forgot” to do laundry on purpose. The only clean thing left is one of Ryan’s old college T-shirts (soft, faded, hanging halfway down my thighs) and the tiniest pink cotton shorts I own. No bra. No panties. The shorts are so small they barely cover the curve of my ass, and every time I bend over the shirt rides up just enough.
I’ve been prancing around like this all morning, stretching on tiptoes to reach cereal bowls I don’t need, dropping spoons on purpose so I have to bend over slow. Ryan’s been watching from the couch, jaw tight, beer untouched in his hand.
Now it’s afternoon. I’m in the laundry room, humming, pretending to look for dryer sheets. The machine is still spinning
